A paw-fect transition for Amber’s newest residents.

There are some new four-legged residents on the block at Amber by Living Gems with Spike and Ruby giving their owners Margaret and Roy Featherstone a tail wag of approval.

Margaret and Roy recently relocated to Amber from Woodgate near Bundaberg and say that it’s been a perfect transition.

“Spike and Ruby are settling in very well,” Margaret says. “Spike is 13 while Ruby is 12 and at their age, I didn’t expect the change to go so smoothly, but the move has changed their personalities and they have reverted to puppyhood, especially Spike.

“We had a big backyard, and he was away from the house a lot, but now that he’s closer to us he’s so excited because he has so much to do and the two of them are just changing for the better.”

“They play with all their toys now, and they haven’t done that in years,” Roy says.

Roy and Margaret ended up getting Spike, a cavoodle, and Ruby, a cavalier poodle, from their daughter Annette after their grandkids started school and no one was home through the day.

“The dogs missed having the family at home. Spike started barking a bit and harassed the chickens, so we got the two of them and they have been with us for nine years,” Roy says. “We’ve got 18 grandchildren, and are about to have six great grandchildren so what was another two furry grandchildren?”

The dogs’ personalities keep these grandparents entertained for hours and they say the secret to good dogs is in the treats.

“We work on treats with them. I used to train guide dogs so have always known the value of treats. It worked perfectly with the four guide dogs we trained,” Margaret says.

“Our dogs get a dental stick every morning and a treat after their walk,” she says. “We use a chicken breast jerky treat as the signal that they’re not coming into the car with us, so they know they have to stay home.”

When going for a drive, Ruby and Spike know they will get a liver treat to stay in the car.

“Different treats for different things, it works a treat you could say,” laughs Margaret.

“Ruby has a personality where she’s all over you,” Roy says. “It’s ‘me, me, me – don’t even look at Spike’, and being the reserved little man he is, he sits back quietly at first, but he’s coming out of his shell.”

Then there’s the new walk-in pantry at their Amber by Living Gems home.

“One day, Spike decided to help himself to the dog food and we came home to packets all over the floor as he searched for the dog food,” Margaret laughs. “He pulled all the packet stuff out and looked so disappointed that he didn’t find the dog food as it was on a higher shelf. It’s fun times every day!”