Canine conundrum.

Junior dog Nipper was looking sad.

"What's his problem?"

"I gave a piece of yarn to play with," said Mrs. Key.

Let it be noted that despite the hundreds of dollars spent on dog toys in this house, Nipper is a fundamentalism-is-fun type. Sticks, rocks, rugs, towels, bits of yarn -- those are his favorite toys. His philosophy is, if you stick to the basics you never have to go back to them.

I thought the rug had been getting the treatment, because he had one paw under it. He likes to scratch the rug, sometimes try to gnaw the rug, basically whatever he can get away with.

"So the poor urchin got a piece of yarn," I said. "Why's he sad?"

"It went under the rug and he thinks it's lost."

Indeed, he had one paw under the rug, and I think I figured out the problem. He couldn't get at it to pull it out, or couldn't feel it with his rugged paw. To stick his face under there he would probably have to pull out the paw, and yet it would be too dark to see; the idea of rolling back the rug to expose the floor didn't occur to him.

Dog problem-solving is often interesting. Especially this dog. When he was a puppy, a treat rolled under the sofa, and he went about it the way a dog would -- he pawed at the front of the sofa, as if he could dig through it. I've never seen a baby behave that way in a similar situation. Babies seem to have a better grasp of what is and isn't possible. Monsieur Nippére would never have been able to get through the sofa, but he certainly could have wrecked the upholstery, so it's a good thing I was on hand to get the treat out fast. This is the dog, after all, who solved a difficult puzzle as Alexander the Great solved the Gordian Knot, and in the same way -- he just ruined it.

In a study a few years ago, it was demonstrated that wolves had more stick-to-it-iveness than dogs when it came to problem-solving: wolves would continue to work like maniacs at a puzzle to get a treat, while dogs would look to people for help. Clive Wynne of Arizona State notes that “wolves are practical problem solvers and dogs are social problem solvers,” and that jibes with my experience. I certainly think there's some overlap, what with Nipper wrecking that puzzle toy rather than decoding the puzzles, but I've had any number of slobbered-up puzzles dropped in front of me, the unspoken request for help. Larger dog Tralfaz is a great one for just moaning wherever he is, hoping for aid, or just company.

In the end I lifted the rug and enabled Poor Urchin Nipsey to get his piece of yarn, the greatest toy in the world until the next one.

I know people think wolves are just fifty shades of awesome, but a wolf would have torn up the family room to get what he wanted. Wolves are not Man's Best Friend; dogs are. And who am I to refuse to help a friend?