Brinx and his Christmas gifts (Part 2)

[Barbara Moulton]

So this evening I decided to get all my Christmas presents wrapped before Leisha comes home for the holidays. Brinx followed me into the room where I have hidden the gifts for Christmas. As soon as I took out the bag with his remaining toys (remember he discovered the bag last week and wheedled a gift out of us), he got really excited.

I told him no...these are for Christmas. I left them in the room and closed the door.

He sat outside that door for an hour.

I went back up to get some more wrapping paper and came downstairs. I forgot to shut the door. The next thing I know there is a big thump. He had knocked the box with the bag of his presents on to the floor. I came up and told him he was bad and he scurried out of the room.

I tell you...he is worse than the kids. And I still don't know how he KNOWS which bag is for him.

[Gina Stevenson]

I tell you...he is worse than the kids. And I still don't know how he KNOWS which bag is for him. [Barbara]

Barbara, that is sooooooo funny! Sasha's getting "childish" in her old age, methinks sometimes. Used to be I could leave something that belonged to her lying around, and she'd not get into it even if I'd not been careful to keep it above where she could easily get it.

Weeelllll, the other day we went away and I'd left some of her good "cookies" [name we call doggie biscuits] in a plastic bag on the coffee table, as I'd given her and Ginger one earlier. We got home and found a ripped up bag, with nearly all the "cookies" gone!! She'd probably had them gone, if we'd not appeared when we did ... unless she only ate until she just couldn't eat anymore for awhile, so left them. Funny "puppy" ... ten-year-old "puppy," that is. ;)

As to why Brinx knows which gifts are his, not sure ... unless it's scent, as you suggested; perhaps his toys are the only thing that has ever smelled that certain way, so he just knows! ;)

[Dana Grant]

So this evening I decided to get all my Christmas presents wrapped before Leisha comes home for the holidays. Brinx followed me into the room where I have hidden the gifts for Christmas. As soon as I took out the bag with his remaining toys (remember he discovered the bag last week and wheedled a gift out of us), he got really excited.

I told him no...these are for Christmas. I left them in the room and closed the door.

He sat outside that door for an hour.

I went back up to get some more wrapping paper and came downstairs. I forgot to shut the door. The next thing I know there is a big thump. He had knocked the box with the bag of his presents on to the floor. I came up and told him he was bad and he scurried out of the room.

I tell you...he is worse than the kids. And I still don't know how he KNOWS which bag is for him.

That is just too cute. It MUST be the scent. I have a friend who buys gifts for her beagle (Watson) and cannot put them under the tree until Christmas eve, because Watson will open his early if she does. But hers is usually dog bones, so that would obviously be a scent thing; but you said you bought toys -- and I guess they do have a certain scent to a dog, but I wouldn't think it would be THAT obvious!!

You just have yourself a SMART POOCH, Barbara!!

[Barbara Moulton]

That is just too cute. It MUST be the scent. I have a friend who buys gifts for her beagle (Watson) and cannot put them under the tree until Christmas eve, because Watson will open his early if she does. But hers is usually dog bones, so that would obviously be a scent thing; but you said you bought toys -- and I guess they do have a certain scent to a dog, but I wouldn't think it would be THAT obvious!!

You just have yourself a SMART POOCH, Barbara!!

We have already realized that we will have to make sure Brinx is in bed before Santa comes. Otherwise he'll be under the tree for sure. We are looking forward (and have the video camera ready) for Christmas morning, to see whether he can find his gifts.

[Wendy Smith]

Our dog (a rat and fox terrier mix) had a thing for tennis balls. Loved to play fetch but it had to be a tennis ball. She could smell them.
She passed on in October at the human age of 15. We think between old age and stress of moving this summer got to her.

We weren't sure about this till we visited my brother and he "tested" this theory of smell.

He plays tennis and had a small sports bag full of them. First day Peanut was ever in his house...she of course was looking around all the rooms and went to a cabinet ...sat down in front of it and started whining.
We asked what he kept in there and he said my tennis equipment! He opened up the cabinet and she jumped in the cabinet and was digging at the bag.
So we opened up the bag and poured the contents out on the floor...she didn't know which one to chase after first! It was the funniest thing I've ever seen.
Well my brother just could not get over this! Thought he should take her to tennis practice with him to see what she would do there! We weren't there during tennis season so he didn't get to do that....But the week we were there and would go to his house....he would say..."I hid tennis balls in different places in the house to see if Peanut could find them." And she always did. It was fun to watch.
Toward the end if she was having a good day...she would still play fetch with a tennis ball and run just as hard as if she were just a puppy!
Heres a picture of her hiding under the couch in the middle of moving this summer!

[Barbara Moulton]

Heres a picture of her hiding under the couch in the middle of moving this summer!

Wonderful story and wonderful picture. I am sorry for your loss.

Leisha (my youngest) is in University now. She told me that if a family member died she would be excused from exams. She of course would not be excused if her dog died.

But she said to me, "Mom, you know I love grandpa (my father) but if he died right now I would not be as upset as if Brinx died."

I understood what she meant. Dad is 75, in deep Alzheimers, very unhappy. He wants to "go home". News of his physical death would be welcome because, in so many ways, the man that was my father has died. I know that Leisha would be able to continue on with the writing of her exams with little difficulty if he passed away. She would experience an emotional release rather than tremendous grief.

But she is very close to our dog and will probably have to process much grief when he passes.

I think she was a little worried when she told me this, that I would think she was a terrible person. But I knew exactly what she meant.

[Dana Grant]

Wonderful story and wonderful picture. I am sorry for your loss.

Leisha (my youngest) is in University now. She told me that if a family member died she would be excused from exams. She of course would not be excused if her dog died.

But she said to me, "Mom, you know I love grandpa (my father) but if he died right now I would not be as upset as if Brinx died."

I understood what she meant. Dad is 75, in deep Alzheimers, very unhappy. He wants to "go home". News of his physical death would be welcome because, in so many ways, the man that was my father has died. I know that Leisha would be able to continue on with the writing of her exams with little difficulty if he passed away. She would experience an emotional release rather than tremendous grief.

But she is very close to our dog and will probably have to process much grief when he passes.

I think she was a little worried when she told me this, that I would think she was a terrible person. But I knew exactly what she meant.

You're a good Mom, Barbara -- I like you.