Hubert the smarty pants

I think I've come up with the final solution to outwit Hubert and his need to scavenge the back yard. I built a stair case of two steps that the dogs can climb but that Hubert will, hopefully, not attempt.

We've decided that Hubert has a very real need to navigate our back yard and that Grandma's flower beds and Grandpa's vegetables must be kept away from Hubert's palate.

Today, I discovered that Hubert is super smart and knows and respects me more so--I'm ashamed to admit--than any of my eight kids. Where did I go wrong? Not enough peanuts and Maple syrup?

I decided to follow Hubert on his excursions and teach him what he's allowed to chow down on and what he' not. Much to my amazement and delight, Hubert loves my neighbor's berry tree. He loves it when I shove a ripe berry into his mouth. I do not ever feel his teeth when I do this; just his little tongue and lip. My neighbor passed away last year but he never ate his berries and I know he would look at Hubert and say, as he did with our Jack Russell terrier, "stupid, ugly ______(fill in animal species; dog, pig)" and then reach out and caress the pet.

Don't get me wrong. Hubert will always try to get away with things. It's his nature to be independent and adventurous. But, if you build barriers, he will respect them if only because there's so much he can do with his snout (his only means of altering his environment.)

At the entrance to my yard, I built stairs that my dogs could climb but that Hubert would view as Mr. Everest (two steps). I'll keep you posted on the efficacy of this technique.