We're Already In The Aftermath

Barley, a dog, snoozes on the futon with her now-defeated cow, happily sleeping of the excitement of breaking the new toy in.

No matter how exciting a plush toy is, Barley almost never sustains that high energy for more than perhaps 10 minutes or so before her mediocre stamina signal that it’s nap time. I can sometimes extend this play time a bit, but Barley generally knows when she’s done and simply stops reacting to toy, transitioning instead to giving me kisses and affection directly. In her mind, I think every one of these sessions is a hunt, and once the prey is subdued (and immobile), there’s no further need to subdue it. What follows is instead the celebration amongst pack-mates for another successful hunt.