Keeping Busy

The problem with making plans is that they inevitably go awry. Yesterday I posted "Getting a First Dog - Part I", and I was hoping to get to Part II today, but there is a more pressing matter. Blizzard is doing a public stress test of the Diablo III Beta this weekend. And who has two thumbs and the ability to stare at a computer screen for 16 hours straight? ME!! (Maybe I should be less proud of this fact.)

"Why aren't you using those thumbs for something important, like feeding me?"

 Now that we have Badger and Mushroom, a true weekend-long gaming spree is no longer possible. I'll have to get up from my computer to walk them, feed them, and train them, but if I cut out eating and personal hygiene, that can easily make up the time. (Kidding. Totally, possibly, maybe kidding. A little bit.)

Walk them in the shower while eating?

What I'm concerned about is that the dogs need almost constant supervision. When we watch a movie, we have to pause it several times to break up their squabbles, give them time-outs, call them away from the shoe rack, etc. It's a little better when we have just one dog roaming free, but I did have to get up in the middle of a Left 4 Dead game yesterday to take away a stuffy that Mushroom had chewed through.

RIP squeaky green heart

We don't want to keep them crated all weekend, but we also don't want to be getting up to check on the dogs every 20 minutes. I think I'll be trying a combination of crate-and-rotate and treat-dispensing toys.

How do you keep your dogs busy when you want to concentrate?