A STUDY IN CANINE ACTION PRIORITIES

One morning several years ago, having left the house  enroute to work, we found our forward path temporarily  blocked by two dogs of varying breed – a male and a female.  Considering what action was about be undertaken, we could readily discern that the little lady was “in heat”, as the standard expression goes.

Just after the masculine party had put himself into the appropriate position, the idea struck us that an interesting  experiment might be in order.  Quickly then, we opened a briefcase and extracted about a half slice of bread from a planned lunchtime sandwich, and tossed it on the ground a few feet to the pair’s right, in the male’s peripheral view.  Which, we were endeavoring to determine, takes precedence?

The answer came without the slightest hesitation, as our canine Casanova abandoned his intended action long enough to go scoop up the food in his teeth and gulp it down.  Then, of course, he proceeded to take up where he’ d  left off.

Consequently, we were able to surmise that in the wonderful world of man’s best friend, the underlying philosophy must be “you can always find a convenient girl friend, but a meal is much harder to come by”.