Read That Furball Puppy and Me for Free Online Page A

a sad feeling on Mama.
    Once inside I got a good tummy rub. Mama even got the brush and stroked my fur until I was silky and shiny. The sad feeling was still there. I could feel it everywhere. I explored the bedrooms where the kids and Grandkids had been. The rooms looked nice and neat, but the emptiness felt strange. I had never noticed it before. The rooms seemed to be too quiet without Josh, Jenny, Katie, and Kensey!
    Then the empty and quiet was gone—replaced by this loud, shrill, irritating
yapping
sound. All at once the puppy came flying down the hall, just as I was walking to the living room.
    â€œGet him, Owen!” Mama said. “He needs to go outside this morning before he does something on the floor. I couldn’t see any messes in the playroom, so I know that he needs to go out!”
    Suddenly the puppy spotted me. His eyes got big around.
    â€œBack off, Bozo!” I bared my teeth and hissed. His tongue hung out the side of his fuzzy face as he charged toward me.
    Daddy grabbed the puppy. I stepped back just in time.
    As soon as they were outside, I hurried to the food bowl to see what Callie had left me. I gobbled down the tender morsels of cat food. The dog would be back, and I had to hurry to a good spot where he wouldn’t see me.
    The window ledge behind the couch was my favorite hiding place. The curtain hid me from view. I liked looking out at the bird feeder. Snow covered the top of it. Winter birds clustered around, fussing over each little seed. The yard was covered in white.
    â€œI think we need to get the tree down, before the puppy and Gray are in here for very long.” The Mama carried boxes to the couch. She began taking small things from the tree. Each one was wrapped, then set in a box. The long strings of shiny lights were wrapped and put away, too.
    When there was nothing but an empty tree, Daddy carried it out the front door.
    Mama got the puppy and gave it a good rub. Daddy sat down with them and squeezed a squeaky toy. When he rolled it across the floor, the puppy hopped down. He didn’t land very well. His front feet kind of folded in under him, and he smushed his face against the carpet. Talk about a klutz. He didn’t stay on his nose for very long. He jumped up and chased the squeaky toyacross the floor. Then he chased his tail. I watched from my hiding spot.
    For a while the sad feeling left our house. Mama and Daddy smiled as they watched the puppy bounce around the living room. When the furball finally got tired, Mama picked him up again and sat near the fireplace. She snuggled him on her lap.
    It was quiet as I watched it snow all day long. The puppy seemed to sleep a lot. Mama and Daddy just sat around most of the time.
    â€œI think we need to let the puppy stay in the kitchen tonight. I’ll put up something to keep him from getting out, kind of like the baby fence that we used when the kids were little. That way Gray can get out if he needs to.”
    Mama got up and headed for the playroom. She searched in the closet looking for something.
    She came out carrying some big pieces of cardboard. Propping them up against the cabinet and the wall, she divided the kitchen from the dining room.
    At bedtime Mama put the box of towels in the kitchen. She and Daddy, both, spread newspapers all over the floor. A step stool, the box, and a bowl of water were the only things left in the room. The puppy and I were put in last. I went to the stool and jumped to the top step. The puppy lay still in the box for a long time.
    I was almost asleep when the whining started. The puppy whimpered quietly, at first. “I really like to have you near,” he said with a sigh.
    I ignored him.
    The box wiggled. A black button nose and two little eyes peeked over the edge of it. “I really miss my mama and my brothers and sisters. They played with me all the time.”
    Still trying to ignore him, I turned my head and curled up on the kitchen stool. The box