"Hi, Lisa! I hope you're all well.  You must all be very excited about Rarity's imminent arrival - what an excellent Christmas present (especially for Curly!).

Dennis is doing fabulously well; he seems to be house trained now (asks to go outside all the time - though sometimes just to chase leaves and work on the hole he's digging in the garden!).  He has a wonderful temperament, is great with children and very playful (when he's not sleeping!).  He can also jump from one sofa to the other, but that's not something we're encouraging!  It only takes him about an hour to demolish a pig's ear now - his first one took him a day!  He enjoys going to doggy school and is a fast learner - a puppy who loves his food is such a joy to train!  We're temporary members of the local German Shepherd Club (all breeds welcome, which is just as well because otherwise they'd only have one puppy in the class!).  He had his eye on a Santa hat Elliot was holding this morning and as he knew he couldn't get it out of his hand physically, he ran through his repertoire of doggy tricks to try to get it as a reward - bless him!  Unfortunately for him, Elliot needed the hat to remain in one piece for his carol concert this afternoon, but Dennis got a doggy treat instead, to reward him for his efforts! 

He's grown a lot since you last saw him and I'm sending some photos I took last weekend so that you can see what a very handsome chap he is.  He's still rather slender, but we've been weighing him regularly and feeding him in accordance with the Eukanuba chart.  His coat is beautifully glossy and doesn't seem to shed at all, apart from a little bit of hair stuck in the brush when we groom him. Best wishes"