Doggone It! (7 page)
Authors: Nancy Krulik
Mr. Derkman smiled. “She’s awfully cute, Snookums. And she seems to need a home. We could give her a nice home.”
Mrs. Derkman sighed. She’d seen that look in her husband’s eyes before. There was no fighting him when he wanted something this badly.
“Well, I’m certainly not going to walk her,” Mrs. Derkman told her husband.
“I’ll do that,” Mr. Derkman assured her.
“And I don’t have time to brush her or bathe her,” Mrs. Derkman continued.
“I’ll take care of that,” Mr. Derkman said. “I’ll take care of everything. All you have to do is enjoy her.”
Mrs. Derkman handed the dog over to her husband and shook her head. “That’s going to be the hardest part,” she said.
Chapter 14
A few mornings later, Katie awoke to a terrible screeching noise.
“How much is that doggie in the window?” Mrs. Derkman sang from her garden.
“Aroo!”
Mrs. Derkman and the dog were singing together! Katie had to see this! She dressed quickly, put Pepper on his leash, and headed outside.
Mrs. Derkman was working in her garden. The white puppy was sitting at her side. Neither the dog nor Mrs. Derkman seemed to notice Katie at first. They were too busy singing.
“There was a teacher, had a dog, and Snowball was her name-oh,” Mrs. Derkman sang.
“Ruff! Ruff!”
Snowball chimed in.
Snowball chimed in.
Mrs. Derkman stopped singing when she saw Katie and Pepper. “Hi, Katie,” she said cheerfully.
“Hello,” Katie said.
“Why don’t you bring Pepper over here?” Mrs. Derkman said. “I’d like him to meet Snowball.”
Katie was about to tell Mrs. Derkman that Pepper already knew Snowball, but she decided not to. It would be too hard to explain.
“You can take Pepper off the leash if you want,” Mrs. Derkman said, as Katie led her dog into the teacher’s yard.
Katie looked down as she unhooked Pepper’s leash. She could see Snowball happily chomping on a cucumber. Mrs. Derkman didn’t seem to mind at all.
“I suppose I owe you and Pepper an apology,” Mrs. Derkman said slowly.
Katie didn’t know what to say. She’d never heard her teacher apologize to anyone before.
The teacher watched as Pepper and Snowball sniffed each other. “I never dreamed it would be such fun to have a pet,” she told Katie. “Snowball seems to like my singing even more than my plants do. And she’s more fun to talk to than Sven was.”
Katie was amazed. Having a dog sure had changed Mrs. Derkman. She didn’t seem as stern as she did in school.
“Now, don’t you think you should go study for that Social Studies test?” Mrs. Derkman continued. “It’s going to be very hard.”
Okay, maybe she hadn’t changed that much.
Katie watched as Pepper and Snowball barked at a squirrel in a tree. The squirrel didn’t seem to like being outnumbered.
Katie smiled. It served him right.
“There was a teacher, had a dog, and Snowball was her name-oh,” Mrs. Derkman began singing again.
“Aroo!”
Snowball joined in with a loud howl.
Snowball joined in with a loud howl.
Katie laughed. Having her teacher for a next-door neighbor wouldn’t have been something Katie would have wished for. But maybe it wasn’t going to be so bad after all.
Chapter 15
It didn’t take long for Katie to teach Snowball a few simple tricks. You can teach your dog, too. All you have to do is follow these easy steps.
You will have to practice these tricks alot before your dog will learn them. Some dogs can learn tricks in a few days. It takes other dogs longer to learn.
Teach Your Dog to Sit:
This is the easiest trick for your dog to learn. Start by holding a dog treat above her, just out of her reach. Your dog will look up. Then ... whoops! She’ll fall right into the sit position. As soon as your dog begins to fall back, say the word “sit.” Then be sure to give your dog a lot of praise—and the treat.
This is the easiest trick for your dog to learn. Start by holding a dog treat above her, just out of her reach. Your dog will look up. Then ... whoops! She’ll fall right into the sit position. As soon as your dog begins to fall back, say the word “sit.” Then be sure to give your dog a lot of praise—and the treat.
If you do this over and over, your dog will understand what the word “sit” means.
Teach Your Dog to Stay:
Start by asking your dog to sit. Then hold your hand out so your palm is near her nose. This is your signal for “stay.” Take a step backward, saying the word “stay.” Before your dog can move toward you, hurry back to her. Give her a treat.
Start by asking your dog to sit. Then hold your hand out so your palm is near her nose. This is your signal for “stay.” Take a step backward, saying the word “stay.” Before your dog can move toward you, hurry back to her. Give her a treat.
Repeat this a few times. Each time, move a little farther from your dog. Stay away from her for longer amounts of time, too. She’ll soon learn to stay, no matter how far away you may seem.
Author’s note:
Katie was very lucky that Snowball was a sweet puppy. But there’s no guarantee that other stray dogs are as nice. If you see a strange dog wandering your neighborhood, don’t try to rescue her yourself. Instead, ask a grown-up to call a local shelter. They will send an expert to rescue the dog.
Katie was very lucky that Snowball was a sweet puppy. But there’s no guarantee that other stray dogs are as nice. If you see a strange dog wandering your neighborhood, don’t try to rescue her yourself. Instead, ask a grown-up to call a local shelter. They will send an expert to rescue the dog.
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