t 'n t luoma

Ok, so we’ve been home like 3 days, and Scout has already gotten into Dad’s trashcan and nearly had himself sold to Gypsies.

Here’s the deal: he gets into Dad’s bathroom and dragged towels off the rack and rub his face in them; or he will manage to get the door closed and then proceed to howl; or he will get into Dad’s trashcan, usually eating Q-Tips; or he will get into the trashcan and chew up diapers (see photo).

So far we have tried modifying the human behavior, because trying to change the dog behavior is useless. This has resulted in endless conversations about why Tracey puts diapers in the trashcan in the bathroom (I know the answer, because when you change 8,437 diapers, it gets tiresome to keep bringing them out to the trashcan outside every time).

This human behavior modification scenario also requires 4 door cycles for Dad to go to the bathroom:

1. Open bedroom door
2. Close bedroom door
3. Open bathroom door
4. Close bathroom door

Oh, and if he wants to go back to the bedroom, it requires the same process in reverse. Failing any step risks either whacking oneself into a door, or leaving a door open for Scout to get into a trashcan either in the bathroom or the bedroom. (There was also that one time when Scout got under the covers of Dad’s bed.)

Have I mentioned Tracey’s “ability” to wake up at the slightest noise? Have I mentioned that Dad generally gets up at least once during the night? Have I mentioned that the doors are not very easy for me to open/close without making a significant amount of noise?

So when Tracey came downstairs tonight after getting Ethan to sleep during which Dad bellowed at Scout to get out of his trashcan, I knew it was time for Tim Luoma, Problem Solver Husband to step in. Fate, nah, providence brought a baby gate catalog to our house. We looked at it together and saw a couple of options, but the Sure and Secure Extra Tall Walk-Through Gate seemed like the best bet. The Center Gateway advertizes itself as easy to use with one hand, but the other is taller and automatically locks when you close it. Plus with the added height (7 inches) it should not only be harder to get over, but it should mean less bending over for Dad when he is trying to get through.

If it doesn’t work, we may send it back for the Center Gateway, or we may see when the circus is coming to town and find out if they need an incredibly dense beagle for some act... maybe to be shot out of a cannon.