Wiggle - Day 2,763

Wiggle, Sofy and Lilly had a lovely Christmas and shared the leftover roast turkey dinner between them.  They also received lots of presents and shared some of their treats and new toys:

After all the excitement, they were worn out:

Merry Christmas from Wiggle!

 

It's nearly Christmas!

 

Wiggle plans on relaxing, feasting on tasty snacks and taking things easy.  He and Sofy have gifts to open and will have their share of turkey dinner.

 

Thank you for your continued support over the last year and we wish all of our friends and followers a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

 

Wendy, Wiggle & Sofy xx

 

Wiggle - Day 2,756

We have Lilly staying with us for Christmas while her family are away so Sofy is happy to have her friend here:

This morning we all went up to the Downs.  Wiggle was bemused with Sofy's strange expression:

Lilly and Sofy playing:

Wiggle trundled around for a while but went back on lead to stop him overdoing things:

Lilly and Sofy played ball games:

3 tired, but happy Labbies:

Wiggle - Day 2,749

Wiggle has taken delivery of his 2016 fundraising calendar and take some time to admire his handsome cover photo.

Over the years that we have been auctioning Wiggle calendars we have raised over £500 for Wiggle's charity, LRSE&C who have taken care of his medical needs since June 2008.

There's still time to bid - full details HERE

Wiggle - Day 2,742

Another week of horrid wet and windy weather, which Wiggle does not like.  I often look back on previous years and I when I look back on this day 7 years ago, Wiggle was very happy with the frosty, sunny day: 

Back then, we hadn't met Sofy but we did have the distinguished Sir H in our lives:

Now Wiggle is older his lifestyle has changed and the time he moves the fastest is when he goes swimming!  He still enjoys going for short walks, although he prefers dry weather to rain.  And once it became clear that he was finding the stairs difficult, I decided to put the stairgate in place, for his own safety.

For the first couple of nights, he seemed a little confused but soon settled down and now, I tell him goodnight and he's content to stay on his comfy bed.  I did worry whether he would be lonely as he has always slept in my room but he finds the stairs so difficult that it really is safer for him to stay downstairs.  Thankfully, I didn't need to worry about Wiggle as I'm able to watch him via the Panasonic Smart Home camera:

I have to admit, I hadn't heard of the Smart Home system before I was asked to review it but I honestly think its brilliant.  Day and night, I can see that Wiggle and Sofy are both relaxed and I don't need to worry when I am away from home.

Wiggle's 2016 Fundraising Calendar

We are very excited to announce the fundraising auction for the 2016 Wiggle The Dog calendar!

For 2016, I've looked back on Wiggle's younger years, celebrating the fun he had, before old age caught up with him and slowed him down.

The calendars are offered on an auction basis, to the 3 highest bidders.  All of the funds raised will go directly to Labrador Rescue South East & Central who have been taking care of Wiggle's medical needs for all these years.

Wiggle is not the only Labrador taken care of by the charity and without their support, Wiggle and many other needy Labrador's would not be enjoying the lives they have now.

To be in with a chance of winning a whole year of Wiggle, whilst also helping a wonderful charity, please email your bids to wiggle.the.dog@gmail.com 

The 3 highest bids as at midnight (GMT) on Sunday 20th December 2015 will win the calendars.

Once the winners have been notified, electronic payment is preferred, directly to LRSE&C's Just Giving account, details of which will be provided.  Post and packaging to any location in the UK or worldwide will be paid for by me and all being well, the calendar's will arrive in time for Christmas.

Good luck and please bid generously!

Wiggle - Day 2,735

Recently we were contacted and asked if we would like to trial and review the Panasonic Smart Home system. I didn’t know a lot about the system but said yes as I was curious and a few days later, a box arrived with various items packed inside.  We had a hub, a camera, a smart plug and two sensors.  I’m not the best with gadgets but when I looked at the quick start guide, the instructions were clear and it all looked really easy!

After plugging the hub into power and following the quick set up guide before long I had connected the hub to my wifi,  The camera was connected as soon as I plugged it into power and I plugged a lamp into the smart plug.  All I needed to do after that was download an app to my iPad (and iPhone if I had one!) and we were good to go.

I’ve had the Smart Home system set up for a week now and I think its great!  I can check on the camera any time to see what Wiggle and Sofy are up to, if they are relaxed and sleeping and with the volume control, I can make sure they aren’t barking.  I like that I can see the temperature in the room which is good as I don't have the central heating on during the day and I don't want them being cold.  I can talk through the system, which is especially confusing for Sofy!  

I always thought that Wiggle and Sofy sleep a lot and with the Smart Home system, I know that they do!

