Oh boy! I am nearly ten months old and nobody understands me. Okay, so I bark (a lot!) when we are about to go on a walk - and I try to bite Shep in my exuberance.
I also jump up at my humans and do everything that I can to get their attention - I get bored very easily.
But, I don't ever mean to be naughty.
The most important thing for my humans to do is to be patient with me. Getting cross just makes things worse and, if they are cross, I find it even harder to know what to do.
In recent days, Shep and I have joined Julie in her new job on the National Trust's Brockhampton Estate in Herefordshire. We help her by walking around the estate well before visitors arrive so that we can tell them about the state of the paths.
On our first day we walked the RED route which was really muddy in places and there were big puddles at the entrance to the gates. The walk involved walking on the parkland as well as in the woods, so parts of the walk were quite firm to our paws. It was wonderful to hear the raffle of the green woodpecker as it flew over our heads. The woods were the muddiest parts and Julie really struggled to walk up the muddy slope.
We attempted the GREEN route on the second day and most of the paths were in the woods. Boy - did we get muddy! However, the air was heavy with birdsong and there were still drifts of snowdrops and the first yellow glimpses of daffodils.
I think what made the paths especially muddy were the tyre tracks from the heavy forestry machinery that had been working hard clearing parts of the woodland.
It is amazing because although it looks rather 'untidy' now, it will be lovely in the summer and absolutely stunning in the spring of years to come.
The other walk that was available was in the Orchards and here there was a harder surface for our paws. The paths snaked their way around the field leading us to a woven fruit basket-like enclosure containing lots of newly planted trees. there was a children's trail for the young people to follow. It looked great fun!
When we weren't out walking the trails, we sat in the back of the car welcoming the visitors. I couldn't resist barking at some of them, but Julie told me off. She says that I bark like a cockerel.
All of the visitors seemed to love us - and Shep, who is normally very shy, seemed to enjoy all of the attention.
It was fun greeting our canine friends too.
It felt like we were ambassadors and we had to be on our best behaviour all of the time.
It was quite hard work looking after the visitors and both Shep and I were exhausted at the end of the day, but we can't wait to go to work again!!
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