20 things I love about my Labrador

Royal Canin definitely brightened up our day last week. We had been having a rather stressful week, but when this gorgeous hamper of dog care goodies arrived on the doorstep addressed to Robbie, his happy little face definitely lit up the room. Royal Canin had sent us this lovely hamper, to celebrate the launch of their new product line, the Royal Family. As no two dogs are the same, the new range is completely tailored to suit the individual breed of dog, taking into consideration the dog’s age, activity, size and lifestyle. As part of the Royal Family, there is also really handy information hub which gives lots of facts and care advice on looking after your dog, as well as a ‘matching tool’ to help you find the perfect pup to fit into your family.

Within our hamper, we received this gorgeous personalised ‘Robbie’s Treasures’ toy crate, a personalised bowl, a gorgeous handmade bone toy from Edwyn UK and a bag of Royal Canin Labrador food. His Labrador food specifically helps with the three main issues that can affect Labrador’s, they are: Ideal Weight (balanced to maintain a healthy weight), Bone & Joint Health (with added nutrients specifically to help with the healthy bones and joints) and Healthy Skin & Coat (supports the skins ‘barrier’ and maintain skin and coat health). He couldn’t wait to play with his toys and try the food (obviously, he’s a lab!)

So, to celebrate the little Prince in my Royal Family, I’ve written the 20 things I love about my labrador:

He is my best friend ever – Labrador’s have such sweet natures and really docile temperaments and Robbie is no different, he’s loyal, cuddly and is always so happy to see me, so even if I’ve had the worst day ever, I know I’m coming home to a waggly tail and a puppy cuddle.
He loves attention and wants to be close all the time. He will follow me into every room of the house and will literally sit ON me when I’m on the sofa or in bed, he will even come to the bathroom with me and often will sit on the bath mat when I’m in the bath, with his chin resting on the side of the bath. Whenever Vee and I go into separate parts of the house, he gets confused as to who to follow and will sit on the stairs as I think he see’s it as a mid-point between us.
I’m obsessed with his nose, ears and paws. He has the sweetest little nose, his ears are so soft and his paws smell like biscuits (they do, really!)
When he is really happy to see you, he pushes his ears right back so you can barely see them. When he does this we call him ‘Seal Pup‘ as he looks like a little baby seal. He has also perfected a look called ‘Dobby Ears’, spreading his ears out like Dobby in Harry Potter, usually when he wants something or is trying to look cute for attention. His last ‘ear look’ is what I call ‘Triangles‘ – when something catches his attention his ears perk up into two fluffy triangles and if he’s particularly confused by the sound he will turn his head to the side, it’s the cutest thing!
He makes all kinds of strange noises – we call it ‘beeping’. He often chirps and beeps when he wants something and quite often sings, grunts and makes all kinds of responses when you talk to him, it’s like he is really trying to reply. When he yawns he makes this sound like he is saying ‘Oooo–rreeeee-oooos!’ (like the cookies!) – I’ll try to film it one day.
He gets very nervous – As he’s such a sweet-natured dog, the downside of this means he’s quite nervous a lot of the time. It doesn’t affect him too much so he’s happy when he’s at home or on his regular walks, but if something surprises him he can get very jumpy. He recently touched an electric fence (with his nose) and yelped so loud in pain, now he’s quite scared on his walks in that field, especially if he sees sheep! He also wouldn’t go in the garden the other day as there was a piece of moss on the path and he’s run back in and hid behind me on numerous times as a leaf blew into him!
He doesn’t like seeing other animals on the TV and will bark the house down – this includes usual animals like dogs and cats, but includes slightly unusual animals like tortoises, hamsters and even a cartoon caterpillar. We can’t watch any nature programs as he will get so upset.
He does sleepy barks as he’s falling asleep – it’s like he is chasing rabbits, he does these little muted barks and mini-growls and kicks his legs, it’s the cutest thing!
He is 8 years old. As the life expectancy of a labrador is 10-12 years, he is officially a ‘senior dog’. This means he has to have special supplements for his joints as he’s starting to get very stiff back legs.
He loves squeaky toys, although if they are fabric he will usually tear them up. He has a whole toy box in our living room and occasionally will get everything out and throw all his toys around the room. One of his favourite toys is daisy, a cuddly cow toy. He loved his hamburger but tore it up the other day, so it had to go in the bin. Silly puppy.
He sleeps on our bed. He has his own bed and we’ve tried to encourage him to sleep there, but he loves to be close to us and it’s easier for us to let him sleep on our bed. He has a puppy blanket though and will sleep on the bottom on his special blanket.
Labrador’s need quite a lot of exercise, so he needs at least one walk a day. He has a dog walker during the week and then we take him out at the weekends. I’ve noticed as he gets older he’s slowing down a bit on his walks, but still gets so excited, especially if you take a ball out with you.
He loves food – any food, including salad! Labrador’s are the most greedy dogs, they will eat ANYTHING. We have to make sure he can’t reach any food in the kitchen as he will eat it. He’s stolen a piece of pizza from a couple on a date in the park and a sandwich from a babies hand on a walk, he’s not fussy and it can be embarrassing! He’s been to the vets twice now as he’s managed to get his paws on chocolate, which is poisonous for dogs. He’s so naughty.
He has a cute raincoat and looks so dapper in it!
He curls up into a tight ball when he sleeps, we call it ‘circle pup’, he will also spin round in circles before he lays down to get comfy… strangely he also spins around in a circle before he does a poo too, but that’s got a different name, that’s the ‘poo helicopter’ – don’t ask, that’s just what it looks like!
He likes to roll in all sorts of nasty things, but hates baths. His favourite disgusting thing to roll in is fox poo, I have NO IDEA why dogs do this, it’s disgusting. He will look all guilty afterwards and hang his head down in the shower as you wash it all off. You’d think he would learn we would need to wash him afterwards and not do it anymore….. hmm, nope!
He quite often farts and scares himself, he’ll look around to try to work out what made the sound underneath him, which is hilarious.
He drops quite a lot of hair – my favourite thing, apart from Robbie is the Hoover and I use it nearly everyday or else our house gets covered in little balls of black Robbie hairs. We have bought a brush called a Furminator which is really good as it strips out the dead hairs, but he needs quite a lot of brushing, which really surprised me for a short-haired dog.
We live by the beach, but he is scared of the sea. He won’t go anywhere near the water’s edge, especially if it’s choppy. This is nice in a way as I would worry about him being swept away by the current if he was a keen swimmer. The water where we live often has a very strong undercurrent and I’ve heard lots of horror stories!
He has the sweetest little doggy personality I’ve ever met and is the friendliest dog in the world. Labrador’s are the perfect dog if you want company, they love to be around people and are sweet, kind and loveable dogs. They are great with children, so are perfect for a family or a busy household alike, they just need lots and lots of company. I couldn’t be without him!

So, whatever dog you have, you can join the Royal Family here, by doing this you will have access to exclusive information, find out about upcoming dog events and also receive special gifts for your pooch. There is also all the information you need about each dog breed and a whole new product range too.

Big thanks to Royal Canin for sending us such a lovely hamper and having us feature as part of your lovely campaign!

This post is written in collaboration with Royal Canin, but all thoughts are my own

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