I have been able to help another first time dog owner, so thank you. On Sat while out on my bike with Abby we passed a lady who grabbed her dog as we went past I thought it was because she was afraid of abby so said its ok she is harmless she muttered something about her not being, I thought nothing of it and carried on as we were almost half way round, anyway on the way back her puppy came bounding up to us and she started screaming at it it went back to her and she smacked it and started saying stupid dog i have had enough and that she was going to get rid of her. I wanted to make sure that if she was getting rid of her puppy that she was going to do it properly so i started talking to her, turns out that she has convinced herself that her dog hates her and that the best thing for both of them would be to give her up. I asked how old she was 7mths and what the problem was she said that in the last week she had eaten three of the kitchen cupboards and ripped up the carpet, she had only moved here 4weeks ago away from all her family and friends due to work. She had convinced herself that her dog hjated her and as she had smacked her before that she had ruined her and the dog would never trust her at that point she started crying(Mary doesnt know what to do when people cry as I am not into hugging people other than my kids) so with a pat on the arm and a there there everything will be ok(not a great help I know but the best I could do) she threw the lead to me and told me to keep her as she behaved better for me than her. i stood ther wondering how I was going to explain going out with Abby and coming back with a lab puppyshe turned around and couldnt leave her puppy. When she came back I told her that as long as she was willing and wasnt going to smack her puppy I would do everything I could to help, she looked so relieved anyway she is going to put Saffy(lab) back into a crate when she goes out(4hrs then out for two hrs and crate for 2 hrs is that too long?), she is going to leave her with a stuffed kong and she is going to find obedience classes for her I have told her that I will always be on the other end of the phone and that if her puppy chews its not going to know not to chew through cables then she will die and it will be the owners fault. Anyway Monday everything went really well and instead of gettin upset with the puppy when she got home from work they played together.
She commented on how well behaved Abby was I pointed out abby was almost 2 and that there had been days that i cried as I felt so much a failure when it came to her training.
She loves her puppy and just needed someone to help put her back on track, so Im afraid that I will be on here asking lots of advice for her.
Thanks again
Mary

Oh... Mary what a lovely person you are there are so many people who would have just walked away ....this lady sounds like she needed a friendly face and someone to talk to as well as help with her young puppy and she  found that in you
I'm nowhere near as knowledgeable as some people on here... but have had dogs for many years and will help you and your new found friend anyway I can. :)

well done

~Roni

Good for you Mary - you may just have provided a light at the end of the tunnel for this partnership :)  You're obviously a very caring and considerate person - often thin on the ground these days.

Best wishes, Teri ;)  

When Abby was a stroppy teenager sometimes you cant see the light at the end of the tunnel, I was lucky I found people on here and I have now met a new friend.
Mary

Good for you Mary, that was a really kind thing to do. Kind of restores my faith in human nature, there obviously are some nice people out there!
well done
Rach

Well done, Mary, your help has undoubtedly made a big difference.  It's amazing how much confidence people can gain by having the support of just one person who understands.  I was helped by someone in very similar circumstances many years ago - as a result we developed a truly wonderful friendship which has now lasted 10 years. :) 

So instead of looking for angels with halo's now I need to look for women riding bikes with Dobe's eh?

You have made my day. Thanks for that, Karen

Thank you, I am getting daily updates and so far so good.
I was lucky that I found people on here to support me when I got Abby this poor woman has no one well now she has me and all of you.
Mary

That is absolutely fantastic - well done you, Mary - what a lucky day for that poor lady when you went past!

Keep us posted, won't you.

Margot

yes I will keep you all updated. She comes from working lines so the owner thought it would be a good idea to get her doing some gundog training but as she is new to the area she has no idea where to take her, anyone got any ideas we are in Hertfordshire.
Mary

Well done you, it makes me feel really happy after all the sad stories about dogs you read! All us novice owners need is a bit of sympathy and support, we do our best!! :-)

Good for you, I hope you manage to help her :)

Lindsay
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