Welcome to the Wednesday Dogs of Dogster! Every month, we ask our Dogsters to weigh in on a new topic. This week, we asked them: What Are Your Dogs’ Favorite Activities or Things? Here’s what they had to say:
Amanda & Subi
Toys and playthings are usually short-lived for Subi, so choosing one to write about is tough. More than anything, she is a creature of habit who thrives on comfort. If there’s one thing that brings her immense joy, it’s an abundance of blankets and a snug bed. Subi is most interested in hunkering into homey spots, especially when swimming in something soft and warm. She instinctively heads straight for it, her paws tapping eagerly as she bunts her head, searching for the perfect spot to burrow.
Whether it’s a plush throw or a recycled muslin from our children, Subi curls up so she’s partially intertwined in the fabric. Being a timid rescue, I assume her love for blankets goes beyond the physical warmth they provide; they serve as a shield, allowing her to feel hidden and protected.
Once she’s wiggled her way into the perfect spot, most of Subi’s body is still exposed (A for effort, though). Perhaps she’s kicking them about so they provide the toastiest position for her little hairless belly to stay warm. While she may be faint-hearted in unfamiliar situations, being lost in a sea of blankets in her favorite beds brings her solace.
Her adorning obsession with blankets is an endearing side of Subi that accentuates her need for comfort and peace. This simple pleasure adds an extra layer of sweetness to her character, and it’s one of the many behaviors that make her, her.
Kate & Gizmo
As you may have read in a previous article, my scruffster’s calling card is approaching all things in his world with absolute pure joy. That means his favorite activity is usually whatever he’s currently doing—although I will concede that some things seem to particularly spark joy, as Marie Kondo would say.
Other than mealtime games and lap naps, Gizmo’s number one, no-contest, ultimate favorite activity is sniffing absolutely everything on our daily walks. Some dogs will take the occasional whiff of a fire hydrant, trash can, or particularly intriguing bush. But Gizmo’s a connoisseur: no matter where he’s walking, he must sniff every single thing he passes, from contraband sandwiches to unassuming crunchy leaves to individual blades of grass. I like to picture him scrolling social media as we walk, checking out the latest updates from all the neighborhood dogs.
Oh, and just because he likes to push himself (do things that scare you!), he will occasionally (briefly) apply his snoot to the terrifying local street drains. No clowns from It have emerged yet, but there’s still time…
Meagan, Draper & Rue
Draper’s favorite thing: His red ball
Draper might be a snoozy little sausage most of the time, but say the phrase “wanna play?” and he’s up and at ’em faster than you can say “treat!” Over the years, his playtime preferences have evolved in the most Draper-esque way.
As a mischievous pup, Draper was the king of grand theft sandal. His favorite game? Snatching whatever he could and leading us on a chaotic chase around the house. (RIP to the many sandals and slippers who met their untimely demise in this era.) Once he outgrew his kleptomaniac phase, he pivoted to a simpler joy—being chased just because. Around the coffee table, through the living room, over and over again—it was pure, goofy bliss.
But one fateful afternoon at the park, Draper met his match: the now-iconic red ball. This wasn’t your average chewable dog toy—it’s more like a pint-sized billiard ball, tough as nails, zippy, and oh-so-chaseable. Draper was instantly smitten.
Fast-forward to today, Draper (now a distinguished five-year-old—his birthday was just two days ago, by the way!) is still head over paws for that red ball. He’ll happily zoom around the house after it until, inevitably, it disappears under the couch or behind some mystery corner. But no worries—it always resurfaces eventually, and Draper’s joy is reignited like it’s the first time all over again.
Rue’s favorite thing: Our socks
If you’ve read any of my previous articles, you might already know that Rue is our resident sock thief. My day often starts with the delightful task of picking up the laundry basket she’s knocked over—her personal treasure chest—to fish out the freshest sock she can find (bonus points if it’s just been tossed in). Once she’s secured her prize, she carries it around the house like a toddler with their favorite blankie or stuffed animal.
But Rue doesn’t just carry her sock-treasures—oh no, she’s a multitasker. That sock becomes her pillow for midday snoozes, her toy for impromptu games of fetch, and her prized possession to burrow and stash away for safekeeping in case Mom starts collecting socks for laundry day. Thanks to her, our sock drawers are perpetually mismatched, and our laundry is never fully complete. Somewhere in the house, there’s always a lone sock (or five) hidden perfectly from me waiting to be re-discovered by Rue.
The sock saga continues at bedtime. Rue eagerly waits until my husband kicks off his socks and settles under the covers. This is arguably her favorite part of the day, she springs into action, nabbing one (sometimes both!) socks before burrowing under the blankets at our feet, with a sigh of content, her day’s work finally complete.
Nicole, Mac & Rosa
They say opposites attract and it’s certainly the case with my dogs. While they both have similar interests, the way they engage in them is like night and day. They both like a little adventure in their life, but their ideas of adventure are a bit different. To Rosa, a dog who spent the first 9 months of her life in a cage, leaving the yard is a big adventure. To Mac, a dog found wandering through vast farmer’s fields in one of the least populated areas of New Zealand, no adventure is too big!
When it comes to ‘favorite things,’ while Mac and Rosa love a good play toy, they don’t last long enough for a favorite to develop. Whether it’s that they are destroyed within minutes, buried somewhere, or taken out to our paddock and left to the elements, a brand new stick is always the most preferable for my pups.
Since both dogs were rescued, play was a bit of a foreign concept when they each arrived. Rosa truly didn’t know what play was when we got her at one year old. Now, playtime is often just a bit of roughhousing on the floor, sans toys, and ends with Rosa barking (happily, but she only has one volume), Mac singing, and then Rosa mounting Mac for a good hump.
All that said, the W word (W-A-L-K as we have to say it in our home) gets the biggest reaction out of anything, to the point that we cannot say it unless it is happening that minute, or else we have a very whiny boy that won’t let us forget that we said anything. Rosa, on the other hand, gets spooked and goes and hides. Even though she LOVES her time on walks, the anticipation of them stresses her out. Opposite reactions to the same situation (and the excitement of it!). So, if we grab the leashes and are ready to go, she’s at the door next to Mac and we struggle to get past them ourselves—usually, I just open the door and they run down the front stairs, run around the front yard like maniacs, and then back up the stairs again to sit politely while we put on the leads.
While they truly don’t care where we’re off to as long as it’s off, I’ve got to say that they prefer wide open spaces—I don’t think they’re alone, an off-leash dog is much happier than an on-leash one in all of my experience. We’re lucky we have spaces where we can take them off-leash safely, in our yard, and on a beach nearby.
At the beach, Mac loves chasing the waves and running into the water, where Rosa will bark at him when he gets too close to the waves, and then she goes off and digs in the fluffy sand like it’s her day job. She’s more of a homebody and stays close to me and our beach gear, while Mac is off exploring and trying to make friends with everyone he sees. The only time you’ll see Rosa dart off is if there is something dead to roll in. That’s actually probably her favorite thing, smelling like a dead animal carcass.
Jokes aside, I think my pups love it when their days are full of adventures, even though the way they experience them is different, they both love being our sidekicks and we’re lucky to have them join us for the ride.
This article features all of the Dogsters in our Wednesday Dogs of Dogster series.
