SPOT and SPOOK

"Hurry Spook!" yelled Spot, running as fat as his four legs would go, "Our owner's mother just drove into the driveway." "So what' s new about that, she comes home everyday at this time, "Spook grumbled as he slowed down. "I heard Frankie tell his mother to get us a treat, I want to see what it is," Spot panted back, as he tried to push his way through the door when Frankie opened it.

"OK smarty, what did you find out?" asked Spook as he walked up to Spot.

"I guess we just have to wait until dinner time, I sure hope it' s better than our last TREAT." Spot said while making a gagging sound.

The two friends walked back to their dog house to decide what to do until dinner time. "I guess we could play tag or chase Mrs. Smith' s cat, what do you think Spook?" asked Spot.

"No that won' t be any fun, all I can think of is food" answered Spook, while licking his face.

"Food! I know what we can do, lets chase the neighbors chickens and pretend they are our treats" Spot barked as he jumped to his feet. Spot and Spook ran to the neighbors yard, peeked around the fence and spotted the chickens loose in the big yard. Spot whispered, "Everything is quiet, I don' t think Mr. Rooster has spotted us."

Spot and Spook ran around the corner, pushed under the fence, and barked as loud as they could "Ha Ha, look at them scatter. There' s Mr. Rooster, let's corner him between us," barked Spot, thinking of his treat waiting for him back home.

Just then old Mrs. Hudson ran out of the house with a broom, screaming at the top of her voice "Get out of my yard, you mangy mutts, leave my chickens alone."

The two of them laughed as they ran from the yard "Did you notice Mrs. Hudson din' t have any shoes on, I bet her feet will be a smelly mess." Both dogs barked all the way home. In their front yard they sat down and licked their legs. "You would think by now that she would know that we wouldn' t hurt her chickens, not one has ever been touched since we have been here" complained Spot. "We must be getting old, I remember when she couldn' t get close enough to hit either one of us," moaned Spook, as he licked his leg.

Just then Frankie called from the back door "Spook, Spot come in the back yard, I have a treat for both of you." Skidding to a stop both of them let out a yelp "Oh No!!!" Frankie and his mother were standing behind the dreaded tub of soapy water. They couldn' t believe it, this was the treat they waited for all day? Frankie grabbed Spot by the collar while Spot barked his objections "I hate baths, I hate the smell of the soapy water, the other dogs will laugh at me for weeks."

Frankie' s mother was still chasing Spook when Frankie put Spot into the water. Spot barked loudly "Stop it Frankie, you got soap in my eyes, your going to kill my fleas, Oh Frankie why don' t you hear me?" Just then Frankie took Spot out of the water and hosed the sudsy water out of his fur.

As Frankie tied Spot to his dog house, his mother finally caught Spook and placed him in the water. Spook grumbled just as much as Spot did, but he got the same treatment.

After they were tied to their houses and their owner' s went into the house, Spook looked at Spot and growled "Next time you hear Frankie say we are getting a special treat, I will bite you and run away.

Frankie came out of the house with something in his hands. Both dogs started snorting, Spook wrinkled his nose "Maybe if we growl at him he will leave us alone." "Here is your supper with a big treat for each of you, and both of you smell so good" Frankie said as he patted each one on their head. "I think we got rid of those nasty fleas too." Both dogs looked down at their food and saw new food and a big bone, on top, for each of them. They looked at Frankie with love. Spot and spook, both, jumped up on Frankie and licked his face.

"I guess the bath wan' t too bad, I don' t feel like scratching like before and I do smell better" Spook said as he dived into his food. "Maybe they will skip the bath next time and go right to the food," Spot said with his mouth full of food. When they finished, they licked their faces and settled down with their juicy bones.