The puppy that did not bark!!!

Rinku was a little girl who lived in a big house with her parents and baby sister. She looked out into the garden and thought how wonderful it would be if she had a dog as her pet and play with him in the garden every evening.

"Mummy, please get me a small puppy", she asked her mother. Her mother said, "I'm sorry Rinku, it is very difficult to take care of a pup ."

As soon as she got up in the morning she begged her father , "Daddy , please, please get me a pup. " Her father said " Sure Rinku, as soon as you grow a little older. " One evening on the way back from school , Rinku heard some noise in the bushes near her house. She ran towards the noise and found a little brown puppy under the bushes. Rinku was very excited. She carefully picked up the small furry bundle and carried it home. She kept it in a small box in the garden. This was her big secret.

She named him Brownie . The next day she put her red ribbon around his neck and gave him a small stool to sit on. The puppy licked her face and she was overjoyed.

After a few days, the puppy started making gentle noises . " Sshhhh," said Rinku , " don't make so much noise, mummy will hear you."

The puppy grew bigger. Rinku gave him a bone, which he started to nibble and bite!

One evening the puppy started running around in the garden. He was chasing a butterfly. Mummy saw the puppy and started to chase it away. "Mummy, he is such a cute little puppy, please let me keep him," said Rinku. " I will take care of him. Please, please say yes," she begged. After some time her mother felt sad for her and said," okay Rinku, you can keep the pup".

"Thank you mummy," she laughed, happily dancing around her mother. The puppy grew bigger day by day, but it never barked. It could only make low growls and gentle noises. Her pet dog did not know how to bark. Rinku felt very sad. How could she teach him, Rinku wondered. She asked her friends for help.

The next day Rinku's friends came home. They all stood near Brownie and made barking noises . " Woof woof", they said trying to teach Brownie to bark. But Brownie did not bark. Rinku felt very puzzled. Perhaps she should try a different sound, she thought. The next evening , Rinku sat near Brownie and tried to teach him "Bow Wow, Bow Wow. " She made the noise several times. Brownie cocked his ears and listened to her. He started making noises but that did not sound like a dog barking at all. Rinku was very very sad. How could she teach him to bark?

Then, Rinku brought out her slate and sat near the dog . She wondered what she should draw to make him learn a " bow wow "!!! She only knew how to draw a train. The next day she saw a big white dog outside the garden gate barking loudly, "bow wow , bow wow ." And there were barking noises from inside the garden . "Bow wow " , "bow wow", she heard. She rushed to the garden and saw Brownie barking loudly , " bow wow," at the white dog outside. She jumped for joy and gave Brownie a tight hug. At last Brownie had learnt to bark!!!!

That night , Rinku slept peacefully. "BOW WOW, BOW WOW," Thank you white dog for teaching Brownie to bark!