If you have come across any of my other dog blogs, you will notice that my dog has a rather unusual name: Camplight. While this name can be abreiveated to “Camp” or “Campers”, we just stick with “Camplight”.

When we first found out we were getting a dog, Camplight wasn’t the first name on my list. I was thinking along the lines of Ziggy, if a girl, Jasper or Charlie, if a boy. And yet… We ended up with Camplight.

It’s the sort of name that when you tell someone, there is a double take… Or a sideways look before they convey their normal, standard dog name – maybe something like Rex or even Baxter. While this is happening, their normal dog, with a normal name, is casually sitting and ignoring our dog, with its slightly less normal name, as he hectically tries to play or find a stick.

And yet…. I cannot imagine my adorable, fluffy, crazy cockapoo with any name other than Camplight.

So, why Camplight?

Well, when we first proached the idea of a dog, my dad said that we could but after persuasion. Now, I tried writing stories,essays on why dogs are NECESSARY part of EVERYONE’S life but, alas, it was to no avail. Then, on came the music….

“When I Think Of My Dog” by BC Camplight. And there emerges the name…. We could have a dog but it had to be called Camplight.

I have a friend with a pug called Mortimer, which I think is a pretty good name… But then, I don’t know if I’m the best judge as far as naming your dog comes!

Anyway, to conclude, I love my dog and, “when I think of my dog” I am happy, because he is perfect.

If this is the first of my blogs you are reading it may not make sense unless you have read at least the first one. In short it is the blog of my experience as a first time dog owner.

Camplight is perfect. We have now started taking him to dog training, which he is doing really well at, as he can already sit, stay, lay down and roll over. I could not wish for a better dog. We are now working on maintaining a level of calmness because he can get very excited when he sees another dog but this is rapidly improving. My favourite places to walk him are in the woods and by the canal on a nice evening. Surprisingly he only fell in the canal once. Recently he had an operation. Those of you who own a pet, will probably know what I mean when I say he had the operation but for those of you who do not, he was neutered. He now has a cone on his head which he hates and cannot be walked off the lead.

If this is the first post you have read by me, please read the others first because otherwise this will not make sense. Enjoy….

We took him for his first walk yesterday. We walked him on his lead for the first five or so minutes, but it was clear we were not getting anywhere, besides which, it was tipping it down with rain. This being the case, we released him. After doing so, he was quite happy just to trot along with us. All in all, it was an enjoyable walk. He enjoyed having a good run and game of chase.

Camplight-my lovely puppy- is now sleeping quietly, and responding beautifully to the lead. I could not wish for a more well behaved or adorable dog. We have recently been working on training him to return to the sound of a whistle which he has responded extremely well to. Having a dog has gotten us all to share more family walks as well as making us go outside when it is raining. Having a dog is calming, as well as very social, when you meet other dog owners as you explore new places. There is nothing I would rather do now than walk my lovely dog. I would thoroughly recommend having a dog to anyone who has the time to dedicate to him or her.

I had wanted a dog all my life and finally I was allowed one. We got a gorgeous cockapoo

After ‘Day One’, things only got better. Camplight did his first wees outside on Tuesday, and he did a poo outside on Wednesday. On Tuesday, he met his first dog that he was not related to. It went rather well, other than for the fact that he thought this dog was his mother, and followed her around trying to suckle from her. We had a good laugh at this, and her confused barking, which finished with them chasing eachother, and me, around our garden. That evening, on of us slept downstairs with him.

Note: If you are going to sleep in the same room as your dog, do not let them onto the same sleeping space as you. If you do, they will expect to be closer to you, and then separation will become harder for them. This will result in whining and howling. Furthermore, if your dog is upset, do not go to them unless they have stopped whining otherwise they will think that them whining has attracted your attention. They might misconstrue this as them being rewarded for misbehaving. If you go to them when they are quiet, they will eventually link themselves being quiet to being rewarded.

On Wednesday, toilet training went very well. Also, we taught him to lay down, stay, and roll over as a bonus to his sit training on Monday.

Note: To teach your dog to lay down, make them sit, and then draw the treat down towards their feet. If their head follows, drag it out and away. After a few attempts, your puppy will may down. When he does this, use the reward method, I explained in ‘Day 1’. To teach them to roll over, make them lie down, and then draw the treat from their nose towards their ear. To begin with they may need nudging but eventually they will not.

That night we remained downstairs, but he woke up less and seemed more comfortable. However, he preferred the cat bed to the crate. We have got a soft one which we are now training him to use.
By Friday night, he was weeing and pooing outside. On Monday he did not have a lot of attention because none of us were really able to give him any. His toilet training slipped a little.
On Tuesday, he want to the doggy daycare company for the first time which he seemed to really enjoy. He met a lot of other dogs.

Note: Puppy daycare companies are excellent to socialise your dog with others. If you are busy on some days during the week, it is a good way to keep your puppy busy, and happy.

Do you believe in love at first sight? Well neither did I until I met Camplight. He is my first ever dog, and right from the day I met him, it has been love. We picked him up in the half term after a weekend away. For a dog who has never really outside, let alone away from his parents, he coped very well with separation. He had only been in a car once before – a short trip to the vets with his mum, dad, and the rest of his litter- so going in a car on a two hour drive, with people he did not know must have been a massive change for him, and he managed excellently. In fact, he was so layed back that he slept the whole way home on my knees. As soon as we got home, we took him outside to try and reach him from the off that he should wee and poo outside. This was not successful. Despite this, we continued right away with his training. I taught him to sit with only two attempts.

Note: If you want to teach your puppy to sit hold a puppy infront of their nose and draw it in toward their chest. Then, as soon as their bottom hits the ground, say “Well done.” Or something to that affect. If you have a clicker, click before saying this, because the clicker shows the dog that they have done well if it is followed by a treat. Now reward your puppy with a treat. Camplight really likes the mini sausages.

Then we tried to take him outside to the toilet again. This was to no avail, though it was good fun to take him out, and for a thorough runaround. It was fair to say we loved him. He was cute, eager to please, and had a delightful temperament. Then again, the nightie was not as fun. However wonderful he had been during the day, he was that bad in the night. He whined and howled for one hour before one of us went downstairs to sleep in the same room as him. I had to get up at four am to take him to the toilet and give him some excersise.

So that was day one. Terrible in the night but incredibly awesome in the day.

Thanks for joining me!

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton