They are all MINE!

[Hillscreek]

My friend received some stuffed quahogs from Cape Cod. Angus collected and stored away all the shells. Neither of the other dogs was allowed to help or go near the stash!

 

[Corn Niblet]

That is so cute! I have never heard of a quahog. Is it like a clam shell?

[Sam I Am]

Angus must  think it’s some kind of terrier currency! Such a handsome guy. Ditto on the quahog ?

[Hillscreek]

Here's all (and probably more) than you ever wanted to know about quahogs!

http://www.quahog.com/quahog.html

[Sam I Am]

They look and sounds yummy..I love all sea food. I have read that feeding dogs cooked  mussels and clams is a good thing. The clams are full of healthy essential vitamins, Omega 3 and minerals. Perhaps Angus knows that. !We can share.

Edited February 17, 2019 by Sam I Am

[Guest dog person]

4 hours ago, Hillscreek said:

My friend received some stuffed quahogs from Cape Cod. Angus collected and stored away all the shells. Neither of the other dogs was allowed to help or go near the stash!

 

Just a friendly alert.   You may want to tell your friend to pick up those clam shells and discard them, asap.

If the dogs chew on them, note that the shells are hard and have sharp jagged edges when broken.

That can result in ailments such as bowel obstruction, broken teeth, if this happens an emergency vet visit may be indicated.

Also, I 'm sure everyone knows but stuffed quahogs are mostly bread, butter and garlic plus other ingredients, just a little bit of cooked clam meat mixed in at best.     It depends on the chef...

They are tasty though, for humans!   Stuffing could be toxic for dogs (garlic, onions).   Something to keep in mind regarding table scraps.

 

Edited February 17, 2019 by dog person

[Kathryn]

I think I have mentioned before that Oban surprised me last year, on one of our many walks along the Monterey coast, by snarfing up a tiny hermit crab scuttling across one of the tide pools and swallowing it before I could even say "leave it!" (Which only works when I have a very high-value treat in my hand anyway, but sometimes I have enough time to try to fool him...).  An ALIVE hermit crab, less than an inch in size -- but I was horrified.  Not because it might upset his iron constitution or hurt his innards in any way, but because  the life in the tidepools fascinates me and I love watching the little creatures - hermit crabs, crabs, urchins, anemones, etc.  I thought of them as wee friends, and it never occurred to me he might bother them.  For cairns, prey apparently goes way beyond squirrels and other rodents...

Our last cairn Allie never really liked to eat those rawhide chews but, if they were passed out among friendly dogs at a gathering in our house (we hosted the occasional dog-friendly get-together), she would take them all away from the other dogs and collect them on her dog rug.  And refuse -- absolutely refuse! - to give any back. Which always upset the other dogs. But she was, as I have mentioned, a very top-dog kind of cairn...

[Sam I Am]

My great Uncle in Scotland lived by a Loch. He would start a fire on the beach which had no sand but was all rocks, boil a big pot of water and we kids would collect cockles which he placed in the boiling salt water. What a treat for all of us and the cat and dog that always made sure they were around to be part of the feast also. 

I am sure Oban thoroughly enjoyed his sea food snack ala fresh...you not so much.

[Islander]

Gus favours a particular kind of seaweed whenever available on our local beaches. He will get so obsessed with picking it out and eating it that I have to eventually make him “leave it!” He’s never had any ill effects from it. The kind he likes comes in flat reddish coloured rectangles - I don’t remember it’s name, but I saw an article awhile back calling it a superfood. 

I refer to a seaweed strewn beach as Gus’s sushi bar.

[Hillscreek]

16 hours ago, Kathryn said:

Our last cairn Allie never really liked to eat those rawhide chews but, if they were passed out among friendly dogs at a gathering in our house (we hosted the occasional dog-friendly get-together), she would take them all away from the other dogs and collect them on her dog rug.  And refuse -- absolutely refuse! - to give any back. Which always upset the other dogs. But she was, as I have mentioned, a very top-dog kind of cairn...

Never seen Angus collect stuff like this before. I think maybe Idaho posted re one of his girls taking toys to a safe place.

Is this something cairns do? Have any of you seen this? Is it a top dog thing like with Kathryn's Allie. Or what?

@dog person thanks for tip but not to worry. My friend grew up in Boston and on Cape Cod with dogs and quahogs.

[Guest dog person]

It's called possessiveness, it's in the same family as food aggression.

I have a one eyed dog to prove it, due to a cairn that does not want anyone to touch his stuff.

Edited February 18, 2019 by dog person

[bradl]

Not sure what's behind collecting. Rosebud was a toy collector too. I can't see them all in the photo but I remember when I took it that we counted 11 when we enumerated them at the time.

