10 months old

Incredible, but Solar is now 10 months old and boy does he have a lot of character.

When weighed at the vets last week, Solar is now 37 kg; next to the weighing scales it reads an adult Male German Shepherds ideal weight is 36.6 kg. (One of his Sisters weighs 38 kg)

Solar was at the vets after having an injury to his cruciate ligament of his left hind knee, which meant he was limping and crying pitifully with the pain last week. He is currently on pain relief and strict rest, try telling a 10 month old German Shepherd puppy that !!!

Fortunately Solar is crate trained and follows what we say 90% of the time. He needs to avoid running, jumping climbing stairs and exercise is limited to five minutes at a time this must be the norm for another five weeks, two of which we will be in the Highlands of Scotland. We did consider cancelling the holiday, but Solar has been good to now and we feel sure he will cope well.

Solar is growing to be a very good looking intelligent dog, certainly not a wall flower, he loves to be heard, not aggressive but "Hello look at me" we met up with Molly the Goldie, Mark and Steph at Queen Elizabeth Country Park, where Solar began barking at 11:00 am when we arrived and only stopped at 16:00 hours, when we were leaving.

Training is now on hold due to the knee injury, which we hope to resume after his rest period, fingers crossed that surgery will not be required.

Solar remains raw fed, he had a knuckle one day (see the top picture), not the easiest of things to eat and certainly not for indoor snacks. His brother who is a trainee Police Dog is not allowed to be raw fed.

It has been a while since his last update, further updates on his condition and progression will follow with a bit more regularity.

Not sure where it stems from but Solar has a thing about birds, they should not land, anywhere, if they do he has taken on the role of moving them on, our garden bird table has had no visitors since Solar began his patrol. 

Planes or birds that fly overhead, are watched until they have safely passed over, some people say dogs don't look up, well Solar certainly does.

For now here are a few images of Solar, but you can also check out his random gallery page.

Setting up home

Solar has arrived home with us and has made an immediate impact, yes we know he is cute and fluffy to look at, but already he has shown his character.

We collected him from the breeder on Thursday along with his puppy pack, he was the second puppy of nine to leave their loving home. Arriving just before 1:30 Thursday afternoon, as agreed, we went through the important paperwork and a long chat about numerous things.

What was Solar doing, most of the time playing with his Mum, different games, pushing boundaries and being put in his place.

One of Solar's litter left that morning to seek a new life with an officer of the Cheshire Constabulary, known as Mr Red, he would need good strong handling, so a good fit. Solar's Mum had played with him before he went, coincidence who knows, we have a strong opinion on the breed of German Shepherds after a shortened life with Blue, anyone who has been around them will know exactly what I am saying.

With Solar safely sat on Sue's lap in the back seat of the car we set off for home, a journey which is normally about 1 1/2 hours , on this day it would take over 3 1/2 hours due to gridlock of the M25 and surrounding roads.

Solar was noisy in parts quiet in others, but generally for his first journey away from his family he did remarkably well. On the journey he would love to look out the open window as we picked our way through South-West London to miss the congestion on the M25.

He loves to watch people, especially Ladies, they literally turn his head as we pass them by.

Arriving home later than expected he was overdue his feed, but tucked in well to the raw food provided as part of his puppy pack, on the journey he brought up some fluid, but in discussion with the breeder it was put down to stress of the journey and being over hungry.

Solar is by all accounts an escapee / explorer, having got out of the area all the pups had grown up in, so we had to ensure our garden was secure, which it is unless Solar proves different.

Solar is doing all that a normal puppy should do, has been out, held in our arms to meet the builders next door and neighbours, been carried to the local park for some more meet and greet but no one was around, though he still enjoyed it. At 6kg he is surprisingly heavy after a while to carry, though he only wriggled a little.

We think he was stung by a wasp yesterday afternoon, crying inconsolably for a while he finally nested in a makeshift den of cushions. Though he was limping quite heavily on his front right foot, there were no signs of a sting, and little or no swelling but clearly painful and upsetting for him.

Today he had a visit from Anne, Daisy's Mum, and her two Grandchildren they all had a great time chasing and being chased by Solar, Solar thought they were great fun.

So as you have read, he has made a home with us, and it will be great to share his life and progression, for now he is a puppy, showing intelligence, learning, caring, loving and a soft vulnerable side that needs our love and care..... here are just a few pictures taken over the last few days.

If you follow Twitter Solar has his own account, @SolartheGSD so you can follow him and find out how he is doing.

Solar and us are extremely grateful for the lovely gifts that have arrived in the post, he loves the soft toys, and especially the wrapping paper around a gift from Cumbria. The Squirrel from the Isle of Wight, and a new parcel  has just been delivered to the front door

So keep an eye open for Solar's story, we're just off to give him a tour of the local pet shop !!!