Like Candy at the Cash Register

Dear Reader,

They say that dogs don't have great memories for the mundane.  For example, you can't punish a dog for a mess made on the floor earlier in the day.  By the time you get home and step in it, he's already moved on.  But for Greyhounds, trauma sticks around.*

People are like that, too.  We filter out the unimportant stimulus and information in our lives (what did you have for breakfast last Sunday?), but we remember the details of things associated with strong emotional reactions.  (Where were you when you heard about 9/11?)

I'm not sure how the memory thing works for rabbits.  

I know that when I was a kid, I had a pet rabbit.   (Cottontail, cuz she was black with a white tail.  Clever, huh?)  My parents swear that one day they heard her scream when a loose dog attacked her hutch.  I wonder now if she had flashbacks of that day when, on a day years later, she met her end at the mouth of a different neighborhood dog.

"But why this concern with the mental state of rabbits?" you may be thinking.

Because, before I brought Dog home last weekend, I went to the local pet store to look over the selection of toys and treats and training clickers.  I was very dog focused.  I bought  a supposedly "indestructible" squeaky snake.

Several days later, after Dog had shredded and consumed what I considered to be unhealthy amounts of squeaky snake (and squeaky giraffe), LandLady and I decided we would just pop in at the pet store to see if we could find something made from a hardier material (like maybe Kevlar).  Pet stores are often pet friendly, so it seemed like it would be a good outing for Dog and Pony.

SUCCESS: We got both dogs into the back of my sedan, though not without giving the neighbors much cause for amusement.
SUCCESS: Both dogs climbed and descended the steps outside the store without hesitation.  (This is a scary thing for some greyhounds.)

EPIC FAIL: I forgot about the rabbits.

Yes, dear Reader.  This particular pet store has fluffy white rabbits in a glass display near the cash register, between the door and almost everything else.  They cost $50 a piece.  

Dog spotted them immediately and lunged at the glass, sending the bunnies to the furthest corner of their (really not very big) enclosure.  She was briefly distracted by a walk down the treats and bones aisle but by the time a new chewing rope had been selected for Dog and a ball-thrower was found for Pony, Dog (the Mighty Hunteress!) had not only spotted the rabbits again, but (the generally less observant) Pony had also caught on that there was fun to be had. LandLady dragged Pony out of the store while I fumbled to pay. And then it was my turn to "lead" Dog out past the mouth watering rabbits while the shop clerk tried to block her view.  

It was only then that I realized there was a second and open rabbit display, to facilitate petting of the (presumably cheaper) rabbits.  Dog might have had to jump for them, but Pony could easily have picked one off the table.  So their fixation on the caged rabbits was perhaps a blessing in disguise.

And I hope the rabbits can take that view of the incident, if they do, in fact, remember the Day of the Dogs.

Yours with gratitude that I didn't have to pay for $100 worth of rabbit,

~~ LeAn

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*Although some breeds are very forgiving of events that frighten them, retired racers can take a long time to forgive and forget. Bad memories can last a long time. Try to avoid situations that are likely to scare him. 

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/ten-rules-for-training-a-retired-racing-greyhound.html