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A Dog Nose Knows
I have shared with Ricochet that we were adopted by a ten-week-old puppy last November. His name is Jack. He pretty much looks like a pure-breed black lab except he isn’t. People that know the breed spot his nonconformity quickly.
To me, he is just Jack. He is now 18 months old and losing some of his bad habits and getting smarter every day. I saw right away that his nose was something different from any dog I ever had. Jack is my 17th dog. I noticed that he smells other dogs before he could see them. He sniffs out mole crickets in the yard all day long. He eats them and I get to fill in the holes. He can smell a treat in someone’s pocket immediately. He sits and begs to a stranger on the beach that has a treat in their pocket. We have to hide his toys and he finds them anyway.
For the last three days, I have had to drag him past the front of our car. Because of the virus, we haven’t been using it every day. At first, he was sniffing at the front wheel wells. Yesterday he was sniffing the grill and under the car. Today he stood on his hind legs and sniffed the space between the finder and the hood. I finally listened to the dumb animal. I popped the hood and something (either a squirrel or a rat) had pooped and left acorn shells on my nice, clean engine.
I swear Jack smiled when I told him he was a good dog. He nose.
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Picture, please.
My wife wants to arrange a swap. I’m housebroken, can do tricks, and will fetch the paper in the morning . . .
Awwww, what a good boy!
But I heard what you do with peoples legs.
Jack’s sniffer is better than Bob’s sniffer. I just told Bob of that fact. Bob is abashed and vows to do better.
Your 17th dog? You do love dogs, don’t you?
No I’ve had sleds. Actually that includes ones I had as a child. Later we lived on a small farm and often had four or five at a time. I really do love dogs some more than others though. BTW, I cleaned off my engine yesterday but it was covered again today. I set a rat trap today and hope to catch it tonight.
(We’ll just keep that our little secret, okay?)
In case anyone is wondering I set the rat trap yesterday. During the night it ate all the peanut butter and sprung the trap without getting caught. I’ll try again today. What else do I have to do? Like going on a hunting trip without leaving the driveway.
Mr. C had mice eat through the (soy-based) wiring insulation on his Acura many years ago. He found these plug-in mouse repellent devices that make an irritating (to the mice) sound. It’s the only way he kept them out of the garage and his engine compartment.
Ironically my car is also an Acura. From the size of the droppings I have either a rat or squirrel as a tenant. Here in the Low Country hardly anyone puts their car in the garage. Houses here don’t have basements so most, including me, use the garage as a storage area.