Friday, March 27, 2009

Stupid human tricks


I sincerely believe that dogs pass along behavior traits and quirks to each other. When I first got my younger dog (Nelson), I couldn’t keep him out of the basement. He would squeeze himself through the cat door to get down and explore the lower level.

Murphy (my old guy) on the other hand has always hated the basement. After a few weeks of living together -- voila -- Nelson would no longer go down. You’d think the devil was down there. Somehow the word had passed that the basement was just not cool.

Only recently did I discover that neither of my dogs will step on a grate. Now this is something new for the old guy because he’s been okay with it in the past.

I discovered this when one of Nelson’s toys landed on the cool air return in my dining room. He stood there barking and pacing like a madman because he couldn’t get to it. Nothing I did would entice him to put one foot on the grate.

So in my evil human way, I decided to put a dog treat on the backside. (See the little biscuit lying there in the first photo.) Again with the pacing and barking. Ah, I thought, I’ll have Murphy show him how to get it. So wrong.


Murphy’s approach, as you can see demonstrated in the second photo, was a bit different. He’d just stretch his body as far as he could. Then he’d walk from one end to the other, think about it, and stretch some more.

He was just one tongue length away from the prize.

This provided me with a great deal of amusement. Dogs: barking, pacing, thinking, stretching. Me: teasing, tormenting, laughing.

I finally caved in and gave them both a treat. Much deserved, for the entertainment factor alone.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love it!

Torturing my dogs is a daily treat for me. It helps me get through the days!

*smile*

Greta said...

Ha! I do the same thing, except to my children.

Gail said...

I love to torment dogs, too. We have seven!!!

Jo said...

Lovely dogs! Thanks for stopping by my blog, I was very amused and entertained by this post, so I will be back, will be good to get to 'know' you.

Blueberry said...

The dogs have made a pact against you and your basement and grates.

Our cats used to lay on the floor grates (the ones with heat coming out).

Cormac Brown said...

"You’d think the devil was down there. Somehow the word had passed that the basement was just not cool."

With that and the grates, I'd imagine there is the ghost of a dogcatcher lurking about.

The Lady Who Doesn't Lunch: said...

Dinner and a show - I love the doggies - so much fun.

My best friend's dog was afraid of the black and white checked tile of her kitchen floor when she first brought her home as a tiny puppy. She would lay at the edge of the kitchen and look forlornly at her supper dish.

Eventually she grew out of it because the other dogs weren't aftaid.

Elizabeth said...

That's what dogs and kids are for, our own amusement! Too funny!