Play Ball!

Here's a picture of me with my favorite (only) toy.  My ball.  It's a little big for me, but I love it anyway.  Apparently I am not allowed to have any toys that fit under the sofa.  That's too bad, because that wipes out one of the best games from my repertoire.  It's called "Reverse Fetch."  Here's how it works:  1) Get an object small enough to fit under a sofa or bed.  2) Play with the object for a while, then when no one is looking, nudge it under the sofa with your nose.  3) Bark excitedly for as long as it takes for a person to come get it out for you.  Stand back and enjoy watching them get into a variety of contorted positions while retrieving the object.  Sometimes they even have to go get the broom to get the object out.  4) Quickly try to snatch the object back as soon as they get it out, because sometimes they're a little mad and throw it right in the trash.

Nothing beats the ball, though.  I love having it flung across the house in the morning while waiting for my breakfast.  My person hooks her finger in it and flings it fast and far, usually bouncing it off a wall which makes it extra exciting.  Once in a while it goes directly into  the guest bathroom through a narrow opening, which I personally don't enjoy, but when that happens my person yell "Score!! 10 points!"  The ball is a great way to make new friends, too.  When new people come to the door, for some reason they don't seem to like me very much.  Perhaps they don't like a lot of barking and growling.  This is when I test them.  If they try to pet me anyway, I run and find my ball, and voila!  A new best friend.  

The ball isn't always great, though...once I almost DIED playing ball.  Really.  I was upstairs and wanted my person to throw the ball.  She seemed annoyed, but agreed to play.  She threw the ball down the stairs.  Dang.  Doesn't she know it's not easy for a dog of my length to go up and down the stairs?  I have to zig zag, and the ball is too big so I have to lift my head to get back upstairs...it's a real struggle.  As soon as I triumphantly returned with the ball, she grabbed it and threw it down again.  Ack.  I was a trooper, though, and went to get it again.  Three more times, three more trips down and up the stairs.  By now I'm thinking "she's being a little mean," and then "wow, my heart is beating awfully fast."  I tried to tell Dougal that I was possibly having a heart attack, but he wasn't interested.  I recovered, but now when she throws the ball down the stairs, I just give her a dirty look and go do something else.

That's all for now,

Hannah