Dogs and children both need space to play Credit: Getty Images If you think you’re seeing a lot more puppies on your daily walks, you’re right. Nearly a quarter of dog owners recently surveyed by the RSPCA had acquired their new pet since the start of the first lockdown in March last year. In another survey, by the Kennel Club, three quarters of dog owners said their new puppy was the best thing about lockdown. My son, his wife, and their two children, aged seven and five, count themselves in that group. A few days after their recent move to a house with a garden, I received a photo of their new poodle pup, nose down in a deep hole he’d just dug. More digging followed, accompanied by chewing of twigs and leaves.