Dang dogs.

[Outtahere]

The Airedale does have a one strange quirk. (Actually, he's got many, but only one related to eating) He has an absolute hatred for stuffed toys. He will happily amuse himself for hours tearing into a new one and then pulling the stuffing out bit by bit. Never eats it, just leaves little tufts of polyfill all over the area. Once the toy is empty you can't interest him in that thing no matter what you do.

My lab does the same thing, never eats the stuffing but works at it until it's all out. Only needs one little seem thread to be loose and he rips right into it.

 

[justin]

Be happy, your kitty litter should smell like a fresh pine forest! Inhale deeply......

Naw, we use a "fake" tree. The little plastic bristles are what the cats eat. No lovely pine fresh scent there... They eat tinsel, too, but they must chew it pretty well because I've never seen any pieces longer than a few inches. I do find the occasional digested shoe string, rubber band, or other miscellaneous household item in the litter box.

 

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

My recently departed Sophie rarely misbehaved. But she would amaze us with her smarts.

We could be sitting at the kitchen table and send her on errands like, "get your purple ball" or "get your red ball" or "get your bone" and she would run off and bring back the designated toy for our enjoyment, from about a dozen or so. (Being color blind didn't seem to faze her.)

Then we had to start spelling words like we did for the kids when we didn't want her to understand us. Problem was, she learned not only what CAR meant (with much excitement every time), but then taught herself what C-A-R meant. Soon we couldn't even say "cardboard" without the ears going up.

 

[mickeyd]

I'm very sorry for your loss Rich. A beloved family pet is a valuable member of the group. It sounds like you really loved Sophie.

My chocolate Lab, Chip, is 10 years old and life around this place has been made much better by his mere presence, even though most of his activity includes sleeping at my feet most of the day and night.

 

[Martha]

My recently departed Sophie rarely misbehaved. But she would amaze us with her smarts.

We could be sitting at the kitchen table and send her on errands like, "get your purple ball" or "get your red ball" or "get your bone" and she would run off and bring back the designated toy for our enjoyment, from about a dozen or so. (Being color blind didn't seem to faze her.)

Then we had to start spelling words like we did for the kids when we didn't want her to understand us. Problem was, she learned not only what CAR meant (with much excitement every time), but then taught herself what C-A-R meant. Soon we couldn't even say "cardboard" without the ears going up.

I have to say that the weiner dogs are the dumbest dogs we have ever had, but they are still my babies. Greg used to have a German Shepard that was pretty smart. His favorite trick to impress company was to tell the dog to get the Old El Paso Refried Beans. The dog would go into the kitchen cabinets and fetch the appropriate can.

To tease his women friends, Greg would say to the dog "would you rather be dead or a feminist" and the dog would promptly plop over.

 

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

I have to say that the weiner dogs are the dumbest dogs we have ever had, but they are still my babies.

Yep -- dumb is underrated.

Some dumb dogs make great pets (just like some dumb people make great friends, not to sound cruel about it). Had a cocker spaniel once who was dumber than dirt, but was a great and entertaining family pet.

Read somewhere that poodles, border collies, German Shepherds, Dobermans lead the IQ list.

MickeyD - thanks. Gettin' over it.

 

[Sarah in SC]

As to the Border Collies, sometimes smart is relative...do you really want a very imaginative, clever dog? Yes? Okay, good, send me your UPS deliverable address...(I do BC rescue). You may find that smart is not really an asset--see cocker spaniel mentioned above.

Sarah

 

[LeatherneckPA]

...do you really want a very imaginative, clever dog?

This is always a topic for debate with noobs looking for Airedales, and a constant source of laughter for those of us who can handle it. Darned critters are so smart they're scarey sometimes. People really need to give more consideration to what breeds are compatible with them and their lifestyle.

Boru has a repertoire of tricks, of course. And our dogs never get dog treats without performing at least one minor trick. But if you just stand there and hold one in your hand Boru will start doing tricks without any other cue. When the first one doesn't work he'll try the second, then the third, the fourth, repeat as necessary until "Dad" stops laughing and gives up the treat.

 

[brewer12345]

Boru has a repertoire of tricks, of course. And our dogs never get dog treats without performing at least one minor trick. But if you just stand there and hold one in your hand Boru will start doing tricks without any other cue. When the first one doesn't work he'll try the second, then the third, the fourth, repeat as necessary until "Dad" stops laughing and gives up the treat.

The less bright of my two beagles will do the same thing. Sometimes you look down from the dinner table and there he is, rolling over and over. Meanwhile his brighter "sibling" alternately gives you sad eyes and stalks the floor around the toddler's chair.

 

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

The less bright of my two beagles...

Didn't know you could use "beagle" and "bright" in the same sentence. Cool.

They are awfully funny and affectionate, though.

 

[CyclingInvestor]

As to the Border Collies, sometimes smart is relative...do you really want a very imaginative, clever dog? Yes? Okay, good, send me your UPS deliverable address...(I do BC rescue). You may find that smart is not really an asset--see cocker spaniel mentioned above.
Sarah

Two of my dogs are from BC rescue. The 50 lb'er is very bright, and is taking
sheep-herding lessons with rental sheep at a local horse facility. The 70 lb'er
is probably too large to really be a border collie, and she shows none of their
attributes. Both were taught to stay out of trouble very easily. My Leonberger,
on the other hand, is just out of puppyhood and likes to read (shred books
into tiny pieces), do the laundry (shred shoes and clothes into tiny pieces),
watch movies (destroy videotapes), etc. Friendliest and most playful dog
imaginable, but only learning slowly.

