It all started with March Meowness.
When Worcester, Massachusetts, Public Library started forgiving late fees by asking for photos of the cats, they didn’t believe it would turn into real madness. The cool move inspired many, but this time, fellow canine lovers.
One particular library had no late fees, but damage fees were still a thing. What to do about them? How to stop or promote “book safety at home”?
Middleton Public Library had an idea:
Show us the culprit and the debt is forgiven.
My Dog Ate My Book
Literally.
My dog ate my book – the one I just got from the public library.
Book lovers from Middleton, Wisconsin no longer have to fear their library fees. The Middleton Public Library doesn’t have late fees anymore, and it turns out any book damage fees would be forgotten, too.
But, under one condition: you show the canine culprit who nibbled on the book, and all is forgiven and forgotten.
The inspiration for this action full of understanding came from Worcester Public Library. They had the idea of forgiving the book fee as a part of their March Meowness month.
People of Worcester weren’t afraid of late fees anymore because their felines were the ones that got them out of heavy payments. As for the people of Middleton…
“While the Middleton Public Library no longer has late fees for overdue materials, we do charge for lost or damaged materials. Quickly the conversation turned to the frequency of materials actually damaged by our furry friends, and we thought it would be fun to adapt this fine forgiveness program to showcase these ‘offenders,’” the library workers said for The Dodo.
Basically, your dog ate your book? No pawblem! Show us the cute culprit and it’s okay.
Gee, life would be so sweet if we could get away from everything with cute pics of our pets!
The Canine Culprits Of Middleton
The book damage forgiveness program was live and already had the first culprits!
It was Daisy, the cutest black-and-white pupper who broke the ice and nibbled on a good mystery book.
Soon enough, Daisy wasn’t alone on the wall of fame (yes, fame, because these pups have no shame).
Ward showed how stressed he felt, so he nibbled on a yoga book. Did this stress therapy help? Not quite, especially not the downward dog pawsition.
Quik, the American Water Spaniel, followed, and what he did went viral and made the Middleton Public Library a pawpular place.
Quik made some really terrible dog ears, literally.
It was a very tasteful read, and Quik agrees.
Then, Sky decided she wanted to give it a try and see what all the fuss was about reading books.
“Today’s chomper is Sky, a one year-old Australian Labradoodle who lives with Stephanie. Sky had been enjoying the popular Empyrean fantasy novel series until he got to book two, Iron Flame. After letting all 623 pages know his true feelings, Sky returned to his other favorite pastime according to Stephanie: chasing squirrels,” said the Library on Facebook.
So, who’s next? Any good reads coming this month? There sure will be! Middleton Library doesn’t encourage you to destroy books on purpose, but if accidents happen, no worries no matter if it’s your dog or any other furry buddy.
In case your dog is a repeat felon, maybe try figuring out what causes such behavior. Sure, your dog might like books, but did you ever think it’s because it is bored?
Anxiety, boredom, or feeling scared or insecure are all reasons why your dog might be prone to destructive behavior. To curb it, give Fido something fun to do and entertain his gray cells while you’re busy.
Not every library has such a forgiving program as the Middleton one.