Get in my belly!

Cooper has to be dragged out of bed in the morning

So this week with Cooper has been pretty quiet (thank goodness). However, he did have a couple of "moments", like when he dropped his ball (his most favorite toy!) in the fireplace. Luckily for him, his dad made a daring rescue and unfortunately for us, the fire didn't even destroy the squeaker.

What was interesting this week, were the things Cooper ate. Now he is one of those puppies who walks down the street looking adorable with a giant stick I'm his mouth. What most people don't see is that Cooper picks up a stick, drops it 2 feet later, then drags mom to another branch. This cycle continues for the entirety of our walk; broken up only by drinking from delicious city puddles, eating even better things like rocks, or the occasional growl and freeze at dangerous animals like construction tools and bags blowing in the wind. What I'm getting at is that Cooper loves to eat things he's not supposed to. I realize that many puppies do this, but Cooper takes it to the extreme. People at the dog park are always remarking about how much mulch he can devour per trip. He can out eat any dog there, and if they happen to have a bigger bite, Cooper has been known to eat the dirt right out of their mouth (Cooper once even ate medication out of another dog's mouth; luckily I was there to pry the pill out).

Cooper also very much enjoys chewing on skin of all kinds. He doesn't do this hard at all, in fact it tickles a lot; but Cooper is the #1 nibbler of ears. And you better watch out if you are wearing earrings. More than once I've had to rescue someone's diamond studs from his jaws. Cooper also enjoys hands, and he really really loves chewing his own legs.

Cooper enjoying his leg

And all of this is the beginning. Cooper loves to grab the mail right out of the mailman's hands. I can't tell you the last time the mail touched the ground in my house. In fact, the mailman is so afraid sometimes, our stuff doesn't even make it through the mail slot and instead is dropped in front of the door.

Other things in the house that Cooper enjoys? Well the other day he enjoyed a contact lens I dropped on the floor. He also LOVES to devour lotion off limbs. I usually have to do a dance while I'm putting it on so Cooper can't catch up to my legs. If not, the lotion is gone in approximately 5 seconds. Another delicacy? The bleach infused sponge I use to clean my tub. I can't tell you how many times I've hid that sponge in a place I think Cooper can't reach, just to see him prance on over with blue foam around his lips. I also removed a toothbrush and razor from Cooper's mouth. Somehow he managed to get into his dad's travel bag. Oops.

And if you drop anything remotely edible on the floor, forget about it. My poor cats. I try to give them treats, but Cooper swipes them before they have a chance. And even if I hold Cooper, Blue is "too good" for anything "a dog" would be interested in. I've even tried putting treats in places I thought he'd never be able to reach. Once again, I was wrong. When it comes to food, there's no keeping Cooper away. And the floor isn't the only danger zone. Earlier this week we lost a sausage that was on our counter. It was there one second, and completely gone the next. Although we never actually caught Cooper in the act, his lip-licking gave it away.

Cooper also likes to chew on his own things. The other day while I was getting dressed to take him to the dog park, he entered the bathroom with a piece of foam hanging out of his mouth. I ran over to his giant bed. All looked good on the surface, but when I picked it up I noticed that the entire foam bottom had been torn to shreds. I am still wondering how he managed to do this without picking up his bed since it was still securely set in his crate. And speaking of crates. He likes to chew on them too. Neither the canvas or the metal one are safe from my mutt.

Cooper eating his crate

Now what is most amazing, is what Cooper doesn't eat. You would think he would be ultra destructive in the house. Nope, he doesn't chew on furniture (knock on wood), and unless a toy is stuffed, he doesn't rip it apart. I figured (and hoped) that he would tear apart all of his plastic squeaky toys in minutes. Nope, they are still intact, squeaking happily around the house.

I fear that one day Cooper will eat the wrong thing and I'll end up in the doggy ER getting emergency obstruction surgery. But for now, I'll continue to follow Cooper around ripping everything out if his mouth and trying not to laugh at the obscure things he enjoys.