We’ve all done that thing to our dogs where we pretend to throw a ball and get a big kick out of it when they run a few steps away and come back all confused, staring off into the distance. Sometimes I’ll do this with treats, too, just to show my dogs that a biscuit is a privilege that can be rescinded due to any bad behavior.
Magician John Stessel took it a step further when he visited the pups at New York’s Town of Hempstead Animal Shelter to perform a little magic for them. Although I can’t imagine they appreciated it very much until the end.
Stessel used a simple sleight of hand to make the dogs’ treats disappear -- the treats that they’re all VERY EXCITED FOR. Each of these dogs has pretty much the same reaction, kind of a five stages of grief trajectory: They’re in disbelief, just staring at Stessel’s hand where they know they saw the treat a second ago. Then they’re in a bit of denial, searching around the immediate area for their happiness.
Some pups get angry and meander away from Stessel, pouting. Others attack him, like Luna.
Honestly, I understand their reactions. If I’m promised, say, a whole pizza from someone, and then that someone takes the pizza away right in front of me, I would promptly charge, too.
I guess there’s nothing more magical for a dog at Christmastime than being fed treats, right?