There is a buggy pest there somewhere, most likely a small beetle. Slugs are another possibility tho their damage usually looks a bit different - more jagged. You'll need to do a careful pest exploration in and among the plants to ID the culprit but bean beetles or cuke beetles is the most likely IMO. Dave

The possibilities are various, and include slugs, snails, caterpillars, birds, perhaps even rabbits. For the smaller creepy crawlies, monitor daily, during daylight hours and after dark.

Thank you Wendy. Losing him hit the entire family harder than any other dog"s death ever has. He was special (they all are!) We do not have rabbits my other Lab Jake catches them out in the fields where I train, but I have a 7' block wall around the backyard, and no rabbits have ever been seen in the front yard either. The only non dog animal in my back yard are the lizards that manage to outrun Jake! I have never seen them eating the leaves... But then Jake was gone on "vacation" too, so could it be lizards? Hmmmm. All of the damage has been both low and high leaves. The grasshopper I found was bright green. I had seen grasshoppers before, but I had never seen any damage prior to this. But the other grasshoppers I saw were brown. A different species or just time of year?? Never thought that much about them before!! Now I have to make sure to keep the pup safely away from the plumerias since they are poisonous. I never had puppies and plumies at the same time!! My other concern is my scented geraniums (true geraniums vs. pelargoniums). Not sure if they are poisonous or not, found pelargoniums listed, but still checking on "true geraniums". Love their smell!! Not as good as the plumeria, but I do love it when the dogs have been playing in the planter and come in the house smeling like them!! I have sprayed the plumeria pots that are accessible to the dogs with "No Marking" a natural product by Natures Miracle that is supposed to deter dogs and cats, it uses cinnamon as the deterrent (smells fairly strong when you first spray it). My hope is that the puppy will be deterred from marking on the pots before he even learns to lift his leg (and hopefully it will stop Jake too when I move them back into their summer spot). In the summer they are along the concrete next to the grass, and unfortunately a perfect place for a dog to mark! Unfortunately it is the best location light and heat wise for my plants other than next to the house where I wouldn't be able to see them from the window! Wile next to the house, I have no problems with marking (at least I haven't with Jake or Trooper). I will keep people posted as to whether it works (of course those of you with females don't usually have that problem!! Thanks again! Jennifer

Someone on a different forum suggested I go out at night to see if whatever is eating my echinacea leaves is a "night-time" eater and sure enough, I saw something. Can someone tell me what this is and how I get rid of it?