Wiggle likes to follow any sun puddles round the room while Sofy spends most of her time in the armchair.

It's reassuring to know that they are both relaxed and calm while I'm not there and with the Smart Plug I can switch on a lamp when it start to get dark later in the afternoon.  I've been listening in on them but needless to say, with all the sleeping going on, there's not a lot to hear!

Wiggle - Day 2,728

Wiggle likes to spend long stretches of time on his bed but as he is 13, he's bound to sleep more:

So while Wiggle was having a nap this morning, I took Sofy up to the Downs.  For a while now she has been having extra walks as when we walk with Wiggle, we go a lot slower!

Sofy did some sniffing:

But she also felt a little lost without Wiggle:

Sofy soon perked up with some ball games:

From time to time we are contacted and asked to review dog-related products and recently we were sent some Serene-Um tablets:

Wiggle is too laid back to need anything to calm him but Sofy can be hyper at times so she took part in our review.  The tablets arrived before fireworks night so that was a good time to trial them as Sofy got spooked last year when we were coming home from a walk.

Sofy took the recommended dose and although she wasn't any less bouncy when it was food time or dinner time, she was certainly not worried when fireworks were going off.  As fireworks tend to be heard for a few days either side of the 5th, we heard them for several days but Sofy wasn't bothered and even stood outside, watching the sky while fireworks were going off.

If I'm honest, I don't think the Serene-Um Xtra made much difference to Sofy's usual hyper behaviour around dinner time, but I would definitely get some of the tablets ahead of fireworks night next year as she was much more relaxed and that is a good thing for her!

Wiggle - Day 2,721

Today we went up to the Downs, the first time in ages so Wiggle was happy to be out and off the lead:

We've had windy weather so Sofy and Wiggle had flappy ears:

I think Wiggle was happy even though he was looking quite serious:

Since Wiggle can't manage to go so far these days, I had to put him on his lead so that he didn't go further than he could cope with:

I'm not ashamed to admit that I did cry a little, thinking back to when Wiggle could run and run as it breaks my heart to see him getting old but I hugged him and hoped that he was enjoying himself, just at a slower pace:

Wiggle - Day 2,713

Wiggle has had a busy weekend, mostly sleeping in between his walks and meal times.  But sleep is good and he always looks so peaceful:

Today Sofy and I went out but had to leave Wiggle at home.  We arranged a last minute meet-up with Mindy and Cato and Haggis at Virginia Water but the walk would have more than Wiggle could have coped with.  It was good for Sofy to get out and have a run with her friends:

Haggis and Sofy splashed around in the water: 

Sofy walked next to the lake after deciding to stay away from the scary swans on this side of the water:

Cato was super happy to see her BFF:

Sofy and Haggis played ball games:

Clever Haggis carried a leaf with the tennis ball:

Any self respecting Labrador know's how good it feels to get in a muddy puddle:

Fortunately, the mud washed off!

Wiggle - Day 2,706

These days Wiggle is definitely a 'senior'.  His fastest pace is an occasional trot as he is more comfortable walking and he seems to sleep a lot more.  His eyes are cloudy and he doesn't hear very well.  He also has times when he forgets where he is and if he needs to poo, well, he poo's.  But no matter what, I love him to bits and I dread the day I have to say goodbye.

Last weekend I was away in Edinburgh for work so Wiggle and Sofy went and stayed with Lilly and her family but although I know they will be well cared for, I still miss them both so much.

Of all the rescue Labrador's that I've had over the years, Wiggle has been with me the longest.  And while each of Wiggle's predecessor's have been special, there's something extra specially special about Wiggle.

Wiggle - Day 2,692

We're feeling very autumnal in our part of the world and yesterday Sofy and I walked into town, kicking up leaves on our way.  Sofy was especially happy when she found a wall to jump up on:

Wiggle stayed home because he wouldn't have managed the walk but he's happy and has been keeping warm and snuggly, wrapped up in his blankie:

Sofy has been resting in the armchair:

Once the sun was up, Wiggle made sure he was laying in the best place:

He came out in the garden with me while I did some work, although he didn't bother to play with his giant tennis ball:

My handsome boy:

Wiggle - Day 2,678

Wiggle has been taking it easy for most of the weekend and most of the week, for that matter.  His happiest day is still Thursday because that's when he goes for his hydrotherapy which he loves.

Something else that Wiggle really loves is his cuddles and when I lay on the floor with him, talking to him and giving him tons of fuss.  No matter how slow Wiggle is, he never tires of cuddles!

We drove to the field earlier where Sofy was feeling perky: 

Wiggle had his tennis ball (of course!):

Happy boy:

My best boy: