Dog Caught Doing Unthinkable To Boy's Homework—But No One Will Believe Them

A dog owner has shared photographic evidence of his naughty Labrador puppy bringing a classic missing homework excuse to life.

From the moment Ben Lambert, from Westchester, New York, laid eyes on puppy companion Winnie, he knew she was special. Born on Christmas Eve as a rare "singleton," meaning her mom gave birth to just one puppy, it's fair to say Winnie is used to being the center of attention.

She certainly caught Lambert's attention when they first met. "My favorite dog ever passed a few years ago, and Winnie is his great-niece," Lambert told Newsweek. "The breeder is my friend's mom, they breed show Labs. Winnie's grandad won Westminster Best of Breed twice."

Lambert said his family weren't originally planning on adding another dog to the family— but one glimpse of Winnie changed all of that. "My friend showed me a video of Winnie and his baby nephew. Winnie was just letting the baby poke and prod and she didn't mind and was obviously a sweet girl, so I asked if she was spoken for," he said.

Winnie's breeder had originally planned on keeping the young pup around, but changed her mind when Lambert and his family asked about her availability. "We have three young kids that haven't had the puppy experience," Lambert explained.

Winnie has quickly settled into life with her new family. "She loves water and has got huge paws, meaning she will be quite large for a female Labrador."

She has also developed one slightly mischievous habit. "Her favorite thing to do is grab stuff she shouldn't and have you chase her to get it," Lambert said.

That's what led to their recent predicament. Winnie's love of grabbing things led to something hilarious: he ate Lambert's 11-year-old son's homework.

In a rerun of what might just be the oldest excuse in the book, Winnie made off with the assignment and was later photographed alongside the document, which now had several chunks missing from it.

A schoolboy tale as old as time, the concept of a dog consuming an important written document dates back to 1906 and an article by music critic William Apmadoc in the Welsh-American magazine The Cambrian, who regaled readers with an anecdote about a church minister who, just prior to his service, discovered his sermon had been eaten by his dog.

The first instance of a dog eating homework, meanwhile, appeared in a 1929 article published in The Manchester Guardian by retiring headmaster James Bewsher who quipped: "It is a long time since I have had the excuse about the dog tearing up the arithmetic homework."

Though it's often an excuse viewed with skepticism, there are some notable early examples of something similar unfolding in real life. The most notable being the tale of John Steinbeck asking his editor for an extension on submitting his manuscript for Of Mice and Men after it was half-eaten by his Irish setter.

A similar fate has now befallen Lambert's son, which is something he puts down to their puppy's precocious nature. "If it's within three feet of the floor Winnie will try and snatch it, sometimes even climb to get it."

He's not the only dog owner to witness this kind of destruction. Sharing the image of Winnie and the destroyed homework to Reddit, several fellow dog owners were quick to chime in with stories of their own dog's efforts.

"My lab destroyed more than a few library books. Something about them was irresistible. Something about paper, she loved to destroy," one user commented.

"When my kid was in elementary school, still using special paper, our puppy destroyed his homework. He redid the homework on regular paper, manipulated for the direction lines. Sent a note that the puppy had eaten his homework and that type of paper was all we had," another added. "Received a small packet of paper and a note that she actually believed this dog-ate-my-homework excuse."

Winnie is fond of chewing up more than just paper. ""She's teaching the kids about picking up their toys." Lambert. "She's not a polite borrower and rarely returns toys in the same condition."

Thankfully, in the case of the homework assignment there was one positive: it had already been graded. Unfortunately, Winnie's antics have continued since then. "Last night she ripped up a field trip permission slip for my daughter," Lambert said.