It's in the ear!

Remember the doggie quiz on Tuesday? Good try everyone!

Q: What does a dog have to do with a book?
A: They both have ears!

Yes, it's in the ear, or to be more specific, dog-eared. Dog ear on a beagle, or any other dog is exactly what it is - an organ used for hearing and balance.

But, on a book, or to be more specific, a well-read book, "dog-eared" refers to the book corners worn or battered with use.


I do apologize I couldn't post a picture of a more "worn" book. My human is a book worm (no, she's not a worm - she just loves to read) and takes good care of her books. Her New York State Frommer's travel guide is the closest book with dog-eared corners. I suppose after travelling with my humans for 9400 miles on the plane from KL to New York City, followed by a 1000-mile road trip from NYC to Finger Lakes, Niagara and Adirondacks last summer, the book can be considered to be in pretty good shape. My humans definitely used the book extensively - referring to it for places to stay, eat and visit!

I must confess though that I couldn't see the resemblance between my beagle ears and the ears on the corner of the book. However, I suppose that whoever coined the word "dog-eared" must be referring to the more pointy ears of a dog like Benjy, my mixed pedigree buddy.

There is definitely some resemblance there! I hope you enjoyed that little quiz.

A doggie quiz...

What does this...


...have to do with this?


Send me your guesses...Hint - It's part of the dog series.

Stay tuned for the answer on Thursday!

Dog-Tired

Have you ever had one of those days when you come home from work or play (for humans and canines) and all you want to do is flop down on the bed and fall asleep? Well, in that case, you are feeling dog-tired. (Thanks Martha Basset for your phrase contribution). The definition of dog-tired is drained of energy or effectiveness; extremely tired; completely exhausted. Unfortunately, my research on the origin of this phrase yielded zero results. So, I had to come out with my own beagle theory based on my own observation and life experience.

I reckon the human who came up with this phrase probably had a dog, perhaps even a beagle, that may have just looked like me. Anyway, the human must have observed a day in the life of his dog and saw this...

A tree climbing dog


A tree destroying dog


A sprinting dog


A rock climbing dog


He then saw the after effects of all that activity...


And came up with the phrase "Dog-tired". It is so true. Just look at the face of your dog after these activities and you can see the "tired look". So, it really is a pretty straightforward dog phrase without any need to go back to Old England like our last phrase "Hair of the Dog that Bit You".

I found this quirky quote on the phrase. Enjoy!

“Growl all day ...



and you'll feel dog tired all night.”

Hair of the Dog that Bit You

Today's phrase was contributed by Essex and Deacon, the Key West Collies, who are barking mad about doggie words too! They even provided me with the Wikepedia reference for the information. Thanks fellas. I'm always happy to learn a new phrase.

If you've been following the dog series, you'll know that dog phrases can have rather strange origins and sometimes bizzare reflections on the canine world. The phrase "Hair of the Dog that Bit You" or its shorter version "Hair of the Dog" is a classic example.

This phrase, like many others (e.g. Raining cats and dogs) have its origins in old England. For some strange inexplicable reason, it was believed that you could treat a rabid dog bite by placing the hair of that dog in the bite wound. I certainly wouldn't recommend that treatment! But back in those times, there were many old wives tales. Anyway, this phrase soon became a metaphor for hangover treatment. If you've had too much to drink the night before and suffer from a hangover, have some more alcohol the next morning to cure the hangover. Hmm...

This concept of solving a problem with more of the problem surprisingly isn't limited to old England. It extends to Hungary, Mexico, Central America, Poland, Russia (just to name a few). So, obviously, it is a popular concept. Now, I don't know if it works or not. It seems to me it's just a good excuse by some who love their drink to drink some more. What do you think?