Jack (5 page)

Some puppies and dogs will eat just about anything. Everything Jack ate in this book was eaten by a puppy or dog in real life — and I still have a list about two pages long of
other
things that dogs have eaten, including TV remotes, whole turkeys, and earrings. Funny? Sort of. But dogs can get very sick or even die from eating the wrong things. (Besides chocolate, did you know grapes, raisins, and onions can also make dogs sick?) It’s important to make sure your puppy doesn’t have the chance to eat things that are bad for him. Keep him in his crate whenever you can’t keep an eye on him, and teach him the “leave it” command. If your puppy has eaten something strange and is throwing up or having diarrhea, he may need to go to the vet. Most puppies grow out of the chewing stage, but if yours doesn’t you might have to consult an animal behaviorist or dog trainer for more help.

Dear Reader,

My dogs Jack and Molly once ate a whole
bookshelf’s
worth of books. My dog Junior ate a beautiful loaf of Italian bread I had just baked. My aunt Jo’s dog Chester ate a poisonous mushroom. And Django ate all kinds of things: a corner of a rug, some mail, a whole tray of burritos, and a yucky dead animal. Django got very, very sick one time from something he had eaten (I’m not even sure what it was). He had to spend the night at the vet’s and I was so worried. It can be very hard to teach dogs — especially Labs! — not to eat things they shouldn’t.

Yours from the Puppy Place,

Ellen Miles

P.S. If you loved Jack’s crazy eating habits, check out the messes that a pesky pug named Pugsley makes in this funny Puppy Place book:

Bear
Buddy
Cody
Flashy
Goldie
Honey
Luckyy Maggie and Max
Noodle
Patchesy
Princess
Pugsley
Rascal
Scout
Shadow
Snowball
Sweetie
Baxter
Muttley
Ziggy
Bella
Moose
Bandit
Cocoa

THE
PUPPY PLACE

DON’T MISS THE
NEXT PUPPY PLACE
ADVENTURE!

Here’s a peek at
SWEETIE!

Charles smiled down at Sweetie, the apricot-colored miniature poodle puppy the Petersons had just agreed to foster. The tiny, curly-haired puppy stared back at Charles with the brightest black eyes he had ever seen. Her coat was springy and soft. She felt delicate, like a fancy piece of china that might break if you even
looked
at it the wrong way. “We’ll take care of you,” he promised. He turned to Lizzie. “Where’s Buddy? Let’s see if they get along.”

“I put him in my bedroom until Sweetie got comfortable here,” said Lizzie. She went to get Buddy, and Charles and the Bean took Sweetie into the living room to play. Charles put the little puppy down on the rug and watched as she ran around sniffing everything. She tried to pick up one of Buddy’s stuffed toys, but it was almost bigger than she was! Sweetie tugged and growled, trying to pull Mr. Duck out of the toy basket.

Just then, Lizzie ran back downstairs with Buddy trotting after her.

“Uh-oh,” said Charles. Mr. Duck was one of Buddy’s favorite toys. Maybe he wouldn’t be so happy to find another puppy playing with it.

But Buddy ran right over to Sweetie, wagging his tail. He pulled Mr. Duck out of the basket and laid him down in front of Sweetie.

Here you go!

Buddy bowed down, his front paws stretched way out in front.

Want to play?

Sweetie bowed back — and they were off, racing around the room. After a few laps, Buddy rolled over and let Sweetie climb on him.

“Wow!” said Charles. “Everybody loves Sweetie.”

“Evvybody love Sweetie!” echoed the Bean. He laughed his googly laugh. “The Bean love Sweetie, Charles love Sweetie, Lizzie love Sweetie, Buddy love Sweetie! Dada and Mama love Sweetie!”

Sweetie looked up, one tiny foot planted on Buddy’s chest, and cocked her head.

Of course! And I love you all, too!

Charles laughed. Sweetie was so cute. “Up, Sweetie!” he said, patting his knee. Sweetie ran over and jumped, sailing through the air like a little ball of fluff. She landed perfectly on Charles’s lap. “Good girl!” He gave her a big kiss on the top of her head.

That’s when Buddy started to bark.

Ellen Miles likes to write about the different personalities of dogs. She is the author of more than 28 books, including the Puppy Place and Taylor-Made Tales series as well as
The Pied Piper
and other Scholastic Classics. Ellen loves to be outdoors every day, walking, biking, skiing, or swimming, depending on the season. She also loves to read, cook, explore her beautiful state, and hang out with friends and family. She lives in Vermont.

If you love animals, be sure to read all the adorable stories in the Puppy Place series!

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission of the publisher. For information regarding permission, write to Scholastic Inc., Attention: Permissions Department, 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012.

Copyright © 2009 by Ellen Miles.
Cover art by Tim O’Brien
cover design by Steve Scott

All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Inc. SCHOLASTIC, LITTLE APPLE, and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc. Lexile is a registered trademark of MetaMetrics, Inc.

First printing, October 2009

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e-ISBN: 978-0-545-32457-1