I’m pretty sure they were planning it from the moment they saw me take the chicken breasts out of the freezer. I usually put meat in the oven to thaw because so far none of the animals in the house have learned how to open the oven door. Yet. When I checked the chicken it wasn’t quite ready for cooking so I set it in a pan of warm water in the sink. Usually I cover it with a cast iron pan lid which is heavy enough to deter the rodents, but this time I neglected that step. Big mistake.

I went outside to do a bit of gardening and came back in about 45 minutes later. I had the dogs outside with me, and I let them go in the house while I took some flower pictures in the garden. I came inside and looked in the sink…the pan of water was there, but no chicken. I had a sinking feeling in my stomach as I asked my husband if he had moved the chicken. The answer was no. Uh oh.

That’s when I noticed the plastic bits on the floor. Uh oh again. Not surprisingly, all the animals were in hiding, except for Boots. [Why should I hide? I didn’t do anything wrong. Mother is being hysterical about the stupid chicken. – Boots]  I checked around for the rest of the chicken package and when I didn’t see it I went out to the back yard, the final resting place of many liberated food items.

Sure enough, Sammy was out there on the lawn and he looked up at me, looking VERY guilty. When I called his name he wagged his tail and came running up to me with his guilty, sideways crab run. I looked over the deck railing and there was the chicken package, minus the chicken. At least this time he didn’t eat all the plastic.

I figure what happened is that Boots dragged the chicken out of the sink. I don’t know how she did it because the package weighed more than she does! [It was easy – Mother is so clueless. – Boots] She probably ate her fill while we were out in the garden and when I let the dogs in the house Sammy grabbed what was left and ran.

This is not the first time these two have conspired to steal dinner. A few weeks ago I cooked two steaks for my husband, one for dinner and one for the next day (our steaks from the butcher some two to a package and I didn’t want mine). I mistakenly left one on the counter. Boots grabbed the steak off the counter and tried to make off with it. Sammy ran up to her, she growled at him with a mouthful of steak (hilarious!) and he snatched it away and ran outside to eat it. [I am going to get back at that stupid dog, just you wait. – Boots]

I’m pretty sure Molly and Little Miss were innocent in the Chicken Caper. Sammy and Boots are the real delinquents in the family. [Says you. – Boots]