Thursday, April 11, 2013

The beginning is the most important part of the work.





A beautiful cloud free morning.The sound of the cuckoos in the valley echoing up the hill. Time to load-up the pups and head down to the little market town to meet the beer and absinthe crowd. A parking space opposite the cafe under the arcades magically appears. The cars tailgate opened so that Bob and Sophie can look out. The man on the motability scooter sees them and waves. The waitress brings two coffees out to us at the car. '' Would the puppies like half a croissant each ? ". We thank her but explain their stomachs aren't up to rich food Yet. Bob looks up at the waitress with his best '' I think I'm going to love you " look.

The greengrocers wife wanders over to the back of the car and makes a strange half trilling , half gargling noise. Bob turns his head and listens , Sophie dives under him and tries to become invisible. Then it's the turn of the lady in the blue dressing gown, green hairnet and red pompom slippers to be introduced. She raises her pre-breakfast glass of Pelforth , laughs and toasts their arrival. Sophie licks her finger.

So it is that the ' PON's ' discover that there's a whole wide world of adventure outside the front gate.

Day 4. House training going well. We've almost got it down pat. The nipping habit proving to be more difficult to deal with . The first training session. An hour spent teaching stay and sit. They get sit. The concept of stay altogether more problematic. Why stay when you can go ? Sophie to our surprise climbs the outside stairs to the terrace. Bob watches.

They are absorbing information like a sponge soaks up water.

26 comments:

booahboo said...

The whole town is gonna love them to bits...

WFT Nobby said...

So, an important question. At what stage is a puppy's tummy up to receiving half a croissant? Is it different for French dogs? Where is the research? Perhaps google will help.
Toodle pip!
Bertie

Bella Roxy & Macdui said...

What clever pups. Maybe a taste of croissant would be okay.

XXXOOO Daisy, Bella & Roxy

Angus said...

We've seen what a tiny sliver of chicken can do to the little darlings constitutions !!!! A rich butter roissant is a month off at least .

Joanna said...

TOO adorable!!

xx (for Bob and Sophie)

Anonymous said...

Befitting the joyous arrival of BOB and SOPHIE, this wonderful video from Youtube: GOD MADE A DOG . For ANGUS and the FONT and all the dog lovers who follow this blog. Sound turned to "ON" please. Enjoy. From the Westcoast of Canada, EDENA. (If you cannot connect to the link, just go to Google and type in:
GOD MADE A DOG)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDgXMmC7goE

Poppy Q said...

Oh I just want to give them a smooch. They are both so sweet.

Craig said...

I can just see the village regulars all giddy over the pups. They have a starring role in your village ahead of them.

fleurlilian said...

They are absolutely adorable - Sophie the clever leader you will see - first trampoline and then the stairs --- there are surprise ahead of you - your village is now "Pon-Village" - lol Susanne, Foxiie, Daisy and Kirilirili

MLou said...

I would loved to have seen their debut at the cafe. A day to be remembered.

Modern Country Lady said...

I can't get over how adorable they are.I am so happy for all of you to have these adorable pups.

VirginiaC said...

Oh how exciting for them to be discovering a world outside the ROF, and lots of new people with new smells to get accustomed to.
I've got my money on Sophie, she will be the rebel....climbing stairs while Bob watches...priceless.

~Kim at Golden Pines~ said...

Another milestone day for Bob and Sophie!

I had to grin at your saying "we've almost got it down pat." It's true, WE are the ones that end up being the best trained!

Heda said...

They are absolutely gorgeous. And so good. Clearly no trouble in the car which is a big plus. They seem happy and gentle apart from the odd puppy nip. Polite. Striving so hard to be good. What dear little dogs they are.

Anonymous said...

They are like sponges at this age. These early experiences are so important to the future shape of their characters.
I remember the absolute fun and joy I experienced teaching Merlin. So eager to please and thoroughly embracing of each new challenge. I know I am biased, but PON's are such bright little souls. But, very confident in their own point of view!
x

Angus said...

How right you are. Both are VERY confident in their own point of view.

Jean said...

Having only ever had one puppy, our lovely Lulu, I remember how exhausting it was getting through the first few weeks, but how much fun, too.
Her own personal routine started quite early on - we would flop exhausted in front of the telly every night at about nine o'clock while she had a mad half hour and hurtled along the back of the sofa, to and fro, then between our laps, while we just looked on in dazed amazement.

We took her to puppy training classes where she did really well but she was the only one to fail the test for her certificate - because she never mastered the art of sitting still for two minutes !!

tammy j said...

oh angus. i'm late to the party! and nothing to be said. I've lingered over every picture and read every wonderful comment.
could there be more new puppies with such an eager 'following!' well. of course. we all love puppies.
but these are wee pons in the france profonde. and they're their own little persons. but they fill big shoes.
my heart sometimes still leaps at the sight of them. wilf and digby with black on them. happiness rules.

kipper said...

They obviously are super intelligent regarding the rapid housebreaking. The nipping and biting--that is what truly tested my patience with our pup. My how a puppy can sneak in those littl nips when you don't expect them. When the kidz are a bit older you might want to get them those hard rubber things called Kong. Put a bit of their food in it and it will keep them and their teeth amused for a bit.

Anonymous said...

The video is good.

Charlotte said...

You must have such happy days since you get to enjoy every thing these two do each day.

Jean said...

I can vouch for the fact that the kong gave us much peace and quiet and saved our sanity on many an occasion.

houndstooth said...

I can't imagine anyone not being charmed by both of them! Ah, I remember the chewing days! I lost a pair of pajamas and two pairs of pants to Kuster's sharp little teeth, not to mention some blood. We got a lot of advice about how to get him to stop, but the thing that worked best for us was to quit whatever we were doing immediately and walk away from him or put him in the crate. Yelping like we were hurt just got him all riled up even worse, and usually his nipping happened when he was excited or overstimulated. By the time he was done teething, he didn't bite us anymore. It just phased out.

Jo's World said...

Isn't there a lot to be said for the 12 week old puppy vs. the 8 week old one? This pair of Pons you have are simply wonderful and I am with those who think Sophie is going to wind up showing the way for Bob!

Cheers,
Jo

KB said...

I think that I'm going to love you! I love that line - Is that the same waitress as Wilf knew?

What an interesting pair. Sophie seems retiring around new people but adventurous with other scary things. I can't wait to hear more about them growing up!

MrsDuncanMahogany said...

I do not think these pups could get any cuter. They are absolutely adorable!