Our lab-mix puppy K is now a little over four months old.

The past few months adjusting to a puppy have been a fun challenge. It was entertaining to watch K discover fall winds, rain, baths. It was especially enjoyable to watch her jump into the neat piles of fall leaves L made with the blower.

Through this process we have had to not only be patient with her as she became potty trained, and learned new commands, but we also  for her to be old enough to go out with people.

Finally she has all of her booster shots and her rabies shot. To celebrate last weekend we took her for her first official “non-vet” outing to a local state park: stony brook . We got set with water, bags, training treats, and collapsible water bowl then drove to the park.

Although it was cold it was beautiful. There were many starts and stops along the way as K pulled on her leash, got over-excited, and went off the trail. The further into the trail we went the more she became comfortable with the pace and staying by our side.

It was not crowded at all but there were some people and dogs. K loves people but is still learning about the different sizes and breeds of dogs.

It was a great chance to show her how to be social. But it also made us realize we still need to train her to not jump on people when she is excited and wants to greet them.

I was all set for a vigorous walk but quickly realized-this was a training session. We did not come close to completing the trail but it was beautiful and I know we will go back soon.