34 pounds of chocolately fun!

Today, Nate and I weighed Layla for the first time in a week or so and were NOT surprised to learn that she weighs 34 pounds. I can definitely tell the difference when I pick her up. I'm also starting to realize that being able to pick her up will not be an option much longer.

At least, not if we keep feeding her...

Layla's big girl teeth are also starting to develop and they're razor sharp. She "accidentally" bit my thumb while we were playing today and she took a chunk of skin with her. Nate and I are starting to look like battered parents.

Nate also noticed that her baby teeth are falling out. She has a little hole near the front of her mouth where a tooth used to be. It was cool to see, but it makes me wonder...

Where the heck is her tooth?

Did she eat it? Am I going to step on it on the floor? Do puppies have tooth fairies?

My money is on option number two.

Also, Layla is biting anything and everything to help cope with her teething. This includes our wall, pieces of furniture, shoes, socks, dryer sheets, my hair and a special love for flip-flops. Oh and anything that moves - including us.

It seems like when we take her to the park now she's more interested in pulling on our pant legs or biting our ankles than actually walking. No joke, the other day she grabbed by pants at just the right spot and nearly de-pantsed me in the middle of the park. Now I wear pants with drawstrings and try to keep her on a short leash. We'll see if this improves with some time.

Anyway, I just wanted to post a quick update to let you know Layla is doing well. She's even transitioned to her new dog food pretty well. Although, she also does try to eat litter off the ground so there really wasn't any reason to be concerned with her not liking the taste...

Cheers,

Jen and Nate

Layla's personality starts to shine

I like to think pets are like humans in the sense that they each have their own personality. Layla is already starting to show her personality, flaws included.

She's still a big sleeper and likes to be lazy after a long walk or a big meal. You can often find her lounging on "her" blanket on the floor in front of the couch.

She's also becoming more and more social, which is fairly characteristic of a lab. She LOVES people. If we're out walking she has to stop so people can pet her. Or if she's off the leash, she'll run up to people so they notice her. Same thing when we go out to eat. Here in Germany you can bring your dog into the restaurant with you. We've been trying to socialize Layla in this setting, but I think it will be an uphill battle. The entire time you're eating, she's trying to get to a neighboring table so she can mingle!

She's also starting to pout. She's got it down to a routine now. When you tell her no the first time, she barks. The second time, it's a smaller bark. The third time, it's a whimper or a whine. And the fourth time, she hangs her head and walks off to pout.

She's clever. If Nate tells her no, she comes to me. If I push her off the bed, she walks over to Nate to see if he'll let her up. She's just like a child.

She likes to be close. At first, she wasn't much of a snuggle puppy, but now she likes to be near you. If you're on the couch, she wants to lay on the pillow by your head. If you're in bed, she wants to lay on your legs. If you're getting out of the shower, she wants to lick your legs. And if you're watching TV, she'll lay next to you and watch too.

It should be interesting to see how much her personality changes as she gets older. I can hardly wait!

Cheers,

Jen and Nate