I learned a very painful lesson one day. I could have avoided the pain if I had listened to my mother when she told me not to pull a dog by its tail. I had the habit of playing with my dog’s tail much to its displeasure, but he never bit me, until one day.
My dog Bobby is a sturdy little mongrel with short brown hair. He is a muscular little fellow who is loyal but at times very playful. Nevertheless, he knows who the master is.
One evening when the sun was about to set, I heard a commotion coming from the back of my house. It was the sound of dogs barking. I quickly ran to where the commotion was coming from. Bobby was barking very loudly at another dog who was on the other side of the fence. The other dog was barking equally loudly.
I shouted at Bobby to stop barking but I guessed he did not hear me. He probably did not know that I was there right behind him. He was too engrossed in his little quarrel.
These two little rascals were running up and down the whole length of the fence separating them while barking and growling and showing their canines. I tried blocking Bobby’s way as he ran but he simply leapt over me or side-slipped me. I was surprised by his agility for I had never seen him do these things before.
The commotion they were making was quite deafening and I was feeling a bit frustrated for being unable to stop them. So the next time Bobby ran past me I quickly grabbed hold of his tail. For a moment Bobby was lifted off the ground as my hold on his tail tightened. The next moment his head swung round and his teeth sank into my hand. With a yell of pain, I let go and the little terror dropped to the ground. He picked himself up and continued his interrupted quarrel.
Blood flowed from my hand. I could see three distinct holes in the back of my right palm where his teeth had sunk into just a moment ago. Yelling in pain and anger, I picked up a stick to hit Bobby.
Just then my mother appeared on the scene with a bucket of water. As Bobby made his umpteenth run along the fence, my mother emptied the contents of the bucket on him.
The effect was immediate. Bobby stopped in his tracks and ran away from the scene. if there is one thing that dogs cannot stand, it must be water. The other dog received similar treatment from my mother and soon all was quiet again.
My mother looked at my hand and said that it was not too bad. I followed her back to the house where she cleaned the wound and applied for medicine on it.
So learned my lesson the painful way. Nowadays when my mother gives me Some advice I make sure I listen well, I do not Want more painful lessons.