The Pine-cone

Spring may be starting to emerge, but as always, old man winter is fighting hard to stay a little longer.  High winds and cold temps will keep my jacket buttoned and mittens on for another blustery day.

At the very start of our day Todd was enthusiastically playing outside with what looked like a small pine-cone. He was running back and forth in the yard with it in his mouth, and in the darkness of the morning I could see him pouncing on and tossing his new toy into the air and playing with what can only be described as pure unbridled joy!  When I called for him to come inside, he instantly stopped, gave me a quick look, and grabbed his new toy and with full terrier-speed, he darted past me at the door to continue playing inside.  Not wanting a mess on my freshly vacuumed rug, I decided to take the pine-cone away from him.  It was only then that I realized that what Todd was playing with was not a pine-cone but a dead and very frozen mole!  Knowing how quickly the attention of a terrier can change, especially Todd's, I looked around and offered him what was closest to me, the treat jar!  I could see his mind was spinning as he tried to decide which he wanted--For the other dogs, the choice was obvious, but for Todd, it took a moment or two and he dropped the mole in return for a handful of treats.  Even in the cold, dark, early morning hours of our day, there is never a dull moment when Todd is around.