Give a dog a bone

We’ve been away, the girls and I, and left ‘the boys’ to their own devices. It was the longest we’d ever left Pip on his own and it seems he coped quite well.

Him-In-Doors bought him the biggest bone I’ve ever seen in my life from Tasman Meats.

The remains of Pip's bone alongside his squeaker bone

I felt mildly guilty giving it to him on Monday morning before I set off for Melbourne. I was still inside doing some last-minute packing when I heard him clunking the bone on the deck. It sounded like he was dismantling the deck.

        Anyway, I spied on him through the toilet window – my usual Pip spy-hole – and discovered he was trying to get the bone into his kennel. We jokingly call the kennel ‘the pool room’ ala The Castle (a successful Australian comedy film, for those not in the know, where the biggest accolade any item can be given is ‘that’s going straight to the pool room’) because Pip doesn’t use his kennel for sleeping or hanging out in generally. He uses it for stockpiling choice bones.

I thought I should take pity on him and move the bone for him into the pool room but then I thought better. Maybe the exercise of trying to drag the gigantic bone into his kennel might occupy him for the seven or so hours he’d be on his own.

So ‘the boys’ survived okay but were very glad to see us on our return.

I managed to include a visit to a pet emporium while I was in town, and picked up a bargain 10 pig’s ears for $13 as well as a faux Kong – a rubber ball you insert treats into. It’s supposed to have a maze inside and if you shake it in the right way, the dog spends a while playing with it to get the treats to roll out. Pip mastered it in a few swift shakes of a dog’s leg but those-in-the-know tell me that the trick is to cover the opening with peanut butter.

It is lovely to be back home with the boys!