To Wrap or Not to Wrap-That is the Question

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

I'm wondering how many of you WRAP your doodles presents?

 

I have been trying to teach Tara not to tear up paper for 2 years now and was concerned about sending her a mixed message if I allowed her to tear up the paper to unwrap her presents.  So I didn't wrap them even though I think it is really cute to watch them open their presents (always wrapped presents for former dogs).

 

So Tara received wrapped presents from BandyBear and I set them in front of her and she just looked at me. I couldn't bring myself to encourage her to rip into them because she truly believes it is something she isn't supposed to do.

 

Do you think it is confusing for them to be allowed to rip paper one or two days a year and then get reprimanded for it the rest of the year?  Will it "undo" former training?

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

I used gift bags and their stocking to put L&S's things in.  They have never been chewers so it never even occurred to me that they would shred the paper to get to their presents if I wrapped them.  Plus I absolutely hate wrapping presents, but love beautifully wrapped presents, so next year I'm sending all of their presents to Daisy so she can wrap them all beautiful for me!

[Lisa, Daisy & Dexter]

It's an obsession and I can't stoooooooooooop. Help me! If I don't go overboard people talk. Ugh it's a vicious circle.

Of course they may be talking saying things like "she should have spent more on the gift and less on the wrap" ha  ha

When I started wrapping this year I got a box out that my husband had written on, it said "box 24 of 7224 of Christmas wrap support" smart Alec.

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

I would be willing to bet that DH secretly tells people what a beautiful job that you do wrapping presents because he is proud of your efforts!  He just has to complain about it in front of you because that is what men do!

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Lisa, I think you just may have found the leverage you have been looking for to get DH to agree to the second doodle!! Offer to trade 7000 boxes of Christmas wrap support for a doodle puppy!!  That will still leave you 224 boxes PLUS you will have a sissy doodle for Daisy!!! :)

 

ALSO it just may help break the vicious cycle. You will be too busy with 2 doodles to even THINK about gift wrapping any more!! Think about it...

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I did not wrap presents for Guinness and Murph....heck, I didn't wrap presents for most of the humans either.  That's what gift bags and tissue are for.  Just throw the "stuff" in the pretty bag and cover it with tissue.....DONE!  It makes my life so much easier.  They also didn't get their presents on XMAS morning.  All their gifts are in a big gift bag in my closet.  For about a week now, once a day we go into the closet and they get one present each.  They totally know they're there, and they get VERY excited when they see me head for the closet.  It's our little holiday ritual.  I time our "trip to the closet" with some sort of training....lately it's all about sit/stays.  Yesterday they got their IQ puzzle.  It took all of about a minute for them to figure out how to move the little sliders to find the treat....I guess that means they're smart (or just really like treats).  Murph thought it might be fun to try to eat the wooden puzzle, so this is a "supervised game" now.  We're close to hitting the end of the bag..maybe just a couple more days of XMAS fun.

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

I'm with you Jane. I hate wrapping so any excuse...

 

I sounds like you have the 12 Days of Christmas thing going on there!! That sounds like fun! I know that if Tara gets too many new things all at once she goes on overload!!  So your system would eliminate that issue plus give everyone something fun to look forward to!!

 

Now I want to do Christmas over again so I can try all these new ideas!!

[shelly]

I did the same thing Jane... but I put most in the stocking and hung it on a closet door handle.... smart dood... she  now goes to the stocking and sits and barks... I keep putting her toys/bones back in it... but I think she has figured out that they're nothing new!  She puts it in her mouth and drops it and barks as if to say... hey, wait... this was yesterday's surprise!  LOL

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Ha! Shelly you should know better than to try to outsmart a doodle!!

[shelly]

I know.. you got THAT right!  She never ceases to amaze me with her intelligence!

[Denise & Hunter!!!]

I wrapped but I let the kids unwrap them - I could just see Hunter going back to the rest of the presents left under the tree for family and unwrapping all of them!!  Hunter isn't much of a paper ripper to begin with - its the ONE THING she hasn't made in the Bad Dood group yet - the rest of her antics make up for the paper LOL  I didn't need another new habit!

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Good idea!! You don't want to introduce her to the wild and crazy world of paper shredding!! I think it is addicting for dogs!! I can't figure out the big draw but most of them seem to LOVE it!!

[Frannie & Callie]

I not only wrapped Callie's Hanukkah present, I used my custom printed gift wrap to do it! We're a gift-wrapping family. My grandparents had clothing stores any my mom's job was gift wrapping. She taught me and my sister and now my sister is actually in the gift wrap business, so I have lots of great paper that's printed with things like "Love, Frannie", "Happy Holidays from Frannie", "xoxo, frannie", along with printed ribbons and stickers. I love it because it ALWAYS forget to get cards and that takes the need away! (I also love personalized things, because you could never get the rainbow pencils that said "Frannie").

 

So, Callie gets wrapped presents and I take the wrap off for her, so that she doesn't tear up the paper. Meanwhile, I should have just gotten her a box of tissues to shred and saved my money from the squeaky tennis balls and marrow bones!