Today I stuffed Kongs for a while. OK, a long while. Through three NPR shows. I used macaroni, cheese, shredded apple, pine nuts, marshmallows, bananas, and peanut butter. I now have a chest freezer full of stuffed Kongs waiting for next week. Now that the storm, Fay, passed us, I feel safer doing that. I didn’t want to risk the electricity going out last week and having to pull out loads of melting Kongs and saying, “OK everybody, eat! Eat! Eat!” Especially if in the dark.  Not that anyone would mind.  The FDSP would go for a good stuffed Kong anytime of day or night.

Raven’s signed up for Agility class basics. The class starts in September. Tonight I tried something new with the little temper-tantrum throwing beast. As usual, as I was serving dinners, she spat and barked and drooled and barked all over her crate. She calms herself down and huffs and puffs when I’m delivering dinners to dogs close to her, but as soon as I move into another area, she throws a bigger fit. She hasn’t learned patience yet. No, she hasn’t. That’s why she usually gets her dinner last. By the time I’m done, and standing nearby, she can hold it in long enough for me to give in and feed her.

But tonight, after everyone else got fed, and she was still blowing off steam, I opened her crate door. She wouldn’t come out. She stared at me with that “Well, serve me my dinner” look. Uh huh. I surprised her with a leash hooked onto her collar. I walked her out of the crate and brought her to the room where her bowl was waiting for her. Full and smelling good. It was on one side of the room across from the entrance where we were standing.

I put the little beast on a sit stay, and Lord Almighty, she was PERFECT! She sat and stayed and looked so saintly just waiting for me to give the OK and unleash her, so she could dive into her meal. Wow! And did she ever. She’s definitely as passionate about eating as she is about playing.

She’s also an enigma in fur.

Helen