Test Revealed If ‘Let Sleeping Dogs Lie’ is True [PHOTOS]

Are you familiar with the old saying, 'Let Sleeping Dogs Lie'? It's very likely an old proverb from the 13th Century. I've found that it's still quite true 600 years later.

Inadvertently, I've experimented over the past couple of days with my dog, Tater, the Golden Retriever. Tater is full of energy, like most Goldens of one and a half years of time spent on Earth. After all, he's still just a pup. A 95-pound pup.

The meaning of the phrase 'Let Sleeping Dogs Lie' is pretty clear: a dog, when sleeping and awakened suddenly, might very well wake up, shall we say, unpredictably. In other words, you don't really know what to expect. I've taken it a little further in my understanding to say - the energetic, digging, destructive, mischievous, sneaky dog is asleep now - enjoy it while it lasts.

Here are a few of my efforts to test the theory that sleeping dogs should be left to 'lie' or 'sleep'. Not wanting to resort to such startling tactics as yelling 'KITTY' which, Tater wouldn't know what a Kitty is since he's never seen one - or 'TREAT' - and he very well knows what that is - I decided to gently place a variety of objects on or next to Tater and see what his response was.

Here, we've laid an old shoe under Tater's chin. He didn't move. I think he was contemplating eating the shoe.

Here, I've placed a Bull Face Mask on his back and got no response.

He's opening his eyes to ponder what this could mean, Dad has just put a couple of my favorite toys - a rubber shark mouth and a wooden dowel - on my neck. It's starting to cause him to think dog thoughts.

It's almost time for an intervention. Tater, before passing out, at least had good taste in beer, choosing a local 'Bale Breaker' product - Top Cutter. Maybe he can get an endorsement deal?

If your dog doesn't like to be teased - please don't. Tater loves the attention and his response was to get up, crawl up on my lap, and put his nearly 100-pound body on me while I endeavored to write this. Guess he got the last laugh.