NOTHING in life is as simple and pure as a dog's love, they say.
Whether we deserve such unconditional affection is another matter.
SETTLING IN: Teddy at ten months
And it may be hard to know what "love" actually means to man's best friend. What does the cheery wag of a tail actually convey?
We think Teddy is looking a whole lot more relaxed these days after those initial weeks when he was just a puppy, freshly arrived in yet another new home, the fourth of his short life.
CHILLED OUT: exploring the neighbourhood
Six months on, he sleeps through the night, seems to relish the peaceful gloom of his crate and appears to find it easy to relax around the house, knowing there are quiet times of the day when he is not the centre of attention.
His bladder control has improved dramatically and he'll no longer wake desperate for that early morning wee.
OUT AND ABOUT: sniffing out new scents
But when he does need to go, he knows how to ring a bell to go out and has learned to distinguish the need to answer a call of nature from a walk that's purely for pleasure…
That big smile of his seems broader and appears more frequently. Reunions involve a lot of enthusiastic licks and tail wagging, of flopping over for a tummy rub. And he's more likely to cheerfully try to sit on your lap while chewing a toy, despite the fact that at 35kg he's a little too large and clumsy to be a lapdog.
BIG SMILE: relaxing in the long grass
Never as obsessively motivated by food as many of his ilk, it's still predictably hard to discourage him from begging at meal times. And he's never been one of those dogs who gets obsessively excited at the mere prospect of a walk, much as he appears to love such outings.
But certainly for us, the bond is growing as we get to find out more about his personality and gradually get to grips with the more boisterous and worrying aspects of his teenage behaviour.
LIGHTS IN THE SKY: the aurora borealis
The list of shared experiences is growing too – of night walks in the woods, of the chance to see the Northern Lights over Chalfont St Giles, explore another section of the Chiltern Way or savour a glorious sunset while he snuffles about in the undergrowth.
EVENING CLOUDS: dusk falls in Chalfont St Giles
Dawn and dusk are favourite times of the day for a chilled-out wander, and after the bluebells of April, May is the month when woodland paths are awash with ferns, foxgloves and rhododendrons, joyful purple splashes amid those rich, glorious greens.
PUTTING ON A SHOW: rhododendrons in full bloom
After all the grime and mud of earlier in the year, at last the sun is out and the woods are warm, echoing to the sound of birdsong and the buzzing of insects.
WOODLAND SHADOWS: sun shines through the trees
Leisurely rambles are punctuated by the whistle of a red kite, the bark of a muntjac or the high-pitched "kee-wick" of the female tawny owl as dusk falls.
GLORIOUS VIEWS: the countryside comes to life in June
As May turns to June the shorts are dusted off, the rambles become a little longer as the Chilterns countryside really comes to life.
Skirting those big old houses with their gorgeous gardens, footpaths lead off through ripening wheat fields to grassy meadows and dark woodland groves.
ON THE RIGHT PATH: heading to the woods
Horses munch languidly in the fields or wander over to take a curious look over the fence as we pass.
Foxes and rabbits scamper across adjoining fields, but Teddy still has problems spotting any of the local wildlife, so immersed is he in the intriguing scents he is following.
At this age, every walk is still a training walk, of course, so there's less time to focus on the views or local flora when there are lessons to be learned.
FOREST SCHOOL: every walk can be a training lesson
Plus boisterous Ted is still too prone to suddenly bolt off in an excited bound at the sight of a pigeon for you to safely take your eye off his movements for too long. Get distracted at your peril...
Nonetheless, for all the hard work of trying to get a lively young labrador to walk to heel, these evening walks are helpful bonding sessions, I hope, and leave us all suitably tired at the end of the day.
When Ted flops down for an evening nap before heading to bed, it feels as if the training is playing dividends, and the contented bedtime snuffles and reassuring tail wags tell us that he really is beginning to feel like one of the family.
TIME FOR BED: one of the family
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