Homegrown Tomato Trouble

Reacher's Favorite Tomatoes from
Nell's Farmers Market-Alpharetta, Georgia

Most weekends, I head to the local farmers' market. Loving-life Reacher is the dog who usually gets tapped for this outing. He's the most gregarious of my dogs and loves the crowds of adults, small children and pooches who often want to visit.

He's much more interested in all that attention than the watermelons, tomatoes, spinach and other fruits and vegetables for sale. Or so I thought.

Fast-forward to today:
When I returned from running errands, I noticed Panzer licking the carpet. Upon further investigation I discovered a definite wet spot tinged with pink. Hmmm.

Panzer led me to another spot. Also wet. Also pink.

Pee? No.

Blood? No.

A quick scan of the kitchen counter showed the peaches were still present and accounted for. Ditto for the plums. But .... the bag of tomatoes was nowhere in sight.

A more careful scan of the living room revealed a bag, sans tomatoes, under the coffee table.

The culprit? The only dog who has the run of the house while I'm away -- Reacher, aka the "Muffin Man" (see the July 12, 2014 post). Apparently, now the "Tomato Snatcher" as well.

On our next trip to the farmers' market I guess I should buy my big Boxer boy some Big Boys or maybe a Beefsteak or two, of his own.


Other farmers market finds fit for dogs: pumpkin, green beans, sweet potatoes, apples, peanut butter, baby carrots, eggs, blueberries, cantaloupe, watermelon, asparagus and brussel sprouts.

Never give your dog: chocolate, onions, grapes, raisins, yeast dough, artificial sweeteners, macadamia nuts, avocadoes, alcohol, or coffee.