Teenage times

ZZZzzz - this is the right size bed for me

Isn't it amazing how time flies. Here we are in September with Balou's first birthday just a few days off - he'll be one this Sunday, September 9th. Balou's teenage behaviour continues to keep us on our toes. He might be rather slower than his little friends but he likes to test the boundaries just like they did. Current favourites are counter surfing - he is very keen on eating cat food! Sneaking (yes a Leonberger can sneak) into my bedroom and onto the bed. This is what I call his Goldilocks move - finding a bed which is just right. He has also become obsessed with intact boys. Luckily we've only met a couple of girls in season but there are plenty of boys who are still boasting their manhood. When Balou sniffs out one of these he does a dirty dart to go and investigate. Cue attempts to mount, smack with his big paws, yowl with excitement and generally pester the other boys. Needless to say this behaviour isn't popular with the other dogs or their owners! 

Puppy paddling pool - yay!

His adolescence is showing itself in other ways too - he's becoming more assertive and standing up for himself, sometimes even throwing his weight around which is something we are watching carefully. Balou himself is eventually destined for the snip, not least because he has an undescended testicle. At the moment I am trying to hold off a little longer but it seems likely that we will have to have him neutered slightly earlier than the 18 month mark I was hoping to hold out for. The benefits of delaying neutering by a couple of months have to be weighed against the disadvantages and impact on his behaviour of allowing him to form bad habits. It's a tricky one!

Enjoying a friend's pond on a warm day

Hmmm - who is going to win this tug of war?

Best of friends, Balou and Bouche.