Wednesday, December 03, 2008

Another good thing gone wrong

One of the things that I've always liked about Lagniappe is that he discriminates when deciding who or what to bark at. In particular, vehicles on the roadway are not barked at, while ones that approach the driveway always are. The exception is that he has come to recognize UPS and Fed-Ex trucks and he alerts me to those every time that they stop in the street, which they typically do since they have trouble negotiating my driveway. He has a distinct "someone's here!" bark and so far I have enjoyed knowing that the delivery trucks have arrived with goodies long before the driver is even out of the truck much less up on the deck. And Lagniappe has come to expect a cookie every time that he correctly alerts me. Such is the wages of being a good dog, and that's why, I suspect, that he sits on the deck all day, maintaining his constant vigil.
However things are now messed up. My neighbor across the street is now working from home, and her job entails her getting deliveries and/or pick-ups from UPS and Fed-Ex almost every day now. And Lagniappe is now alerting to the trucks stopping in the roadway at HER house (right across the street from mine), needlessly drawing me to the door as much as twice a day now. And of course he's demanding a cookie every time and acting like an ass when I don't give him one.

Something's got to give, here. I'm thinking that I need to get my neighbor to become a commuter again.

12 comments:

  1. He sounds like a smart dog. He'll figure it out sooner or later!

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  2. Once he notices he only gets treats when said delivery men knock on your door, he'll stop barking at the deliveries across the street.
    He seems pretty intelligent lol. it shouldn't take him long.

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  3. He's such a beautiful boy!

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  4. That is one smart dog.

    When I first got my dog, she kept stealing all my socks, so I'd give her a treat if she gave me the sock instead of chewing it up. Big mistake. Four years later and every time she wants a treat, she deliberately takes one of my socks...sigh.

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  5. Omg I love your dog! I go with the above advice.....change the cookie routine, if you can stand the hassle:)

    :)

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  6. Anonymous1:13 PM

    I really feel bad commenting here... I don't believe I'm the right gender. Oh well...

    I once, not so long ago, lived in the middle of nowhere, and I too had a very good and faithful alarm that would let me know when I had visitors or the mail had arrived. He learned the farmers that would come by and would pay them no attention. But if a strange vehicle turned down my drive I knew it immediately. Being 'th man', too, it pays to have some backup.

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  7. You know i love this dog!!!!!! smart as hell!!! glad to see he is keeping the fortress safe....... As i said in another post.... What do you think about that Harper's Ferry replica pistol???

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  8. Big Al, get used to it. Lagniappe gets all the gals. I hate him for it.

    He also knows all of my neighbor's cars and lets them alone, but if a strange car pulls into their driveway, I know about it instantly.

    And BiB, sadly I don't know much about those replicas, other than they can be a lot of fun to shoot. I confess that they fall into a category of firearms outside of my areas of expertise. I wouldn't pass up a chance to check it out and shoot it, though. ;-)

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  9. Run around outside during the day drunk and naked. That'll definitely chase off the neighbor!

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  10. Stock up on cookies :) He has YOU by the tail.

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  11. Man that is a good looking warrior

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  12. Definitely a smart dog! ;)
    Yeah..either that or the delivery guy is gonna have to learn to park further away when delivering to her and then walk that distance. Um, yeah...I am SURE he would go for that idea! ;)

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