Double basses and inquisitive toddlers

We are a family of double bass players.  My husband, son, and my son-in-law all play it, so as a non-player myself, I have gleaned a fund of quirky observations about it from the sidelines.

Large and unwieldy, basses spend much of their down-time lying on one side, or propped up in a corner against a wall. To a small child this biggest instrument of the string family parked in the middle of a living room offers endless possibilities for explorative play. They love to propel it along the floor, twang its strings, or try to mount it as if it were a horse…  One kid got the prize for imaginative endeavour by posting a miniature toy car through an ‘f’ hole.

The problem was its extraction.  Initial time-consuming attempts, such as poking the slots with knitting needles, inserting magnets, coat hangers,  or kebab skewers…all proved futile. At long last, three sturdy men manoeuvred the bass aloft, face down, and instructed to shake it gently in a synchronized manner from side to side, like sifting flour, while a brave soul with nimble fingers crouched on the floor beneath then directing operations. Eventually, after much puffing and panting, and not a few expletives, the offending toy was gingerly coaxed out.
Moral: Establish early ground rules!