My dog is a scientist. Not a badass honey badger scientist, but a scientist nevertheless. Let me explain.
When we walk by the beach, we always take the same path - down the trail, then out onto this ledge of asphalt that has been partially sea-eaten, then jump down onto the sand and continue onward.
The other night the surf was good and the good surfers were out, so I decided I wanted to watch. When I jumped off the ledge, I sat down. Goldie continued out to the end of the 16-foot Flexi leash, which then yanked her neck.
She pulled forward again. Yanked. Again. Yanked. She repeated this about 10 times. It was like she was thinking "We usually proceed forward here - WHAT is holding me back?"
She came back toward me a bit, then took off again. And again. At this point, I was done watching surfers and was just laughing at my dog.
Finally she came back over, jumped up on the ledge, jumped down and kept walking til the leash jerked her again. I realized what she was doing though - she was testing variables, trying something different to see what worked. "I don't know why I'm stopped, but maybe if I retrace my steps..."
I so admired her persistence that I gave her her wish and got up to continue our walk. But I'm getting her a job in a laboratory tomorrow. **********
Speaking of dogwalking, remember when it was ok to leave your dog poop anywhere? I guess because back in the bad old days, people had never figured out that steaming piles of dog crap were the responsibility of the owner.
Now the pendulum has swung, and our parks departments are eager to help owners take care of their dog messes. There are plastic bag holders conveniently located in our parks and they are stocked with "Mutt MItts," plastic bags printed with instructions on how to dispose of dog crap.
One would think that people wouldn't NEED actual instructions, because the process seems pretty dang intuitive to me. How creative can you get with dog poop and a plastic bag?
Well.
Appparently even the printed instructions aren't enough, because every day I come along several Mutt Mitts that have been used and deposited right there along the trail, not taken to the conveniently located trash bins.
What the hell are people thinking? "I need to clean this crap up by putting it in a plastic bag and leaving it here for some other person to find"? Or is it because the bags say "Biodegradable" on them, they think they should leave them out to biodegrade? Lord help us.
Maybe the next step should be some kind of mandatory Mutt Mitt classes. I think an 8-hour session should about cover it.