Bobby lives in an apartment building where you can’t have a dog as a pet. Bobby has a cat, but she has her own way of doing things and doesn’t always want to play when Bobby wants to play.
Some of the “Can Do” kids are getting puppies. Each time Bobby comes home from a friend’s who just got a new puppy, his mom can’t help noticing he looks kind of sad.
The next day was Saturday. Bobby and his dad set out for the pet store to buy the turtles. It was a tough decision, but Bobby finally decided on two turtles that he thought looked like brothers.
When he got them home, he set up the tank on the desk in his room, filled it with water and put the turtles in their new home. He spent the rest of the night trying to think of names for them. The next morning, he still hadn’t named them.
A week went by and the turtles were doing just fine. Bobby loved to watch them slip into the water and swim around. Then it happened; he was late getting out to the school bus and left the house without closing the door to his room.
When he got back from school, he went to check on the turtles. Oh no, they were gone! He looked all around his room, but he didn’t see either of the turtles. He called his mom to help him. No luck until they looked for the cat. Sure enough, Lisa had one of the turtles and was scooting him around on the floor!
The turtle looked dry and tired! Bobby grabbed him up and put him back in his tank. He remembered to close the door as he went to look for the other turtle.
When Bobby’s dad got home, he suggested looking for the other turtle in a dark place. Bobby remembered that his closet door was open. He ran into his room, closed the door and began looking all around the floor of his closet. Just as he was about to give up, he saw something peeking out of his slipper; it was the turtle!
HE put the other turtle back in the tank. Bobby thought the turtles looked happy to see one another.
Bobby’s dad agreed that he was making a good choice.
Coach answered, “Well guys, some of you have heard me talk about my dog, Sergeant Buckshot, from time to time. Some of you have even seen me walking him around the neighborhood. Well, Buck was, as you all know, pretty old. Getting around was getting hard for him, and he was waking up feeling tired. Then one day, well, he had to move on.
“Delmar, that’s his name, is just over 4 months old now. He is still very young, excitable, and interested in just about everything. Lots of energy! When he gets a bit older, and has some more of his vaccines, I will bring him by to meet all of you,” answered Coach.
Coach answered,”He is a lab-shepherd mix, and how I got him, well now, that’s a good story.
So, after doing some research in the Internet, I found Delmar – only then, he was being called Ricki. Well, as soon as I read Ricki’s story, of how he was left – along with his brothers and sisters – in a cardboard box, and he was the only one left, not yet adopted, and still waiting for his forever home … well, I just knew he was the one.
You see, my first dog as a boy, when I was in the 6th grade, was in a cardboard box outside of a grocery store when I first met him. Schultz was my first dog, my dog as a boy growing up.
Then, a long time after that, when I was all grown up, I met Buckshot. He was only five months old then, with the same spots on his body that Schultz had. He was the last in his litter, waiting to be rescued. Then, he walked on over to me, sat down and put his head on my lap. I knew right then, he was with me from now on.
So, you see, Delmar was like Schultz, found in a cardboard box. He was also like Buckshot, the last one waiting, after all of his brothers and sisters had been adopted. There was so much in common with the dogs I knew and cared for, that I called up the rescue shelter right away. A few hours later, I was talking to Ricki’s foster mom, and making plans to meet him the next day.
Hector wanted to know, “How early do you have to get up with him? How many walks a day does he need? Can I walk him?” “Yeah, me too, can I?” said Willie.
“Well, remember, said, coach, “He is still a bit too young to come by for a visit. Now, the truth is, having a puppy is a ton work, and a long day. They need to go outside every 3-4 hours at his age. That is a lot of walks!
The first walk of the day is at 5:30 in the morning. How many of you are up that early? (no hands raised) Huh, not that many I see.
“Yup, sure is,” said Coach.
Does he have a lot of toys? Yeah, can we bring him a bone? the boys wanted to know.
Coach laughed saying, “Oh boy, you bet he’s got toys. Puppies love to play, and need lots of different toys to keep them busy.
“Wow, OK Coach. So, you don’t miss Buckshot anymore?” Willie stopped talking waiting for Coach’s answer.
“So, I know we can’t meet Delmar yet, but can we see some pictures?” Willie had asked the question that all three boys wanted to know.
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