Serendipity, for sure.

Our shelter does take open bags, but if the opportunity ever arises again, it would be good to ask.

So it turns out okay, since we can feed Guest Dog without any new financial outlay on our part (and we want to feed her well, because any pet in our care is going to be treated well; we also gave her a rope tug toy [which I'm beginning to think is the PS2 of the canine world]).

All to the good! And the PS2 thing totally cracked me up.

It's like that old email that goes around every now and then...A dog's thoughts...A rope toy, MY FAVORITE THING!

Bartleby's favorite toy is a stuffed Eeyore with a huge head. In about 5 years, he's never 'killed' Eeyore...unlike most other stuffed toys, which die ignominious deaths in a matter of days.

Speaking of that, I really need to do some mending on Eeyore. He's busted a few seams.

That's the other awesome thing about dogs. I take some sadly deflated toy...say his former favorite duck...restuff it with the batting from a hedgehog whose gut rip is beyond repair...and then add the voicebox from a cow that was cute in life, but ickily groady in death. Then you guessed it, the new hybrid (cost free) toy becomes HIS FAVORITE THING!

Makes me feel like a good 'mom' while saving money and resources.

Bartleby's favorite toy is a stuffed Eeyore with a huge head. In about 5 years, he's never 'killed' Eeyore...unlike most other stuffed toys, which die ignominious deaths in a matter of days.

Kato is the only dog I've met who doesn't destroy his toys. He has a teddy bear that's over 3 years old whose squeaker still works.

Fingers crossed that everything works out smoothly, Steph.

Kato is the only dog I've met who doesn't destroy his toys. He has a teddy bear that's over 3 years old whose squeaker still works.

Call the Guinness Book of World Records. Seriously. I've never met a big dog that didn't killkillkill the squeaker.

But, you know, Bartleby uses Eeyore's squeaker strategically. This is no doubt why it has survived.

He nabs it out of the toy pile, sneaks up behind my office chair and gives it a hardy squeak. This almost always inspires me to action. Other squeakers are not as effective, so he just annihilates them. Huh. Never made that connection before. Heh.

Mr Peabody sees a squeaker as a personal offense that must be killed immediately. He will occasionally sort through his basket of misfit toys and pull out one to meditatively work on removing the rest of the stuffing.

to meditatively work on removing the rest of the stuffing.

It really does seem meditative...though I don't think Bartleby has ever left a job undone like that. He's pretty much an all-out kind of guy, stuffing-wise.

Layla has no interest in toys at all. We tried everything but nothing interests her except live things--petting with people and wrestling with other dogs. Truman, on the other hand. LOVES his toys. When anyone he likes comes over, the first thing he does is grab a toy to show them. No matter where you put them, he will find them and carry them back to his bed. When we go visit my SiL, he spends his time finding all THEIR dogs' toys and putting them on THEIR bed. He is very tidy, although he does disembowel them on a regular basis. We buy these [link] in bulk when they are on sale.

I'm going to a police debriefing on a big officer-involved shooting we had last week (because i took the call that sent officers to check on a suicidal subject who happened to have some hunting rifles and really good aim). *gulp* it was a pretty routine call from my end and i'm not terribly concerned about being heavily criticized, and i'm very interested in seeing how a formal debriefing actually works...but i'm also pretty anxious about being in a room surrounded by officers while they have the opportunity to pick apart every choice i made as a calltaker. I don't think they will, or that that would be part of this process (critiquing generally happens within a few days in a closed office with a union rep and none did, so i'm certainly not "in trouble" at all)

don't need ~ma, just to get some friggin sleep tonight.

Good luck erin!

Pico doesn't seem to rip anything but the dryer sheets. She will shake the shit out of things, and playing seems to involve a lot of pouncing, but things pretty much stay in one piece. Of course that may be because Oz is shredding every toy in his path before she would ever get a shot at them.

Good luck erin. Perhaps you will actually be praised!

Truman sounds like a dog after my own heart. Bartleby will pull out the toys but has no concept of replacing them.

And, in a way I have never been able to explain, he wants to grab a toy to take outside when in a pee break. No clue. He does NOT grab a toy if I say 'outside', which he knows involves the collar. 'Pee' which is just the yard means he MUST have a toy. He immediately drops it...and leaves it for me to pick up. If I didn't follow behind him, every single toy would be out there and he'd be grabbing socks or something.

I guess he wants to show off his vast wealth and holdings to the peasant passersby.