Lola is growing

Let's start with a video again...

Isn't she great?

That's Lola showing off one of her new skills - learning to wait before just jumping into her food bowl.

We call this 'impulse control' and it's very important. Puppies can have strong urges sometimes, and we want them to learn that being patient can be a good thing. So, when Lola is looking after her future deaf partner, she knows that she should wait when getting out of the car, or before the train pulls up, or any of many activities she might be involved with.

It's how we help puppies to be well behaved, and as you can see, Lola is already brilliant at it.

Here she is looking all dynamic and ready for action in our training field.

She's already used to wearing her harness, and as you can see, she's relishing the lesson ahead.

When the weather isn't too great, we go inside. You can see in the background some of the walking frames we train our dogs with later in their journey. Again, it's important - if they're going to be matched with someone not too steady on their legs, we want them to walk nicely alongside, which we call 'heelwork'.

That's all for the future. Right now, Lola just wants to have fun! Here she is with Tom, another hearing dog in training.

We love photos like this. Lola is like a miniature Tom!

But maybe not for much longer. She's still a puppy at heart, and loves cuddles and snuggles, but suddenly, it seems, Lola is growing.

This happens! Puppies grow up! Especially Labradors. They can put on a sudden growth spurt and the next thing you know, they're much more dog-shaped. They're still funny and lovely though, because their legs get a bit gangly and they still do silly puppy things.

Here's the first photo we saw when we thought "Hmmm, she's definitely growing!"

She's a bit too big for that golf mat now, which used to be one of her favourite chill-out spots.

Maybe just stick to the bigger bed in future, eh, Lola?

One advantage of being a bit bigger is that she can now navigate the stairs no problem. Lola, Queen of the Staircase!

And remember what we said about Lola relative to Tom...?

That's right! Suddenly she's not quite such the tiny puppy! Sooner or later, we won't know which is which.

So, she may be growing into a lovely Lola lady, but what did we say about them still being puppies at heart...?

That video tells us she's in a home full of fun and friends, love and laughter. It's exactly this kind of environment that will help her grow to be a confident hearing dog, and change a deaf person's life.

Finally, one thing we're especially pleased about is how boopable her nose has become. All the best hearing dogs have very boopable noses.

BOOP!

And she also looks really happy, which is exactly what we want. 

Lola is turning into a fantastic hearing dog in training, adored by everyone, and this is through your kindness. So again, from all of us, thank you so very much for sponsoring her!