We adopted Goose from the local shelter on his very last day. We didn’t know much about him; he was cute, young, and the perfect size for us.
We brought him home hoping for the best. Goose took some time to warm up to all the new people in his life, but he was an angel overall. He was the perfect apartment dog. He never ran around indoors or made a peep. He simply lounged on his bed, curled up into a little ball.
For the first few years, as we left the house, we put Goose in his crate. He seemed to be just fine with it – quiet and content.
After some time, we decided that it was time to let him graduate to being left in a single room of the house. We adjusted our home to accommodate for this new change and began the process. We’d leave the house for 20 minutes at a time, making it a nice, slow transition for Goose. He seemed to do great! As we left the house for longer and longer periods of time, we’d come home to a happy dog and a clearly slept in dog bed, indents and all!
A Change in Routine
In November of 2017, I quit my job and began working from home full time. It was great; I got to hang out with Goose and give him a few extra walks each day.
With working from home, I rarely needed to leave the house. When I did venture out to run an errand or two, I was surprised to find that I would come home to a mess of some kind.
There would be an accident in the house, couch pillows seemingly dragged into the kitchen, or potpourri strewn across the room.
It was confusing. Goose had always done so well left alone. We concluded that the change in routine threw him off – I was gone a lot, and then I was there all the time.
We didn’t want to put him back into a crate after so much time being out of it, so we decided, instead, to just deal with it.
Still, curiosity got the better of us. We wanted to know what Goose was doing and how he was doing it.
Enter: The Tenvis HD Camera. Although not specifically marketed for pets, many reviewers indicated that it was exactly how they used it: to spy on their pets.
We liked that it hooked up to an app on your phone so that you could see what was going on in your home while you were away. It also offers a voice feature where you are able to talk through the camera to whomever is in your home.
The camera arrived, and we initiated the quick setup. We downloaded the corresponding app to our phones and couldn’t wait to leave the house.
The Camera’s Big Reveal
We thought we had a general understanding of Goose’s antics, but it turns out that we had no idea.
The first time we left the house with the camera on, we hopped in the car to head to the grocery store. As a passenger, I watched the app on my phone throughout the entire drive.
As expected, Goose stood for some time, confused by our departure. He paced around the kitchen, sniffed at the front door, and sat down waiting.
After about 10 minutes, he did the unexpected. He used his paw to pull out a dining room chair, hopped up onto it, and then stepped onto the dining room table. Then, he peaked his little nose and eyes through the blinds directly above the dining room table, attempting to view out into the world. He stood on the table surveying the room for a few moments and then sat down. After a few moments of sitting, he laid down on the table.
I recall watching this entire fiasco and screaming with shock and laughter.
I turned the app off and returned to it 30 minutes later only to find him in the same place: curled up on the dining room table.
We returned home that day to a clean home. Goose had spent the entire time lounging on the dining room table. We wondered if the messes we had previously come home to were just a fluke. We thought Goose was getting used to being alone again.
Goose vs. The Couch
We were wrong. Goose’s antics were just getting started. We’d peak into the app on our phones anytime we left the house and expect to find him curled up in a ball on the dining room table (something I was appalled by but had learned to accept).
In the following viewing sessions, we found Goose using his paws and backside to prop the couch cushions up. He would then burrow his entire body under the couch cushion and buck dramatically. After a few minutes of bucking wildly, the couch cushion would fall to the floor.
Then began the game of tug-of-war. Goose would grab the edge of the couch cushion with his teeth and pull it along the floor to the kitchen. He’d make sure to line up the cushion so that it was in perfect view of the front door. Once set, he’d step onto the cushion, sit down, and then lay down.
The couch cushion was his way to combine comfort with functionality. He wanted a clear view of the front door but also wanted to be comfortable (of course, who could blame him!?)
Today, we make sure to provide Goose with a comfy bed right in front of the front door. This seems to make him very happy, but of course, he still has some antics to get into while we are away.
Although not consistent, our devious little Goose will still hang out on the dining room table, topple over the potpourri, and spew coasters across the living room. Every now and then we’ll catch him in the act on our TENVIS camera, but otherwise, it’s a fun little surprise every time we come home. We never know what we’re going to walk into.