[sanford]

7 minutes ago, dog person said:

It's called possessiveness...

Or perhaps the "hoarding" gene is not unique to us uprights?

[Guest dog person]

To clarify     https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/possessive-aggression-in-dogs 

excerpt below:

Possessive aggression is aggression that is directed toward humans or other pets that approach the dog when it is in possession of something that is  highly desirable, such as a favorite chew toy, food, or treat.

Although protecting possessions may be necessary if an animal needs to survive and thrive in the wild, it is unacceptable when directed toward people or other pets in a household. What can be confusing for some owners is that it is not always food that brings out the most protective displays. Novel and highly desirable objects, such as a tissue that has been stolen from a garbage can, a favorite toy, human food, or a piece of rawhide are some of the items that dogs may aggressively protect.

[bradl]

Any chance you can save the doom and gloom for topics where someone is explicitly asking for help managing resource guarding, or wanting to know if it's OK for their dog to eat glass shards?

[Guest dog person]

8 minutes ago, bradl said:

Any chance you can save the doom and gloom for topics where someone is explicitly asking for help managing resource guarding, or wanting to know if it's OK for their dog to eat glass shards?

Sure.  I'm out of here.    I share my knowledge and experiences to help pet owners avoid the trauma and vet bills I have incurred.  It only takes one time.

You don't appreciate my input.    That's fine.

This is your blog, pick and choose the opinions you value.

 

Edited February 18, 2019 by dog person

[Kathryn]

To quote one of my favorite musicals, "Ding, dong..."

[Hillscreek]

Thanks for the info. and your pic brad. His behavior doesn't seem to be really aggressive guarding like when he had a bone when he used to growl and defend it.

It's more like collecting or wanting to posses or maybe a dominance.

I'm so curious because I never had a dog over all these many years who did this.

[Idaho Cairns]

In Bonnie's case I don't think it is a dominance matter in the least.  I think, like all of us, she wants her "things" around her in a comfortable spot--beneath the back of a coffee table that is behind the sections of the sectionals.  She can monitor everything that goes on, when a doorbell rings, knocks, or treats dispensed but the place and her toys (or one's she has selected) seems to satisfy her desire to "cave up" for most of the day.
Interestingly, when she is more social, she lays of the part of the couch that is above her hideout.
Who knows what the motivation is behind this behavior--it is probably ancient.

[hheldorfer]

Fully aware I'm drifting a bit off-topic here, but Nattie has quirks similar to Bonnie's.  Nattie has the same crate that she used at the breeder's house and she's obsessively attached to it.  We crated her at night when she first came home with us, then she gradually adopted the love seat as her 'spot' and hasn't set foot in her crate for almost a year.  Nonetheless, she considers the crate to be sacred and we are NOT allowed to move it out of the living room.  If I so much as bump it while vacuuming, Nattie pops up and immediately inspects it.

Then we have Christmas Bear:  Christmas Bear was Nattie's first new stuffed toy, given to her in December of 17.  Christmas Bear is tattered and partially disemboweled, but he MUST remain on the above-mentioned love seat at all times.  A particular throw blanket must also be on the love seat in case Her Majesty needs it.  Furthermore, any other item she deems worthy of placement on the love seat is protected by international Cairn law until SHE decides to move it.  

Neither of us can bear to see the look of utter confusion and hurt on Nattie's face if we don't abide by the rules, so we've adapted.

 

 

 

[remltr]

Nattie, the puppet master.

 

[Hillscreek]

These somewhat similar behaviors mentioned above of collecting and storing make me think of ancient behaviors as Idaho mentions. Animals in the wild hide and store food for later in a similar way. Many a dog has been seen burying a bone in the back yard.

Cairn terriers seem to be one of the few breeds not excessively changed by modern breeding practices. So possibly this behavior like denning and having a lookout post Is hundreds of years old.

 

 

[Hillscreek]

As to what happened to the shells

Currently, there are three shells in the large dog bed under the table.  The fourth shell became flipped over on to its concave side and used as a hockey puck on the wood floor, but is now lodged under the recliner out of reach. Score! 

 

[hheldorfer]

4 hours ago, Hillscreek said:

As to what happened to the shells

Currently, there are three shells in the large dog bed under the table.  The fourth shell became flipped over on to its concave side and used as a hockey puck on the wood floor, but is now lodged under the recliner out of reach. Score! 

 

Appreciate the follow-up, Hillscreek.  What characters these guys are . . . 

[Sam I Am]

Picture This...Angus at the ocean finding a clam.