The Story of George


The first couple months of my life were experienced in darkness, my ears and eyes were so little that I could only sense my sisters and brothers next to me in our warm barn filled with hay. My mother watched over me constantly, and when I was big enough she started to guide me to walk and play with the other animals in the barn. One day, a bright light filled my vision and a vast blue sky became visible in the crack of the barn. My eyes had finally opened, and new sounds of chirping, wind, and crowing filled my memory. At a glance, I saw Rose, my mother, and all the rest of my litter of nine other pups. Our owner came in the barn and gave us mushy food for all of us to share. I wanted to explore, so I managed to slip out without anyone noticing.

As soon as I went past the door, the big sky was so bright that I had to hide under a wagon. The snow began to melt under my weight, and I chilled very quickly. Moving back towards the barn, a big and strong animal came up to me from the other side of the gate. Before even meeting him, I could tell that this dog was my friend. We touched noses and he liked my muzzle, guiding me back to the barn. It dawned on me that this friendly animal was my father.

Today was a very strange day. My owner drove me for three hours in her car and waited with me for a while. A car came around the bend, and a young girl with her parents raced out of their car. The girl came over my my muzzle and rubbed my belly. My paws got very dirty playing in the mud previously, but I jumped on her white jacket and tried to lick her face. I think she liked it. Before I knew it, my owner said goodbye to me and left, while the strangers put me in their car. I was so scared and frightened that I barked and whined, but the new people gave me a stuffed moose that smelled vaguely of a different dog. I slept on the ride to their home, and they stopped at a park to let me go to the bathroom; they didn’t seem too happy that I already made my mark in their car. When we got to the house, a large yard was visible. The girl had really interesting boots that I chewed on before going inside.

The house was like a huge barn. I raced around but one of the parents kept lifting me off the rugs so I wouldn’t have an accident. I found many new toys, most of them belonging to the shoe category. After a while, the people tried to put me in a metal crate that smelled of the same dog scent on the moose. There was no way that I would go in that terrifying metal prison all by myself for the night. After a half hour, the people led me away from the crate and fit it through the door to their bedroom. The younger girl even climbed in with me, and after a while I fell asleep.

It has been about three months since I left the farm with the other dogs. I don’t mind, however, the people that own me now give me toys and bones to last awhile until they are buried. One day, I noticed the young girl kept going over to play with the dog next door. She would take her on a walk and give her new food every day. I wanted to meet this dog, but my line in the yard would only go so far. My leash got unhooked just as the girl went over to the other dog’s house the next day. I looked around and made a dash to the house across the street. Before I could even sniff the plants near the end of the driveway, a small, white dog approached me. She didn’t look too happy and started growling. I guess I didn’t mind. In fact, I tried to play with her. She got so mad that she started to growl even louder until the girl came back. The girl accidentally left the door open, so I bolted inside and made a run for the kitchen. I heard my name in the distance, but I caught a scent of treats coming from the corner. Sure enough, there was a bowl of food conveniently at my mouth. I ate it all until the girl picked me up with difficulty and brought me back home.


I love the house I’m staying at. I get to eat a lot of peanut butter when they put it in the tub for a bath, and my owner lets me dig up her flowers, I think. She never actually told me not to do it, so I dig them up anyway. I also throw in some growls just to make sure they understand what I want. When I began to do this at first, my owners ran away and gave me what I wanted. Now that I have graduated from puppy class, I can no longer get away with growling. As soon as I emit a menacing noise, they take me by the scruff of my neck and put me outside. Even when I can't growl, I assert my attention in different ways, such as barking, whining, and having an accident on purpose. When I engage in disorderly conduct, people make excuses for me because I am so utterly handsome. I even managed to climb on top of the table and steal a bite of dinner before going in the crate.


Even though my life can be tedious at times, I still get to go to the park at least two times a day. I also graduated from puppy class with six other dogs and won a contest on graduation day. I am not, however, a big fan of the food I get. It is so dry and tasteless that it makes me sick even to eat it. Instead, I steal food from the table and take treats from the cupboard if it is open. This is the only thing that I don’t like about my new home. Some people say I’m a dominant dog, but other people simply know the truth, the fact that I am the most handsome dog with extraordinary talent.