My dogs…oh my crazy, silly, wild at times dogs. I'm sure you have heard a story or two….if only I had a camera for this one:
Let me set this up by reminding you all that Porkchop, our youngest mutt, is a permanent puppy…she is the most precious yet wild third "child" any family could have. Porkchop has destroyed most everything we own in our home at one time or another, reeks havoc on our lives, and melts our hearts. She will eat your shoes (at least 4 pairs of mine so far), and then look at you with big doe eyes and plead forgiveness. How do you stay mad at that? She's been nearly impossible to train – despite two other perfectly angelic, well behaved and thoroughly trained mutts, she has chosen to be adorably belligerent. While she knows better for the most part, she seems to constantly challenge why…and sometimes the nutty things she does are just down right hilarious….today was one of those days.
Because Porkchop has a tendency to like to eat everything in her reach when we are not home, we crate her. She loves her crate and will go in it on her own at any time – it's not a punishment to her. It's her place of protection, her safe haven from her sisters when they pick on her, and usually a great place to find a stray treat…but a few weeks ago, Porkchop decided that she no longer wanted the plastic tray that was in the bottom of her crate, and rather preferred bare metal and blanket. She accomplished removal of this nuisance by strategically "eating" (did not ingest, but simply savored each morsel, setting them aside when done in approximately six inch squares) the plastic tray that was said bottom of the crate. Therefore, husband and I have been on a mission to replace it, since Houdini realized she can flip the crate on it's side and escape through the bottom openings.
Well, the replacement search as of current has been futile – we have had absolutely no success in finding any place that sells them. We are planning on buying a new crate, or something that will work as a replacement. We keep the crate in the living room – in front of the fireplace, at one extreme end of the house. Here's where it gets funny: when my husband left today and placed our wild child in the crate as usual, Porkchop, our PRECIOUS little angel, managed to walk herself through the house, while still in the crate, to the complete opposite side of our home. After apparently trying all doors until she found one that had accidentally been left ajar, she finally settled herself happily in the guest bedroom. When my husband came home, he found it odd that she was not in the living room….nor was the crate she typically escapes from. When he found her, she was happily sleeping in her mobile home, content with her new surroundings. If only our home had surveillance…it would be fascinating to see how our little dog managed to maneuver a 3 ft x 3 ft crate through the living room filled with furniture to stand in her way, down the hallway, past a bedroom, a bathroom, and into the guest room.
