Zada's New (Old) Toy

The last time I was with Dani, she had a neat toy for Tucker, and I asked her where she got it. She told me the dollar bin at Target - of course, not everything is $1, but close enough. Although I can't remember for the life of me what that toy was, I made sure to browse that section while in Target today, and instead stumbled upon an old family favorite: The Mop.

It's not a 'mop', but we always called it that name with my family's previous shepherd, Ivan. Not sure why. Speaking of that mop, we still have it. Yup, Ivan stumbled into my life right before I turned 15; we put him down right before I turned 24. Aaaand we still have one of his favorite toys.

I guess that's not as bad as my mother still having the dog bed from FOUR dogs ago. Yes, 4. That dog - Gitta - we got when I was 5. Same dog bed they have today. Did I mention Mom had Gitta's name stitched on it??? It's survived Gitta, Ivan, Maggie, and now Tesa. Heaven forbid Mom gets a bed that a) has the current dog's name on it or b) gets a non-specific bed.

Anyway...so as soon as I got Zada, I purchased a knotted rope to have as her very own 'mop'. Thing was, she had such a sensitive stomach I was afraid of what would happen when she started to - inevitably - pull off and eat the loose ends.

Turns out this was the Godsend I'd been waiting for, as soon after she started having solid...doo doo. So, I let her keep eating it. Plus, there was the added bonus of her flossing every time she tried to rip off the strings. She puts a paw on either side, and with the strings in her mouth, starts at the bottom, where they're attached, and RRRRIIIIIIIPPPS upwards 'til she gets a mouthful to disconnect. It's rather comical when she tries and tries but can't get the pieces out of her teeth.

Unfortunately, that didn't happen tonight, when I gave her the one I brought home. She hasn't had one in a long time - not sure why - so it was a picture-worthy event to see her reunited with an old friend.



She didn't make it very long before she petered out...not sure if it's because it's Sunday (meaning she's more laid-back because she's been out all day) or just the excitement of a new toy. Either way, I have a feeling she'll be pooing solidly for the next few days while she rips away all the loose strings.

And, just to clarify: I'm NOT in the habit of buying her GIRLY toys...it just so happens that a) the rope toy only came in pink or Christmas colors, and b) the purple bone also featured in the photos only came in purple. Don't judge me.

PS: Yup, I did it. I just blogged about my dog's new toy.