"What would you do for a Klondike Bar?" "Would you jump from a plane or hop on a moving train?" What would you do for a Klondike Bar? What is your favorite thing and what would you do for it?
For my dog Oskar, it's his cookie. That dog will do anything for a cookie, yes anything. He is so obsessed with his treat I wonder what the magic ingredient is that has such a hold on him. It doesn't have caffeine or chocolate, just a dried biscuit flavored with lamb and chicken, molded to look like a bone. I use this treat as a reward for good behavior. Example being: When he was going through the potty training stage, he would get one for going outside, especially in the morning. We wake up about 6:00 am, I take all the dogs out to go potty then they come in and get their treat. Now that the dogs are older and independent they have a doggie door that they can use at their convienence. It's not nessassary for me to let them out.
Oskar has the morning routine wired into his body clock and he's not about to for go the treat. Yes it's true he can go out whenever he chooses, but it's the treat he wants. 6:00 rolls around and he is barking, dancing, running to the garage door (that's where the treats are ) barking continually, "Cookie, cookie, oh I want my cookie!" "Look mom, they're in the garage, over here hurry, hurry, I want my cookie!" After all that, he eats the thing in one second flat. Chomps and inhales then looks around to see if he missed any crumbs.
The problem with his body clock is it doesn't run on the same time everyday. Some mornings he's waking me up at 5:00 am or 4:00 am. He'll shake his collar, nudge my hand then start in with the quite, "woof" If I give him any indication that I'm aware of his hints, he'll explode into a barking frenzy, "It's cookie time, let me out so I can have my cookie!"
I'm not the happiest camper when it comes to 4:00 or 5:00 in the morning, especially to feed into an addiction. I'll get up, grab his bed and toss it into the other room and tell him, "Go back to bed." He still runs to the door, "Well since you're up, how about I go outside so I can get my cookie?" I turn away, shut my bedroom door and try to get that last little bit of an hour left of sleep. But when 6:00 rolls around, guess what? "It's cookie time!"
The other example is after he takes a bath, Oskar hates his bath and it usually is followed by a haircut. I do his grooming, and being a schnauzer he needs to be groomed. Knowing this is not fun for him
I say, "When you're all done, you can have a cookie." Trust me, he understands what I'm saying. As soon as he is off the grooming table, he bolts up the stairs, then back down the stairs, "Come on mom, my cookie -bark, bark" "Hurry, they're in the garage, remember?" "Over here
you must hurry, bark, bark!" I give him his treat and in point one second, it's devoured.
Oh there's more - The magic biscuit doesn't just pertain to his bath only. He feels it's only fair that he gets one after any of the dogs bathe. Since Archie is just a puppy and doesn't know about the bath/cookie routine, I didn't feel it was necessary letting him on that little secret just yet. I gave Archie his first bath when we brought him home, he wiggle and splashed but, all in all, he handled it just fine. When we came out of the room, Oskar sniffed him, then sniffed some more and started barking at Archie, "You get a cookie, you get a cookie!" I looked at Oskar and said, "What?" That's all it took, he ran to the garage door, "The cookie's, they're in the garage, hurry-bark, bark, Archie gets a cookie!" Which translate to, "Oskar gets a cookie too."
Yes, I think Oskar would jump from a plane or hop on a moving train just so he can have a lamb and chicken flavored biscuit. His favorite thing, "A cookie."
The problem with his body clock is it doesn't run on the same time everyday. Some mornings he's waking me up at 5:00 am or 4:00 am. He'll shake his collar, nudge my hand then start in with the quite, "woof" If I give him any indication that I'm aware of his hints, he'll explode into a barking frenzy, "It's cookie time, let me out so I can have my cookie!"
I'm not the happiest camper when it comes to 4:00 or 5:00 in the morning, especially to feed into an addiction. I'll get up, grab his bed and toss it into the other room and tell him, "Go back to bed." He still runs to the door, "Well since you're up, how about I go outside so I can get my cookie?" I turn away, shut my bedroom door and try to get that last little bit of an hour left of sleep. But when 6:00 rolls around, guess what? "It's cookie time!"
The other example is after he takes a bath, Oskar hates his bath and it usually is followed by a haircut. I do his grooming, and being a schnauzer he needs to be groomed. Knowing this is not fun for him
I say, "When you're all done, you can have a cookie." Trust me, he understands what I'm saying. As soon as he is off the grooming table, he bolts up the stairs, then back down the stairs, "Come on mom, my cookie -bark, bark" "Hurry, they're in the garage, remember?" "Over here
you must hurry, bark, bark!" I give him his treat and in point one second, it's devoured.
Oh there's more - The magic biscuit doesn't just pertain to his bath only. He feels it's only fair that he gets one after any of the dogs bathe. Since Archie is just a puppy and doesn't know about the bath/cookie routine, I didn't feel it was necessary letting him on that little secret just yet. I gave Archie his first bath when we brought him home, he wiggle and splashed but, all in all, he handled it just fine. When we came out of the room, Oskar sniffed him, then sniffed some more and started barking at Archie, "You get a cookie, you get a cookie!" I looked at Oskar and said, "What?" That's all it took, he ran to the garage door, "The cookie's, they're in the garage, hurry-bark, bark, Archie gets a cookie!" Which translate to, "Oskar gets a cookie too."
Yes, I think Oskar would jump from a plane or hop on a moving train just so he can have a lamb and chicken flavored biscuit. His favorite thing, "A cookie."
1 comment:
Whoa young lady! How do you know the doggie biscuit company didn't slip in a little Crack Cocaine, or maybe a trace of methamphetymine? Afterall, these companies aren't under the same strictures are companies that process food for humane consumption. It's not like the FDA can keep up with the stuff we are eating, let alone pet food. Haven't you read the news stories about the Chinese companies that dump all sorts of crazy stuff into pet food? Now think about it...if you really wanted to make a boatload of money selling, let's say Doggie Biscuit like cookies, why not insert a little "secret ingredient", a little something that keeps those Canines on red alert for your product--something viciously addictive? Package it in a cute little doggie boned shape and call it a cookie. What pet owner could possibly resist? Remember there is historical precedence for this (the tabacco industry). Perhaps you just think its a benign "dried biscuit flavored with lamb and chicken, molded to look like a bone." My take is that you are dealing with something much more insidious and explosive. Canine Addiction!
The basic problem is that you've created a little monster. You've been victimized and so has your dog. It's high time to simply admit that your dog is an addict. Simply put, little Oskar is in serious need of a family intervention. As you know, the She-wolf is not really into dogs that much, but please know that you can count on the rest of the Smart Family to assist with the reclamation of little Oskar. We would be honored to be part of Team Parsons and its effort in this family intervention. Secretly, I've always wanted to be part of a canine intervention (sounds crazy and maybe just a little dangerous), so please don't hesitate to call.
Well, that's my take on your most excellent post. Oskar is a druggie!
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