I’ve already said how well the dogs have settled into their new routine but I am still being amazed by their understanding of what is happening. As I sit and type, both are flumped across the floor, panting hard. We’ve just come back into the house after a pitch-dark tennis ball game. (Oh how our field is a wonderful place at night.)

They now wait by the back door as soon as we come in because they know that their special time is about to happen. The whole family goes into the field and we play tennis ball. They are stunningly good at locating its trajectory. I don’t know whether it’s sight, hearing, smell or a combination of the three but they are pretty much infallible in terms of their ability to return with the ball, despite the less-than-favourable conditions.

The game is slightly altered in as much as we play with one ball and JD always brings it back, even though he sometimes puts it down then snatches it away before you get the chance to retrieve it and throw it again. Lola still won’t bring the ball all of the way back and they do this rather exotic dance where she runs round in circles, seeking out the optimum place to drop it so that he can pick it up and bring it the remainder of the way “home”.

We play until they are dropping, which usually takes about half an hour and then we say “one last go Lola”, throw the ball and she gets it and hares straight past us, up the path and into the garden, where she drops the ball and waits for one of us to kick it for her. We play that game from one side of the garden to the other and then we all, except Lola, come inside and she stands outside looking indignant, despite her huffing and puffing a few minutes earlier.

It seems that this game is now “the law” in our home and to be honest, despite darkness, cold, wet or wind, we enjoy it as much as they do.