This Game is Getting Annoying

Flynn hunting the laser light while Kodiak attempts to sleep

Last week I wrote about how my dog Flynn is obsessed with a laser toy that is intended for cats, the FroliCat.   Flynn's addiction seems to be getting worse and it's also starting to get a little bit annoying. 

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When we first set the toy up for him we put it on a table in our front living room which has hardwood floors.  After endless playing it was clear that if things kept going the way they were headed he was going to destroy the floor and the walls with his toenails.  So we moved the toy into our family room which is much smaller but has carpet.  

We have been putting the toy on the coffee table and he runs around the carpet chasing it which makes him very happy.  However a couple of problems have emerged:

1. Our old, sick, and frail dog Kodiak spends most of the day lying in the family room.  The laser sometimes hits him which doesn't bother him but it means that Flynn jumps over him constantly. When Kodiak is awake he barks at Flynn and his laser and tries to move away but he really can't go very far. At least Flynn has the good sense not to jump directly on Kodiak to "get" the laser.

2. Flynn has figured out all of our hiding places for the toy so when we put it in a cabinet he will sit outside the cabinet and whine incessantly.  Even if we distract him with a walk or some other activity he comes right back to the hiding place.

3. Flynn comes to find me anytime the toy's automatic timer shuts it off so I can turn it back on for him. He is very insistent that I come RIGHT NOW to turn it back on.  Doesn't matter if I am eating, in the bath, or otherwise indisposed he wants it on RIGHT NOW.

4. Sometimes the laser's radius extends to a place Flynn can't see. When that is the case he comes to find me to fix it for him. Again, he is very insistent that this be done RIGHT NOW.

Part of me loves the fact that the laser toy keeps him occupied (and not barking at anything) but the fact that we can no longer effectively hide it from him or distract him from the toy is becoming an irritant.  Not really sure what to do. I feel like the parent of an actual child who has become addicted to iPad games...well I assume this is what a parent would feel like.  Annoyance mixed with some guilt and some shame that he is being kept occupied and out of trouble so I can do what I want.  If only he could push the button to turn it on by himself....