Anticipation

Today it's raining. The dogs are sitting near the windows hoping the sun will make an appearance and dry out the back yard. You see, tomorrow is our annual Easter Biscuit Hunt and they are looking forward to it.

Our tradition started when we lived in a townhouse in Maryland and had three dogs, Pylon, Bentley and Lucy. One Easter morning Rob got up early and hid dog biscuits around the living room. When the dogs came inside they started seeing and smelling biscuits and the hunt was on. They all got into it quickly and each found a number of biscuits.

When we moved here we continued our holiday hunt and although we've lost  and gained new canine family members, the hunt remains a popular event. I always get a kick out of watching them. Some catch on to the idea quickly and start using their noses to locate the hidden treats. Others like Tess have a terrible time figuring out what to do. Each year either Rob or I have to help Tess find a few treats.

This year we'll have three new participants. Sebastian should do well. He's a real chow hound and I need to make sure he doesn't stuff himself with biscuits. The two little girls will have their own biscuit hunt without the bigger dogs who might trample them to get a biscuit. Next year they'll be ready to search with the others.

Rob and I have the biscuits ready to hide in the morning. In past years we've tried hiding other things, one year it was baby carrots and last year we used cheese balls, but we've found that biscuits work best. The dogs noses seemed more attuned to their scent.

So we're all watching the rain and hoping that it ends soon and we have a nice dry day for our big hunt.