RETRIEVING
Rocket is not trained to retrieve birds but he is very good at retrieving frisbees, balls, plastic bottles, sticks, dead things, anything really, whether you want it or not. He will bring objects for me to throw whenever the mood strikes him, whether or not I'm in the mood. Sometimes he'll even bring them back, usually he'd rather lay down and chew on it.
CHEWING
Rocket is a good chewer and fortunately never developed a taste for furniture, or shoes. One of his favorite chewable items is a smoked pig's ear. Pigs' ears get tossed about and danced around before he settles in for a twenty minute chewing feast. Anything rawhide is chewable, but if it's larger than a cow's ear he's liable to eat half and then bury the remainder in one of my gardens.
DIGGING
Rocket does not need to have a bone to bury if he wants to dig. Sometimes digging is fun in itself and he leaves many holes about to prove it. He often digs if he thinks he has seen anything crawl into a small hole, like a cricket. Webbed paws move a lot of dirt. I don't tend to mind the holes in the yard, we live in the country, and a manicured lawn is not something we are trying to achieve.
SPLASHING
(and other water sports)
Water is Rocket's most favorite thing. Whether in a pond, pool, stream, sprinkler, hose, in liquid or frozen form if water is accessible Rocket is in it. We suspect if he was offered a choice between the tastiest, smelliest bone in the world or a dip in a puddle of water, the water would win. When it is winter he has discovered ice is great fun to jump on with his front paws so he can break off pieces to chew.
Early Winter Fun December 9, 1997
Summer Fun in Molly's Humans' Pool
September 1998
TOYS
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This is Rocket at 3 1/2 months playing with the biggest ball I could find. The only problem was keeping him from trying to bite through it. It survived till it lost its air on its own.
BATDOG!
A few months later and a few pounds heavier, Rocket still loves rolling his ball around; into trees, under bushes, off my legs (ouch!); he likes to have it tossed to him so he can jump all over it, try to gnaw it and then race about the yard with it propelled by his nose and feet. Even now, almost 8 years after these photos were taken, he still loves this ball.
