Sue's Greyhound Blog

Greyhounds are often thought of as just being lazy, but one of mine has just shown that they have a new talent – REVENGE!

Follow up:

As with having a growing family (dogs and humans) we decided that our present sitting room predicament was just getting silly. There we would be 2 adults and 2 teenagers all squashing onto a large 2 seater sofa in the evenings, more often than not with a teenager moving to sit on the floor or disappearing to their room because there was simply no where else to sit. Why? Because there would be 2 Greyhounds sprawled out across the other sofa, using it as a bed!

It all started when we first had Woody, having already lived in a home we tried really hard to keep him off the sofa as he had been allowed in his last home, but eventually admitted defeat, gave up and bought a throw. Pepper, like Tikka before her showed absolutely no desire to go on the sofa, which was fine. Pickle then arrived and like Woody she too had been allowed on the sofa, but whilst you could still share with one Greyhound – you could not with two. We realised that they thought of it as a bed as when they were told to go on their beds they would automatically go to the sofa and of course we wouldn’t correct them.

The situation was now getting serious as we were beginning to loose our lounge to Greyhounds. It was then decided that we would try and BAN them from the sofa – which was easier said than done. All started well, we removed the throw and started sitting on the sofa. When there was no one around we would pull down the back cushions to stop them going on it – which worked up to a point until Pickle decided it was more comfy to lie on top of them! She really can be quite naughty – the cushion ploy was enough to stop Woody in his tracks.

So on we persevered and kept dragging her off and eventually after a couple of weeks it seemed to pay off and she stopped going on it. Rearranging the layout of the lounge just before Christmas seemed to help too as it confused them as to which sofa had been theirs!

Pickle is a sweet, gentle but very intelligent hound who often tries to get away with the “butter wouldn’t melt in my mouth” ploy, we really should give her more credit for cunning and devious ways. We thought we had cracked it by giving them an extra new soft bed instead of the sofa. This ploy worked to appease them for a few days because suddenly everyone wanted to go on the new bed – great. But then it started - the revenge.

Things would suddenly go missing - gloves, washing off the clothes airer, shoes but most favourite items of all – cardboard boxes (empty food packaging boxes, egg boxes being the real favourite). I often caught pickle squirreling away these items to her bed (or more correctly Woody’s bed) under the stairs. She would look at me after having just been caught, red pawed as if to say “oh what on earth are these things doing here – it wasn’t me it was him!” but having just watched her do it I knew better. Taking packaging off food items when I did the weeks shopping before putting them away in the fridge or freezer became a real challenge - getting them out the package before Pickle carried them off if they were on the floor!

Christmas then arrived and so did the presents. She opened at least three and chewed one that was in a box so they then had to be moved into large bags that she can’t reach inside. The coffee table has also started to become fair game and anything left on there has become a target. She has recently chewed up and empty box of Lindor chocolates that had a couple wrappers inside. Thankfully there seems to have been no ill effects but I was rather curious of what I might find when I was poo picking, as to whether it will be all neatly wrapped up for me!!!

Her behaviour really does feel like she is trying to get her revenge by being so naughty, although I know it is only coincidence – or is it??????????

Woody however, has resigned himself to the fact that he is indeed a dog and not a person and therefore he takes what ever bed has been left for him by the girls (very rarely is it the one by the radiator, that proves to be very popular!). He will walk up to us when we are sitting on “his” sofa, tail wagging, asking for a fuss and a stroke, looking up at us with his beautiful dark eyes as if to say “please let me on - I’m only tiny” and I would if he were an Italian Greyhound or a Whippet but he’s not and he’s big and - I LIKE MY SOFA!!!!