The Great Eyeball Fakeout

I know everyone (save for Bart's mom) thinks their dog is smart. But there is something about "the oooh" a/k/a my Mabel Lou. My hiking buddy tells me she wants to flip Mabel over and check her for a zipper i.e. she thinks Mabel is a human in a dog suit!

Recently, we ran into the hiking buddy and her Rhodesian Ridgies Hank and Sue at a fork on the trail. The HB was very excited... she had a ball for me - an "eye" ball. She picked it up for me because I love to make glass eye beads and she thought I would get a kick out of it.

Mabel Lou spied the exchange and got excited. I distracted her and Bart and pocketed the ball in my cape for closer examination later. Before I walked 10 feet, Mabel had set up camp in front of me, demanding the contents of my left pocket... that's where the ball was. Realizing I wasn't going to walk very far, I tossed it to her.

Suddenly Atilla and my pool man joined us and the pack moved toward the river. All four dogs were very interested in that eye ball in Mabel's mouth. Realizing she was outnumbered, Mabel Lou attempted evasive action. But she's older and not as fast as she once was. So she opted for the next best thing - a fake out!

She dug a hole, sucked that ball deeper into her jowls and "buried" it.  Hank and Sue fell for it. But Bart and Tilla weren't so sure... so she repeated the motion further downstream. And both boys fell for it! With all four hiking buddies digging for balls that weren't there, Mabel went off on a ridge where she could play with her ball alone and bury it in secret.

I know she's mine... but I do think she's rather clever!