Mini-Me

[TazTalk]

For my husband's birthday, I bought him a stuffed cairn on Amazon that looked like Taz. It was a gift for my "human" in the house, but Taz assumed it was his (ALL ABOUT ME!). He went crazy over it ... in fact it seemed that he believed it to be real. And maybe because it was his exact coloring, he thought he was related!

It was obvious that we definitely couldn't leave it with him. It has bean bag stuffing, it's not a dog toy. I tried putting it away in several places he couldn't reach, including on a piece of furniture 6' high. But he would know exactly where it was and would sit there, frozen in place, staring up at it. So I had to take Taz out of the room and then hide it in the closet so he wouldn't see the trail of where it went. Geez!

Anyway, if you have a wheaton, it sure is a cute stuffed version.

[pkcrossley]

hilarious! it looks like taz has his own pack now, or believes he does.

[hheldorfer]

Those are some of the cutest Cairn (and stuffed Cairn) photos I've seen. Taz looks like he's in heaven!

[BetsyNoodle]

Just precious, or, as my husband would say,"That is just canned cuteness!" Love the way Taz gazes at his new little "friend"!

[Idaho Cairns]

Those pictures are wonderful--especially the beg bear one with his paws up! Boy I like these dogs!!!!

[josie&holly]

Aah, Taz thought he had a new friend! Love the pictures especially the first one!

[Kit'sOwner]

Too cute! Does the stuffed version housebreak any easier than the real version?

[Hawkeye]

That is so cute! Who needs a real playmate...hmmm Radar better look out

[Zekey's Mom]

Too cute! LOVE the first pic, with Taz begging.

You should order another one, and replace the bean stuffing with something more Cairn-friendly. I'd be curious to know if Taz would destroy it, or treat it as his buddy.

[dinib]

I think he is trying to tell you something. He wants a buddy!!

[beccadiane374]

I LOVE these pictures!! Too cute!

[Kathryn]

I can't believe how much the coat on the toy dog looks like your dog's coat! The fur is so very similar -- and the color is almost exact!

[Islander]

Great photos!

I have a stuffed toy calico cat that was my deceased Lucy's well-behaved twin...Gus likes it a lot - to shake & kill!

[janis]

Those pics are so cute!

[Dempsy's Mom]

How sweet it is.

[louzingit]

Love the pictures! In the close up of the two of them, Taz could be saying,

"Oh my Dog. I can't believe this is for me! You shouldn't have." lol

[TazTalk]

Yeah, Taz has been

[Idaho Cairns]

They are persuasive little cusses and their begging is simply irresistible for us. I can't turn them down. Especially what I call the "beg bear" one.

Here is Bonnie in her pose, one that she will hold until satisfied!

[Hawkeye]

Idaho Cairns, How can you ignore such a sweetie. Our first cairn, Mandy, use to beg just like your Bonnie. She would sit there until she either got a treat or everyone's attention. She was also our talker...it was as thou she thought she was a person sitting, begging and talking.

[Islander]

So Bonnie & Taz just "beg" naturally, without being taught? That is so cute!!!!

[Idaho Cairns]

So Bonnie & Taz just "beg" naturally, without being taught? That is so cute!!!!

Oh I think the behavior is reinforced by the human to the point where it is used by the dog to get what she wants. I am sure that Bonnie's pose is completely learned--at some point she sat up on her haunches and the reaction was so positive to her that it imprinted immediately. The bigger dog has the "prancing horse" pose that works for her--up on her haunches, one foot carefully raise just above the other--the intense stare. Bingo--humans melt, dog wins!

[Tuesday]

We call this Sit Pretty, and Murphy is a champ at it! In fact, it's his "go to" pose when he's not really sure what to do. He knows he's cute, he knows he's spoiled, and this trick will usually produce some sort of results.

I did realize one day that the boy took it a bit too far. We were eating dinner, he normally lies quietly on the rug (alert to things that fall out of the sky), but this evening, there he was, sitting pretty, for like 5 minutes. Guess he liked the smell of what we had...

[Malcolm's Dad]

I love those pictures. Taz is just adorable begging for his new friend. His puppy picture is so cute. Bonnie is something else. She has perfected the begging pose.