Pegasis

           “Leave it be. This isn't for you. Mommy and Daddy will give you treats if you'll leave this food alone. Again, Mommy and Daddy are going out. Leave this food be.”

           I'm a chigi. At least, that's the breed Mom and Dad call me: a chigi. That's a dog that's part chihuahua and part corgi; a chigi. See, us chigis are smart dogs and Mom and Dad know that, but they've spent a lot of time setting the table, folding napkins, putting out silverwear, and preparing something called a Thanksgiving Turkey which is stuffed with something delicious called stuffing. I know it's delicious because I've been smelling them cook all day. Now, Mom and Dad are picking up the relatives who're coming over for Thanksgiving and I'm here all by myself. 

           I see the turkey, skin attached, bones inside, sitting on the table and I can smell it. It smells like chicken breast, my favorite. I can also see how I could get on the table. If you've seen the old Looney Tunes, which Mom and Dad watch all the time, then you know how easy it is to collect items and make a small ladder. I could fetch the phone book, the small dictionary, and other items and make a staircase to the turkey, but Mom and Dad would punish me when they got home and they're relatives would be angry, too. 

           There's also a drone Mom and Dad bought. Believe me, I know how to use the drone. Use my nose to turn the drone remote on, nudge the remote onto the drone, get on the drone, and push one lever forward. Then, I could fly up to the turkey, the green bean casserole, the cranberry sauce, and everything besides the vegetables, and eat all I want. (I don't like vegetables).I could even eat the liver of the turkey. But, then I remember my job is to protect my family and my family's food.

*

           There was one time when Mom and Dad took me to a dog beach. Now, I don't like being in the water, but I love mounting other dogs. So, I was about to mount a cute girl dog when I saw Mom and Dad both go into the ocean and it looked to me like neither of them could get out, so I decided to rush into the ocean to save Mom and Dad and they both came out of the dangerous ocean and were safe. Mom said, “Wow. You really do love me. You'd take on the entire ocean for me.” But, then I see and smell that turkey, and my tail starts wagging. 

           But then, as I'm about to jump onto the chair, another memory comes to me. One time, I begged Mom to give me the bones from her leftover meat and she asked Daddy if it was ok and he said, “Sure,” I ate them all up. Then, though, I couldn't go potty and was in a lot of pain. They had to send me to the vet who put this weird stuff down my throat and took pictures of my tummy. Then, though, after a week, I was able to poop and felt a lot better. I wonder if the bones in this turkey are like the bones from Mom's spare ribs. What if it makes me sick again and Mom's heart is broken. She said her heart would be broken if I died before her. What if the vet can't get it out this time. But, maybe I could just eat the meat and not the bones this time. 

           Then, even though they're not there, I hear Mom and Dad's voice and Mom says, “You're being a good boy. Keep it up.” and then I smell a Milk Bone and find it and eat it all up. But, a Milk Bone isn't as good as a whole turkey. 

           I also remember when I first came home with Dad, Mom wasn't there yet. She moved in with us later. But, I was a mess when I first came, because I didn't know what was going on. My former owner had abandoned me and brought me to this place with a bunch of other dogs, and I missed my old Mom and then this man (Dad), would hug me really hard at night in bed, so I had trouble breathing and sometimes in the morning he'd babble about stuff that didn't make any sense and squeeze me hard too. Then, Mom moved in and she massaged me and mothered me and it was nice. But, a whole turkey would be nice, too. 

           Then, while I'm still looking at the turkey and licking my lips, I hear Mommy again. She says, “We'll be home in a few minutes. Keep being good.” Wait. If I can hear them, maybe they can see me. Then, I hear something outside. It's a car, but it isn't Mom and Dad's car, so I bark and growl and the door opens so I try to attack, but then I realize it's just Mom and Dad. But, they have a lot of people with them. Mom and Dad introduce me, Pegasus, to all of them. 

           There are five adults and two babies there. I'm not sure if I like babies or not. Some of the dogs at the last place I lived said babies tug at dogs' fur, tug at our tails, and are mean. But, these babies go in some high chairs and don't seem to bother me. Then, Mom says something called Grace and everyone starts eating. I whimper some, but then realize a lot of the baby's food winds up on the floor, including the turkey. Then, Mommy says, “Oh, yea. I almost forgot. Pegasus here has been notorous for stealing our food when we're out. He a smart dog, but he left everything alone. So, I left the turkey fat out since none of us will want it anyway, but Pegasus will”. Then, Mom went in the fridge and got a black pot out and places it on the ground. I smell it and it smells like chicken. I gulp it up and it is delicious and I want more, but after twenty minutes, I feel full and happy. 

           Then, when the family is done eating, they placed the plates on the ground for me to lick them. Even though I was full, I enjoy tasting and eating more turkey. Some of them even left little pieces of turkey on my little plate. Later that night Mom and Dad hugged me and said they were proud of me for leaving the turkey alone when they went out to collect their kids. They told me they'd take me to the dog park and my favorite pet store.  I licked Mommy and Daddy this night and other nights. There was one study done where kids were given a marshmellow and told if they didn't eat the marshmellow they'd be given two marshmellows. Nine out of ten kids ate the marshmellow. Thankfully, I would up being the smart kid who didn't eat the marshmellow and got two marshmellows and they're names are Mommy and Daddy.