1. Shoes – I have odd sized feet. I’ve blogged about it before (here). Shoes are not easy for me to find. Both Hypnos and Fenris have eaten their fair share of mine and the hubby’s shoes, but I think the absolute worst was when Fenris figured out how to open the hall closet door. After spending 3 days shoe shopping I found two pairs of dress shoes. Fenris ate them within 48 hours of their arrival in the house.
2. Dog crate(s) – We tried crate training Hypnos when he first arrived. He was found abandoned in the wild and had only spent a few weeks at a shelter before we adopted him. He’s very much a people puppy and doesn’t want to be away from where the action is. He ate his way through 3 crate cushions and the plastic bottoms of two of them before we decided that maybe crating him wasn’t going to work. He broke the welds on the last crate he spent time in – it was an extra large crate and he’s only a 50 lb dog, so it was quite the feat – before we took the hint. He’s much happier and doing far less damage to the house now that we’ve put away the crate and let him have free reign over the house when we’re not home…
3. Moulding (door & baseboard) – After Hypnos broke the first crate and before we’d managed to replace it, we tried shutting him in the spare bedroom while we were at work. He proceeded to chew all the moulding from around the door and along the baseboards.
4. Power cords – The cats have chewed their way through a number of mice cords before the days of laptops and wireless mice. Hypnos decided to start somewhere higher on the list and chewed through the power cord for the fridge.
5. Teddy bears – Never let a child bring a teddy bear into a house with dogs that have stuffed chew toys. The results aren’t pretty.
6. Coffee table – When I was home helping to care for dad, I received a phone call wherein the hubby casually mentioned that the dog had chewed the new coffee table. It had taken over two years to select the table – it’s hard buying furnature for a small space – and Hypnos apparently decided it would make a good snack. I’m sure the neighbours could hear me screaming What? when the hubby delivered the news. Dad did get a bit of a chuckle out of it when I told him.
7. Computer desk – Compared to some of the other peices of furnature they’ve chewed on, the desk got off lucky.
8. Pillows – Have you ever had a nightmare where you think you’re eating something and wake up with your pillow in your mouth? Me neither. Apparently Fenris has though. She’s eaten at least two bed pillows over the years.
9. Loveseat – About a week after we bought a new loveseat, Hypnos pulled the cushions off of it and started snacking on the uphostery under the cushions. He didn’t manage to do too much damage before we returned home, but just enough that we had to purchase drop covers to hide the damage…
10. Loveseat pillow stuffing – I’m not really sure how (or who) managed this. About a year after we bought the loveseat, he pulled the cushions off of the loveseat, managed to unzip the cushion covers, and pulled the cushion stuffing out of the cover to chew on it.
11. Swivel chair – When I moved into my second apartment, my parents gave me a Kroeger chair they had purchased years earlier. Our dog Whiskey had chewed it a little when we were kids. Shortly after we adopted Fenris she decided that it would make a nice fibrous snack and she proceeded to finish off what Whiskey had started a over decade earlier. Of course, she didn’t stop at chewing the uphostry – she also chewed the arm through to the wooden frame and took a big chunk out of the wood as well.
12. Leashes and collars – Fenris has chewed a few collars in her time but it was Hypnos who had managed to chew his way through 4 different leashes in the last year.
13. Duvet – This wouldn’t be so bad, except Hypnos chewed our puppy-sitters duvet while we were out of town. The hubby frequently tells them that it’s Hynos’ version of repayment for when their dog (Poppy) tore the screen door off of our sliding patio doors.

After reading that list I think I need someone to explain to me why we still have dogs.

This picture of Fenris says it all.

Thanks to other TT participants who stopped by and commented: stacitee, Michael, Janene, Laughing Muse, David, Frances, Stephanie, Lee, Chaotic Mom, Deanna, Christine d’Abo, Bond, Annie, DKRaymer, Susan, Scribbit (Michelle), Jo (Laquet), Jenny Ryan, nadnuts, N.Mallory, Jan &Â elementaryhistoryteacher.

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

1. Hit the snooze button – I set my alarm clock a few minutes early just so I can hit the snooze button at least 2x before I crawl out of bed each morning. I don’t know why I bother. Once the dogs are up, I’m expected to get up too. They do everything their little brains can think of to get me out of bed. Fifty pound dogs jumping on your chest to wake you up is not a pleasant way to get up in the morning.
2. Let the dogs out – Better to do it now than risk having them trip me when I’m trying to eat. If the hubby is home, they just go outside to play when I wake up. On cold or rainy days I can’t go very far because they’ll be desperate to get back inside as soon as possible. If it’s warm or snowing, it’s next to impossible to get them back inside.
3. Breakfast – I’m not a big breakfast person. Normally it’s limited to yogurt, fruit and juice.
4. Fill the dog and cat food and water dishes.
5. Brush my teeth – A necessity after eating breakfast.
6. Shower – ‘Nuff said.
7. Pick out clothes to wear – Small house means small closets. I run back and forth between three rooms trying to determine what to wear, which blouses match which pants, etc. I love Fridays simply because I get to dress in T-shirts and jeans. No colour coding required.
8. Find my glasses – I’ve been wearing glasses for over 1/2 of my life. You’d think by now that I’d have a set place where I put them when I take them off before bed. That would make sense. I never seem to take them off in the same place twice and I can never remember where I put them the next morning. Some days this can result in an amusing running around like a chicken with my head cut off routine.
9. Check the weather – If I were smart, I’d check the weather when I let the dogs out. Most morning my eyes are barely open when they run past my legs and head for the yard. Smart doesn’t happen until after my first coffee in the morning…
10. Change my clothes – See, if I checked the weather before I got dressed, I wouldn’t waste time changing clothes. After checking the weather I’ll usually change something: put on a sweater, add socks, put on a blouse, change my pants, etc.
11. Fix my hair – I can’t do my hair until I get dressed. If I don’t put my clothes on first, my hair will stick out everywhere.
12. Make/Grab lunch – Mad dash search to find sustenance to take to work.
13. “Mommy’s got to go to work” – When the door opens, the dogs want to go out and play. I’ve trained the dogs to back away from the door and let me out in the morning by saying “Mommy’s got to go to work”. They’re so well trained that they’ll walk away from the door and let me out on weekends or in the evening when I say this.

Thanks to my T13 visitors who’ve dropped by and left a comment: Laughing Muse, Jo, Suki, Michelle, Caylynn, Tink, Colleen, Skittles, Lisa, Brony, Sanni, Janet, measi, Teena, Bond, DKRaymer, Caryle, Sonny.

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!