[Sweet Girl]

Have any of your dogs demonstrated that they just NEVER forget?

My dog has no interest in the kitchen. She is not a begger, she is not a counter-surfer. My food has never been her food. She doesn't hang out in there while I cook. She doesn't nose around looking for crumbs.

HOWEVER....

I bake once a year, at Christmas. The other 50 weeks a year, my mixer is in storage. Two Christmases ago, I bought a new mixer. Not yet comfortable with the speeds, I accidentally put it on too high as I attempted to beat the butter and sugar together. In a flash, there were little chunks of sweet butter EVERYWHERE - on me, on the floor, on the tea towels hanging nearby - and because I yelped, Tee came running. What a coup! She was just more than happy to help clean up the yummy explosion. It was like manna from heaven had rained down. Ever since, whenever I pull out the mixer, she stands RIGHT behind me in the kitchen. She will never forget that wonderful day that such sweetness rained down. She was right there with me yesterday, and though not a morsel fell, I know she will be right there behind me again today.

And then she'll be back again NEXT December, too. :

 

[Sosoprano]

Hahahaha, what a great story! Tee is a smart one

 

[C's Mom]

I think that amount of loyalty deserves to be rewarded with some yummy baked goods.

 

[Ranger]

Very cute!! What a little smartie pants! What is it about butter, eh? Ranger goes nuts for it, too.

Ranger has a memory like a steel trap...in certain cases. It's amazing how he routinely 'forgets' that he has to sit before going through doorways, and yet remembers the ONE time we stopped a convenience store on our walk. I had to tie him up on a little concrete island in the middle of the parking lot in order to see him through the store window, so I told him to 'stay' quite firmly. I raced in, got held up in line for 10 minutes, then went outside...low and behold Ranger hadn't moved. I was desperate to reward him with SOMETHING so I opened the bag of chips I'd bought and gave him a sour cream and onion chip. He devoured it with a lot of lip smacking and drool bubbles.

That was a year ago. And yet every time we walk past the cul-de-sac that leads to that specific convenient store, he wants to go that way. Probably in hope of planting his butt in a stay and getting another chip!

 

[bioteach]

Yep, it's a great survival skill. It's truly amazing how quickly the promise of a huge reward becomes imprinted for life.

 

[Sweet Girl]

I think that amount of loyalty deserves to be rewarded with some yummy baked goods.

I actually, purposely, allowed a little butter and sugar glob to fall on the floor this evening while the mixer was on. That kind of dedication DOES deserve some recognition and respect! :

 

[Sweet Girl]

Very cute!! What a little smartie pants! What is it about butter, eh? Ranger goes nuts for it, too.

Ranger has a memory like a steel trap...in certain cases. It's amazing how he routinely 'forgets' that he has to sit before going through doorways, and yet remembers the ONE time we stopped a convenience store on our walk. I had to tie him up on a little concrete island in the middle of the parking lot in order to see him through the store window, so I told him to 'stay' quite firmly. I raced in, got held up in line for 10 minutes, then went outside...low and behold Ranger hadn't moved. I was desperate to reward him with SOMETHING so I opened the bag of chips I'd bought and gave him a sour cream and onion chip. He devoured it with a lot of lip smacking and drool bubbles.

That was a year ago. And yet every time we walk past the cul-de-sac that leads to that specific convenient store, he wants to go that way. Probably in hope of planting his butt in a stay and getting another chip!

HA! So glad to hear it's not just my girl. Tesia has a "favourite" dry cleaner, too. One day, as we walked by, the guy (who's door was open) called out to say hello and offered a MilkBone. Well, Tesia can NOT walk by there anymore without stopping and SITTING in front of the door and not moving. Even though it was a one-time thing, she has never forgotten that a treat came out of that store.

 

[Elisabeth Kazup]

Manna falling from Heaven!!! Cute.

Penny has remembered from DAY ONE where the biscuits are! Of course that gets reinforced several times a day, not like your once a year thing. And now she's smart enough to stand in front of the pantry door (where the biscuits are ) to simply let us know that she's hungry. I think that's a complicated extension of the theory of biscuits in the pantry.

 

[ruby55]

When my kids were young, we would make popcorn the old fashined way: on the stove in a big pot. My youngest used to love to stand there & yell POP!POP!POP! as I shook the pot. On impulse once, I lifted the lid & let the popcorn fly all over the kitchen, just to watch the expression on my daughter's face. Didn't think about the dog (black lab/ golden mix) standing behind her. He went nuts, running around scarfing up all the popcorn that fell on the floor. From then on he would come running whenever I pulled the popcorn pot out, & just stand there, looking @ the floor, waiting for the heavens to rain popcorn. The funny thing was if you said "POP!" any time, anywhere, he would immediately look down.

 

[Sweet Girl]

When my kids were young, we would make popcorn the old fashined way: on the stove in a big pot. My youngest used to love to stand there & yell POP!POP!POP! as I shook the pot. On impulse once, I lifted the lid & let the popcorn fly all over the kitchen, just to watch the expression on my daughter's face. Didn't think about the dog (black lab/ golden mix) standing behind her. He went nuts, running around scarfing up all the popcorn that fell on the floor. From then on he would come running whenever I pulled the popcorn pot out, & just stand there, looking @ the floor, waiting for the heavens to rain popcorn. The funny thing was if you said "POP!" any time, anywhere, he would immediately look down.

Ha! We used to do that every time we made popcorn (the same way) when I was a kid. My dog LOVED it - and we got a pretty big kick out of it, too!

 

[Ranger]

ruby55 - that is so funny!! I love that he would look at the floor and expect more popcorn to hit the ground! Ranger does that whenever I pull out my cellphone or sees me eating with a utensil...he's waiting for the light to reflect off it so he can chase it...