trystinn | The Mysteries of Puppyhood

Flash has got to be the strangest puppy in the world. He's come up with at least a dozen new bizarre ways to entertain himself already this week.

1. He pushes a rolling office chair into the living room, parks it in front of a lounge chair before jumping back and forth between the two. Alternate game: lays on the lounge chair and uses his nose to turn the chair in circles. One of these days that office chair is going to go flying and fall over. Should be fun to watch, if nothing else.

2. He stole a ball of chennile yarn from my closet and has been making webs from the foyer, kitchen, living & dining room while he kicks and head butts it. It was so odd, I let him do it all morning. At about 4 inches high, it was beginning to get a bit dangerous so I wound the web back up into the ball and hid it. Can't wait to see the next one.

"3. He's been following poor Glory around, barking madly, jumping sideways and trying to convince her to wrestle with him. As she is very elderly, she pretty much ignores him completely, this is easily done as she's stone deaf. He's gotten to the point where he's grabbing her forelegs in his mouth to encourage her and she's begun barking and growling at him. Fortunately, he's young, dumb and male so he figures she's playing hard to get. Can't wait to see how this one ends.

4. Trapped himself in the master bathroom shower. The echo from his howling was insanely loud. I still haven't figured out how he opened (and closed) a glass shower door. Telekinesis is my bet.

5. Barks at Glory while she's sleeping, again this is where deafness comes in handy. Barks at Tracker to get off the couch and play, with zero results unless you count the plaintive howls from Tracker in complaint.

6. He has managed to teach Gracie how to play and wrestle. Being a border collie, she's a lot faster and more manuverable through the bushes and trees but she lets him keep up. She's even let him play with her tennis balls, something that used to be punishable by blood loss.

7. Lays down on the sofa in a tight fetal position, then with no warning turns over on his back, feet dangling towards the sky and sort of oozes down the side of the sofa until the top of his head hits the floor. Yep. Multiple times.

8. Sits or lays on the coffe table or sofa end table to watch the fish swim around in the aquarium. If they don't swim fast enough, he howls at them until they do. He's particularly freaked out (aren't we all?) by the dragonfish.

9. Lays across the back of the sofa, watching the rabbits until he overexcites himself and dives for the window. *bonk*

10. Tries to jump up on the 2 foot tall exercise ball, repeatedly. No luck yet, but its definately keeping his busy for hours at a time.

11. Howls whenever our neighbor's cows bawl for milking and feeding. They bawl & howl back and forth until I run out there and grab him.

12. Has turned discarded toilet cardboard rolls into an Olympic chewing event.

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You can see why Josh's first words coming in the door at night are "what he'd do this time?"