We went out for a walk this afternoon. Popped her in the car and off we went. It has been almost 2 months since Otter has been out in the "Big World" for anything other than the vet. Even before then, the op to remove her baby tooth meant a few days of being home. Not the best start for a naturally nervous pup!
I drove down to our tiny local nature reserve. There is a handy bench just outside, and adjacent to a tarmac pathway that bisects the middle of the bottom part. We sat on the bench, facing the entrance, so Otter can see people walking away from her. The advantage for us is the pathway....us humans have to walk on them!

Cyclists also use this pathway. I have a few of Otters toys and we settle down. Well settle in the broadest sense of the word! She is very excited and bouncy. Luckily she is happy with her games and I am encouraged by her level of engagement. She is very, very aware of her surroundings, strange noises, and she can hear groups of people laughing and playing footie in the field. She copes well. Interestingly she is absolutely fine with people heading through into the park, even if they quickly give me a nod and smile. Cyclists not a problem, a group of loud teenagers bouncing their football, not a problem. She stands watching them curiously, studying them intently before choosing to look back at me. Good girl!
We only had barking twice...once when a family with 2 small children walked past, the kids stopped and looked at Otter. The second was when a woman was looking in our direction, hand over her eyes...squinting at something in the distance.. but we were directly in her eye-line. She got closer triggering a nervous bark from Otter, she then said "Shush dog!" Sigh....a sharp comment was on the edge of my tongue, but bit that back and smiled at her instead. If I had told her to go to spec savers it would have ended badly that's for sure!
I think we need to do lots of this, and at quiet times of the day. But not bad for a first attempt!
