Bobby and Pixie Have a Bath
Introduce These Words:
| filthy busily quietly uncomfortable |
haircut groomer |
Bobby and Pixie were filthy. Bob was extra dirty. The dogs loved to scratch their backs by rolling around in the sand. Bobby’s long black hair was full of sand and dust. Wherever Pixie went, she left bits of sand and grass behind. It was time for a bath.
Susan got two leashes out of the closet. She hooked the leashes onto the dogs’ collars, and took both dogs outside. They thought they were going for a walk. They were very excited. Pixie’s tail wagged busily. Bobby began panting. When Susan opened the car door, Pixie jumped in happily. Bobby tried to walk away. He wanted to go for a walk! Susan led him back to the car and helped him in. Old Bob was a little stiff. It was hard for him to jump that high. Pixie sat up on the seat, looking out the window. Her long pink tongue hung out of her mouth. She loved to ride in the car. Bob tried to hide under the seat. He didn’t like to ride in the car.
It was lucky that the dog groomer was not very far away. The shop was called Critter Cuts. The owner was a tall lady named Jenny. When Susan and the dogs arrived at Critter Cuts, the dogs didn’t want to go in. There were so many good things to smell in the yard. They wanted to explore. She let them explore for a few minutes. Then she firmly led them up the stairs and into the shop.
Jenny was glad to see them. She greeted Susan and the dogs in a friendly way. “This must be Pixie and Bobby,” she said. “It’s good to see you on this hot, sunny day. Are you two ready for your baths?”
“I hope so,” said Susan. “As you can see, they are very dirty. Also, I think they need to have haircuts. They will feel better with a little trim.”
Jenny led the two dogs away. “I’ll take good care of them,” she told Susan. “When you come back in two hours you’ll find two clean, happy dogs!”
She got out her brushes and went to work on Bobby’s thick hair. His hair was very thick. He was a Border Collie, from Scotland. It gets very cold there and dogs need lots of hair to keep warm. In California, Bobby didn’t need such thick hair. Sometimes it made him feel very hot and uncomfortable. Jenny brushed him gently. Bobby didn’t like being brushed, but he stood quietly until she was done. Then she gave him a drink of water and let him rest while she brushed Pixie.
Pixie liked being brushed, but she didn’t like to stand still. She wiggled a lot, but soon Jenny was done. Pixie’s hair wasn’t nearly as long or messy as Bobby’s.
Now it was time for Bobby’s haircut. Jenny took her clippers and snipped all around his back legs where the hair was extra long. Then she cut around his front legs, and trimmed around his ears. “You’ll feel better with a little less hair,” she said, “Also, you will stay a little cleaner.”
Pixie needed only a little haircut, so it didn’t take very long. She liked it when Jenny worked on her. She wagged her tail and licked Jenny’s hand.
Next, Jenny lifted Bobby into a big tub. She turned on some warm water and let it flow onto Bobby’s back. He was not very happy about getting wet. But gentle Bobby stood quietly while Jenny washed him carefully with soapy water. Then she rinsed him well. She dried him off, and let him lie down in a clean sunny spot to wait for Pixie.
When Jenny lifted Pixie into the big tub, Pixie wagged her tail and licked Jenny. Pixie loved having a bath! She loved it when the warm water dripped down her back and her legs. She loved it when Jenny rubbed shampoo all over her. She loved getting rinsed. She loved being rubbed off to get dry. All too soon, Pixie’s bath was over. She sat with Bobby in the sun, waiting for Susan to come and take them home.
When Susan drove up, Bobby and Pixie ran to say hello. The two dogs jumped into the car. Susan told them how clean they were. She told them how nice their haircuts looked. She talked to them all the way home, so they would know how glad she was to see them. Soon they were home, and the dogs raced out to the yard.
Can you guess what they did first? They went right to the sandpit and rolled happily on their backs. They got sand and dust all over themselves. In a few minutes, they looked just as they had before their baths... except for their haircuts!
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