Peter wanted a pet very much. He was very lonely and had no one to play with. He did spend time looking at squirrels and birds and rabbits. But it was not the same thing as having his own puppy.
His parents decided to give him a puppy for his birthday. On Saturday morning, Papa and Mummy wished him and brought him two presents. Mummy gave him a book and Papa brought him a game of Monopoly. Peter smiled and said ‘thank you’, because he was a very polite boy. But in his heart of hearts, he was a little sad because he still had no puppy!
They sat down for breakfast as usual. Then Papa said, “Peter, we’re going out after breakfast. So, please get ready.”
Still thinking this must be a trip to meet Aunt Hetty, he got ready on time. They all got into the car. Suddenly, Peter sat up. He looked out and saw they had stopped outside the petshop!
The salesman led them into a room full of the puppies of all breed, sizes and colours. It was deafening as most of the puppies began to bark.
Peter and his parents went round looking at the puppies. Peter hated to see them in cages and would have taken all of them if possible! But he had to select one.
There was a loveable golden retriever, a pug, a poodle, a large Great Dane pup, a Labrador, a terrier and many more. Then Peter came upon one puppy that had a salt-and-pepper colouring. It looked very scruffy and sat in its cage looking very dejected.
Peter fell in love with the pup and pointed to it. His father and mother repeatedly asked him if he wouldn’t prefer one of the others. But this was Peter’s choice!
Peter took the puppy home, and called it ‘Taffy’. Taffy was a little scared at first. But Peter’s love and care soon made him a happy, confident little puppy. Peter bathed him, brushed him, took him for walks every day and played and hide-and-seek with him.
Every day, Peter found that Taffy became more and more naughty. He had to be trained to sit on the rug or in his basket. He preferred to sit on the sofa and sleep on Peter’s bed. He also had to be taught not to chew up shoes and socks. Once he had learnt to behave properly, he was a delight. He had turned out to be a wonderful friend!