 

[brewer12345]

rental sheep

Wow, there's a phrase I never thought i would see used in polite company.

 

[Sarah in SC]

Wow, there's a phrase I never thought i would see used in polite company.

But there's a new idea for my sheep...I always assumed I'd get the wrong kind of attention if I offered them up for rental!
I'm still sure that would be the case.

 

[Linney]

Then we had to start spelling words like we did for the kids when we didn't want her to understand us. Problem was, she learned not only what CAR meant (with much excitement every time), but then taught herself what C-A-R meant. Soon we couldn't even say "cardboard" without the ears going up.

Our Airedale was smart like that. My husband and I would ask each other whether this was a good time to take Kona for a walk. It didn't take that long for him to figure it out and when we said the phrase, he would immediately appear in front of us, wagging furiously. So we changed the phrase to "go 'round the block" without including his name. He learned that phrase too, so we switched to "take a stroll". Next came "go on a W-A-L-K". We invented many more phrases and he learned each one in turn.

Kona passed away suddenly a year ago and we still miss him dearly.

 

[sgeeeee]

Our 13 pound weiner dog just pooped out half a sock.

Greg had to provide assistance.

How did Greg assist? Did he poop the other half?

 

[Donzo]

Huh. My wife never eats any of my clothing or small appliances.

Did I pick the wrong one? What am I missing?

Yeah..I guess that was a little vague. My buddy got married to a heavy spender a couple years after he took Jake. She goes thru his funds like Jake did his belts. Sorry - my attempt at levity fell short.

Tap-tap....is this thing on?

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

You'll be here all week!!

Hey Brewer, wait until yours figures out that if you give food you dont like to the dog, it'll disappear!

Gabe likes sharing his food with Ted. The problem being sometimes he'll offer something up to ted, who at a minimum will lick it, then gabe will withdraw the offer and eat it himself.

We've also discovered that teds giant head will easily fit in the space under the high chairs tray and allow him to neatly remove any tidbits that gabe dropped into his lap.

To hell with saying 'car' or 'ride', all I have to do is jingle some keys while putting them in my pocket or put my shoes on to invoke a major eruption. Last week Ted got so excited when I put my keys in my pocket that he shot into the laundry room, did a 180 and hit the dryer with his ass, knocking it over about a foot.

And many a time I've left an unsuspecting food item within dog reach to go get a drink and have come back to find it missing or a dog staring at it with the ears up and forward, the internal struggle quiet evident "MMMM...wanna eat it / but i'll get in trouble / but it looks yummy / but i'll get yelled at".

Jazz does all the work, doing tricks and talking to us when we're eating. Ted just sits quietly nearby, knowing his big sister will get the goods eventually.

By the way, should your dogs eat anything undigestible, its a good idea to take them to a vet right away. Bowel obstructions usually dont end well.

Nothing like this one though:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9460440/

 

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

OK, it's Friday...

Our 13 pound weiner dog just pooped out half a sock.
Greg had to provide assistance.

Best one line reply: "Oh, Darling, he looks just like you."

On a vaguely related bit of humor, our dear friends' son was born breach, and the first things to say "hello, world" were his .. uh.. package. When we first heard that story, after a few of Milwaukee's finest brew, we got into a one-liner contest. The best one, as I recall (remember to visualize this kid coming out juevos et al first), was, "Bob - he's got your nose!"

Sorry. Been a long week .

 

[brewer12345]

Hey Brewer, wait until yours figures out that if you give food you dont like to the dog, it'll disappear!

Not too likely. Like most hounds, my beagles are walking trash cans. Since the pre-emptive trick-doer eats all manner of beyond foul things (his own poop, dead birds, half-gone frogs, grass, and other things you don't want to know about), broccoli and similar is usually wolfed down before he even really knows what it is.

 

[Khan]

A coworker said that his mother didn't realize what a slob her husband was until the dog died.

 

[REWahoo]

... (remember to visualize this kid coming out juevos et al first), was, "Bob - he's got your nose!"

 

[Zoocat]

Never try to pull socks or other items (ropes, electric cording, plastic bags!)from a dog's hind end. The item might be stuck and you could end up pulling on the dog's intestines. Obviously, this would not be a good thing for the dog.

 

[yelnad]

My lab loves tennis balls. She rips off the green fuzz and spits it out. Over and over until the tennis ball is naked. Then she moves on to the next one.

 

[CaptCurmudgeon]

Speaking of walks, I walked my previous Golden Retriever every day of his life for 16 1/2 years, no matter what the weather or condition. That was his choice, not mine. The dog's paws would freeze in the Chicago winter slush and he would troop on happily.

One day he broke his rear leg chasing a rabbit. The neighbors thought I was one cruel SOB walking this old dog with a cast on his leg sort of like a peg-leg pirate. But hey, he absolutely insisted on it.

On balance, the old guy was pretty dumb. When they passed out brains he thought they said "trains" and never got in line. My current Golden, a little rescue female, is so smart it's frightening. She has got me walking her twice a day.