Tree Mail

Time for something lighter, it is the Christmas season after all. I have a 4 foot tree which I've put up the past couple years and since I haven't had any young puppies at Christmas in previous years it was relatively safe. The cats don't fuss with it too much and although we've lost a few ornaments to rowdy playtime the tree hasn't suffered too badly in the face of four dogs.

Enter Cora. While the tree hasn't actually hit the floor, no ornaments have yet been broken, and everything seems to be going very smoothly, the tree has been closely inspected by one 6 month old puppy several times. Fortunately the tree has a couple bells as ornaments so I know when it has a puppy browsing it for toy selection. Also, browsing it for cats ... that's Ceilidh thinking the tree is good cover from an inquisitive nose.

There are two ornaments of particular interest to Cora and they are The Grinch and his sidekick Max. They are made of plush material, such as you would find on say ... a dog toy ... and both The Grinch and Max have been delicately tasted. They haven't been removed because each time I caught Cora I gave her a stern warning that they were not for puppy teeth. There's The Grinch up in the top right corner and you can see one of Max's feet by Cora's nose.

So far so good except when it comes to putting anything under the tree. I haven't even tried that since I know it would end in disaster. Bows. Ribbon. Tissue. Crinkly paper. A puppy's curiosity. We know who'd be unwrapping my gifts. That little white marshmallow bobble is actually the top of a Santa hat - where the rest of the hat is ... Cora isn't telling. So ... no gifts under the tree.

I also have a little chicken dressed as a Christmas tree and when you press his wing he dances and plays the Chicken Dance. This is beyond a puppy's wildest dreams of delight. Cora play bowed to it several times, carried it around by its 'star' and attempted to remove its clothing. In the end, as with anything, it got boring and she eventually ignored it but for about 10 minutes it was her entire world. He dances slower and slower each year but he's cute so as long as he remains unscathed he'll keep making an annual appearance. Hopefully the worst of the Christmas tree inspections has passed and we can enjoy the holiday season in peace.