Southern Yorkies

Where My Peeps?

It about that time when we all gather to the backyard in search of Easter eggs…now if you are a small dog owner, NOW is the time to stock up on these fabulous little plastic treasures, especially after they go half price. I know what you are thinking… I don’t have young children; I haven’t dyed eggs in YEARS. Why in the world do I need ANY plastic eggs?

Well, they are PERFECT for small dog Easter egg hunts….or Tuesday afternoon mid-summer egg hunts. Hell, in my house- we have “Easter” egg hunts YEAR round. Here is the best way to introduce your new puppy or dog to this awesome exercise that will cost you pennies.

1.) Stalk the inventory. I have already started watching the various retail shops and see which ones have an overstock of eggs. You want to hit the stores with A LOT of eggs, because more than likely they will reduce the eggs significantly, like 90% off. THEN you stock up!! Some of my favorites are: Target, Walmart, and Walgreens.

2.) Once you have purchased your eggs, you will need to introduce the eggs to the pup/ dog BEFORE you put treats in them, so they aren’t scared of them. Take a few and sprinkle them on the floor WITHOUT treats in them. Let the puppy sniff and check them out and get used to their texture. Show the puppy/ dog just how cool these little things are.

3.) The first time you plan to have an egg hunt, have the dog/puppy in the same room and let him/her watch you put the different eggs around. Once they “find” the egg, lots of praises and show the puppy how to open the egg and get the treat. Also, for the first hunt, I always use something that is VERY fragrant, like bacon or cheese. (Just make sure you remember how many you started with and their location or in 30 days you will have an Easter Egg science experiment, if that egg is not found.)

4.) Second Egg Hunt: Now that the puppy understands the concept of the egg hunt, grab a bag of eggs with bacon treats in them and show it to the dog. I shake them like crazy and get really excited about what is about to go down. Now, put the dog in the other room. After all, this is a hunt and the dog has a serious advantage…. his nose. For the first true egg hunt I usually pick an average size room or small area in the yard. You want the little one to find them and have a good time looking for them, so don’t make it too hard or they will get discouraged and give up.

5.) Each time you have an egg hunt, it is time to Level Up, meaning you can make it a little more difficult to find EACH time. You will know you have stumped the little one when the dog is no longer interested in looking for the eggs OR he starts just playing with the eggs he has found and there are still some hidden ones left. Then go over with the dog and show him where the eggs are, but still let him “find” them.

I will be the first to admit that I have had an impromptu egg hunt because I was tired from a long day and I need a quick way to burn off some energy from my yorkie bombs. I will hide 25 eggs in the backyard and then release the hounds, so to speak!! It is absolute goofy chaos… yorkies running everywhere, barking, playing…..it’s Egg Pandemonium for a solid 20 minutes- then they pass out from exhaustion and excitement. Of course, I am watching all of this take place from the comfort of my deck with a glass of wine and cheesy poofs. :o) NOW, LET THE HUNTS BEGIN!

NOTE: I do not recommend using plastic eggs for the larger breeds because I am worried they may get choked. I did see some larger plastic eggs at Wal-mart that you could use for larger breeds, but I would NOT advise using the standard size plastic eggs for them.