Happy New Year everyone! I can't believe that 2015 is just around the corner! I've had a great time in 2014 - I met my uncle's guide dog Quip for the first time, went to the amazing land of Australia for a wedding and saw some lovely people (and exotic animals too), saw some of my favourite horses on a break to Suffolk and Simba, my rabbit, turned 4 years old. I haven't written about all my adventures of 2014 yet, but as soon as I get some time I will update my blog.
It's amazing to see how much Quip has changed over the past year, and here he is posing in front of the Xmas tree for his first Christmas! He's now 10 months old and is still on course with the Guide Dogs to get through his first year of training. My uncle, Richard, has also been told that he will be keeping Quip for a bit longer until June, so I'm glad that I can see him for a bit longer. They will also get updates about Quip as he continues his training elsewhere, so I'll make sure that I get all the details when he leaves us.
They also had a lovely time at the Guide Dogs Christmas meet up - 15 puppies training to be Guide Dogs all in one cafe was certainly a sight to see!
Quip's now got another new Guide Dog coat and he loves showing it off to everyone! It may look a bit small on him, but it was the biggest one they had! Quip always looks so proud when Richard puts his coat on and knows that he's got a job to do.
It's not just us who get Christmas presents, I had to buy Quip some too! As Quip is a working dog, I checked with Richard to see if there was anything I could give Quip that the Guide Dogs would approve on and he suggested some rawhide bones. They are better than normal treats for Quip and gives him something to chew on - and enjoy!
He's now on 17oz of food everyday, which is a lot more than the 2 x 4oz he was on when Richard first started to look after him! At 10 months old, Quip is a teenager, but still has some puppy in him. We know this because he goes off to sleep at 10pm and doesn't get up again until 7am. He really likes his sleep.
Quip is such a gentle giant and it's been lovely to see him grow over this past year. He's really good when he's out training and even with Richard's step-grandchild Elsa who is two years old. She comes round the house often and will wander around quite happily with Quip there. If he gets in the way, she just pushes his nose away!
I'm sure I'll have plenty more updates on Quip to tell you all in 2015, so I'll leave you with this collage. It's made up of a photo of Quip every month so far. Happy New Year!
