Open Writing

Long, long ago, dogs were always fighting. The Dog Chief, who lived on an island nearby, was worried.

"Why do my dogs fight so much?" he asked. "I will find out."

So the Dog Chief sent a message, saying, "All dogs! Come to a meeting on the island."

The dogs were pleased.

"A trip to the island!"

"That's good! We can tell the Chief our problems."

"He will help us."

The Dog Chief sent his largest canoe to bring the dogs across the water. But, even on the voyage, they kept arguing and insulting other dogs

"Move over, whelp!"

"Get off my foot, mongrel"

"Stop bumping, rascal!"

Even as the dogs walked to the Meeting House, they continued fighting.

A Dog Steward met them. "Quiet!" he shouted. "See that big hut nearby?"

The dogs nodded.

"Take off your tails and put them inside the hut," said the Dog Steward. "This will show your respect for our Dog Chief."

The dogs were surprised. "Take off our tails?"

"Yes," said the Dog Steward firmly. "Take off your tails."

The dogs had to do as they were told. They took off their tails and put them inside the hut. Then they went into the Meeting House where the Dog Chief sat before them on a tall chair.

"Good morning, dogs," said the Dog Chief. "Sit down."

"Good morning, Chief," said the dogs. They bowed and sat.

"I have heard that you fight a great deal," said the Dog Chief.

The dogs nodded. "Yes, chief!"

"This makes me sad," said the Dog Chief. "I'd like to see you living peacefully. Please tell me your problems." The dogs began to speak together in loud voices.

"My neighbour..."

"It's not fair..."

"When I go..."

"My family has to..."

"Quiet!" shouted the Dog Steward. "Please speak one at a time, and don't interrupt."

The first dog said, "My neighbour and his family yap until late every night, and my family can't sleep."

The second dog said, "My neighbour and his riff-raff make a terrible noise. They call it music."

The third dog said, "My neighbour's puppy is a roughneck and a bully-dog. He scares my little pup."

The fourth dog said, "Your pup is a mamby-pamby-cry-baby and a tell-tale, just like his mother."

The fifth dog said, "My neighbour is a thief!"

The sixth dog said, "Come outside and say that!"

The fifth dog said, "Where's my new juicy bone? I buried it for a stinky treat next week. Tell the Chief where it is now."

The seventh dog said, "Every time my family chases sticks, my neighbour and his mutts get in our way."

The eighth dog said, "You can't hog sticks. It's a free country and sticks belong to everyone."

The seventh dog said, "When we find the best sticks, they're ours, so keep your snouts out of our games."

The dogs continued like this for some time. The Dog Chief listened to all the complaints and gave advice.

Suddenly, there was a strong smell of burning wood. The dogs sniffed the air and rushed outside.

"Oh no!" shouted the Dog Steward. "The hut is on fire!"

"Fire, fire!" shouted the dogs. "Our tails, our tails!"

They dashed through the smoke into the hut, each one shouting, "My tail! Where's my tail!

They grabbed the first tail they could find, and dashed out. But some were too late to find a tail before the hut was burnt down.

Next day, a sad group of dogs returned home in the Dog Chief's canoe. Few of them had their own tails.

And today, if you watch carefully, you will still see all the dogs in the world looking for their own tails.

When one dog meets another, the first thing he does is to sniff the other's tail to see if it is the one he lost in that fire long, long ago.

© Edel Wignell