Look, I’m a messy eater. It doesn’t matter if I’m eating a carrot stick or baby back ribs, I go through several napkins throughout the course of a given meal. After a meal is over I have been baffled to find food in places that food doesn’t have any business being. Head, shoulders, knees, and toes, I’ve generally got it all covered.

To be honest I didn’t realize how bad it was until I noticed my dog’s behavior during meal time. For most people when a dog begs during meals, she sits there next to you looking up with those big, pitiful, puppy eyes hoping that you’ll find it within your heart to drop the tiniest morsel on the ground that she might gratefully enjoy. But when I’m eating, the dog stands there NOT looking at me. She stands there at full alert monitoring the ground around my feet LIKE A HAWK.

Why?

Because she’s learned that when I eat, the food rains down all around her like manna from heaven. An all-you-can-eat smorgasbord of dinner time doggie delight.

On the positive side, at least I’m eating less.