Tom has select few toys he enjoys. He likes his various Wubbas, he occasionally plays with his Holee Roller, and he likes his Nylabones.
Tom finds playing with his toys in the ways he likes rather challenging since the arrival of The Pest 3 years ago.
Yet he still makes attempts. And I do what I can to redirect, interrupt, and otherwise inhibit The Pest from wrecking all of his fun. Sometimes I fail.
Recently I got Tom a fresh new nylabone. A flavorful bacon essence one. Which he really wants to enjoy to its fullest. Every morning he tries. He waits until The Pest is otherwise occupied, he sneaks quietly into the living room, grabs his delicious bacon nylabone out of the toy box, finds a comfy spot on the rug and digs in.
Then The Pest comes into the room. She acts all sweet and innocent as she sidles up to sit next to him, but she’s The Pest. Tom drops the bone. It’s not worth it. She doesn’t even like nylabones! The Pest all sweet and innocent says, “Oh, for me? How nice! Don’t mind if I do.”
Tom wonders, “What did I do to deserve The Pest in my life?”
He gets up and comes to me to commiserate. Lots of loving Tommy petting ensues. The Pest abandons the bone for some other distraction. The process begins again.
Easy solution…get two yummy nylabones! Haha, she’d probably figure out a way to get both of them!
Hahaha yea that’s no solution. lol We have at least 6 nylabones. Have you met a corgi? They are little control freaks. Zora keeps her control freak nature pretty well under wraps but “Mine, all mine!” when Tom has a toy. She doesn’t even like nylabones! She just likes that Tom wants to chew it. Tom is such a softy that she knows he would rather avoid conflict and give it up than argue with her about it, other dogs she is less likely to do it with as most other dogs would show some sign they’d rather keep the bone and she too prefers to avoid conflict. But She’s so easily manipulated that there are times when Tom wants my undivided attention so he’ll purposefully go get a toy and start chewing it knowing Zora can’t resist, he drops it, she chews it, then he comes over to me so he can have me all to himself. It’s a very conscious thing he’s doing. and It’s hysterical.
Oh my goodness that does sound hysterical! We once had a Berger des Pyrenees who was crafty like that. She loved to chase the cats and they very smartly stayed up high out of her way. She would go through the dog door and they would hop down and do their thing. She figured this out and would go through the dog door and wait till one of them jumped to the floor and then she’d burst through the door in full cat chase mode! She also figured out how to turn doorknobs. I miss her and loved her dearly, but she was a PITA in more ways than one!
That dog sounds like a very smart one! LOL she had those cats figured out!