Dog vs. Door

I'm not sure if anything else really needs to be said other than the title and that the fact that the dog won.

But either way, I'm happy to recount this incident anyway :)

Currently on Wednesday evenings, M-J and I have been playing volleyball in Coralville with some of our friends here in Iowa. Along with this has come a recent anxious streak from Frosty when we are gone in the evening. He has gotten comfortable (for the most part) with us being gone for the day at work, but if we come home and leave again, then he usually has some issues (gnawing at the door, chewing on my rubber boots, etc.).

One particular Wednesday evening M-J came home from school, fed Frosty, walked him, and then had to put him back in our unfinished part of the basement because our friends Tyson, Sarah and Ben were coming to pick her up for volleyball (I just stay in Iowa City and meet them after work to save on a trip back to Williamsburg). He barked as they left, which was the norm, and they made it into Coralville for the game, only to meet me there and learn that our game was cancelled due to a broken sewer line in the Rec Center (which we were not previously told about). We decided to head back home and then meet at the Berbs to hangout and play games, so ventured back toward Williamsburg to pick up Frosty and be on our way.

To keep this in perspective, it had been about an hour and fifteen minutes from the time M-J left Frosty and when we got back home, and when we pulled in the driveway, we heard Frosty barking and saw him standing in the window of the front door. I exclaimed to Mary-Jane, "did you remember to put him up?!?!" She assured me yes, and then I was really worried. I went in and headed straight downstairs to have my fears realized. Our dog had broken through the door that separated the unfinished and finished portions of our basement to head upstairs and wait for us. We got after him, but it was difficult; a swirling set of emotions beset upon us as we were dealing with intense frustration, awe at the destruction, and a smidgen of pride for our dog's ability to conquer the barrier. Either way, thankfully it was a relatively inexpensive, hollow core door that we can replace with little trouble, but I'll try to post pictures soon so you can enjoy the sight of the destruction that we were met with when

we got home.

Needless to say, we are currently exploring ways to help him be more calm when we are gone, and have began with some desensitization training. I'll keep you updated on whether or not that works...until then, enjoy the door carnage.