Thought you were out of ideas for entertaining the kids, or better yet the kids entertaining them selves? Nah, here’s an idea that will keep the kids out of your business for hours and hours. How about letting them dress up the family dog?
How my daugter discovered it
I discovered this one purely by chance. Actually, it was my daughter who came up with this one. Our dog had gotten into a scrap with another dog and ended up at the vets for stitches. The vet outfitted our dog with one of those large plastic hoods that fit around her neck, to prevent her from biting at the stitches. We thought it would be hard to keep her from removing the protective hood, because it was hard plastic, unwieldy and unfamiliar. Au contraire! She decided this hood was a fashion item, prancing around as though she was the cat’s meow in terms of special attire. She absolutely loved this hood.
After the wound had healed and the hood was no longer needed, my daughter felt that our family pet seemed a bit deflated without her fancy vet’s garb. This inspired a round of dog dress up games, that went on for years.
I came in to call Gabriella for lunch and found her and our fashion conscious dog, going through my daughter’s closet, grabbing knit caps, doll bonnets, outgrown, elasticized skirts and t-shirts. Never mind that our dog was a medium sized German Shepherd. The skirts were pulled on over her hind legs, t-shirts squeezed over her head and fitted through her front legs and frilly bonnets tied around her chin. The dog dress up games were on and our silly dog loved every minute of it!
She would wear the clothes for hours, until Gabriella decided a new outfit was in order. This comical dog would eat, drink and sleep in the clothes, if allowed. If they went outside to play, Miss Silly would joyfully roll around in the grass in her clothes, playing the dog dress up game to the hilt. However, at bedtime, the clothes went into the laundry basket as Gabriella prepared for her bath. When Gabriella jumped into bed, this silly dog was apparently all worn out with the dog dress up games, jumping on the bed for a good night’s sleep. Oh, such fun for an imaginative child and her funny dog. Thank goodness for laundry stain removal products!
The idea took off
I can’t guarantee that every dog will enjoy the dog dress up games with the same enthusiasm, but having spread the word with other neighbors with kids and dogs, I know for a fact that a great many do relish this past time, a perhaps unorthodox kid’s game, but a winner with willing dog participants. Our family photo album stands witness to a giggling child and her eager, smiling compatriot.
