Sharing Sunday – The Gypsy Curse

Today’s Sharing Sunday piece is by Susan again! This is an excerpt from her series Astro’s Adventure. The books are based on the lives of real dogs and cats. They’re a bit zany and a little whacky but oh so great. The basis of the books in the series is raise importance for animals in shelters and a percentage of the sales go towards Susan’s local animal shelter. She’s currently working on the 7th book! Check out a link to her site down below.

The Gypsy Curse

An Excerpt

In the front seat of the Dog Catcher’s van a small corgi sat listening to the latest call. “Did you hear that, Scrappy?” her owner declared. “We had better get there straight away!” he clipped her seat belt in and started the van. “This sounds like another bad dog, eh girl?”

The van lurched down the road until it quickly picked up speed. Scrappy looked out of the window thoughtfully. Her owner had been the dog catcher all her life. She was allowed to come along with him if she promised to stay in the van. Every day there were calls from people complaining about dogs walking around the streets or hanging around schools.

Over the past few weeks the calls seemed different, however. The callers seemed more frantic. It was as if their lives were in danger just because there was a dog wandering around. She knew that it wasn’t right to have dogs loose on the streets but these calls seemed a little bit too urgent: a little bit too desperate.

She looked to her owner and let out a quiet whine. He patted her on top of her head. “Don’t you fret, girl,” he said. “I’ll make sure you are kept completely safe!” Scrappy rolled her eyes. ‘When will humans learn to listen properly!’ she sighed to herself.

The van came to an abrupt halt at 24 Kennel Way. “Here we are, Scrappy!” the Dog Catcher said. “You stay here. I’ll get me catchin’ net and gloves out of the back.” He hopped out of the car and grabbed his gear. Scrappy moved over to the driver’s seat and watched the events unfold.

The Dog Catcher glanced around the yard looking for signs of a ferocious dog. He looked from side to side and craned his neck to see if there was a dog hiding in the garden.

“Everything was still and quiet,” the dog catcher mumbled to himself, “Perhaps a little too quiet.”

A bird darted from a tree and swooped low. The dog catcher stepped carefully towards the front door when he heard the gate creak at the side of the house. He stopped in his tracks and slowly turned towards the noise. He held the catching net high above his head and took several steps, gradually moving closer to the gate.

Scrappy could see exactly what was happening. A small brown dog had opened the gate slowly and was stepping through it. He stopped to lock the gate behind him carefully. He then scratched at his neck repeatedly and whispered something into his collar.

Scrappy cocked her head to one side and wondered what he was doing. Why is he talking into his collar? He must be mad. The brown dog was about to slip away unnoticed when her owner leapt out from behind a bush and caught him in his net. The small dog struggled and rolled on the ground but the net was too strong and he couldn’t get free.

“Gotcha now!” yelled the Dog Catcher in triumph. “You terrible vicious dog, you won’t be terrorizing anyone again.”

He picked up the dog and started carrying it back to the van. When he got under the large tree he shouted up into the branches, “It’s ok kids. You can come down now. I’ve got him!”

Scrappy loved her master very much but she was convinced he was going crazy. “There’s no one up there!” she barked at him. He just turned to her and yelled back. “Yep, that’s right. Got the mad dog and saved the kiddies. What a great day!”

He bundled the dog into the back of the van and jumped into the driver’s seat. The dog moved slowly to the front of the van and stuck its nose onto the glass panel that separated the back of the van from the driver’s cabin. Scrappy looked suspiciously at the dog but she was too curious to bark and warn her owner.

The dog let out a low whine. “You must get word to the Organisation,” he whispered. “I am on a secret mission to save a neglected poodle. Tell them what’s happened. They will know what to do.”

Scrappy stared at the stray dog. “What are you talking about?” she asked. “Aren’t you the aggressive dog that is frightening everyone in the neighbourhood?”

“Do I look like an aggressive dog? I am on a mission. I am an operative with the Organisation. I was finding out information so that the rescue team could save her. Haven’t you heard of us?” the brown dog asked her.

“I thought that was just a fairy story told to little puppies so they wouldn’t be frightened when it was time to leave their mother,” answered Scrappy.

“Not at all. It’s all true,” the brown dog explained. Then he begged Scrappy, “My name is Buster. Tell them what’s happened so they can send help. Please!”

He had just finished when the van stopped and Scrappy’s owner hauled the brown dog out of the back and handed him over to the attendant at the Check Out. She watched from out of the window and saw Buster’s eyes pleading with her to help him.

About the Dreamer

Susan Day is passionate about children’s literature and wants to inspire children to follow their dreams. She created the Astro’s Adventures series and is currently illustrating the seventh book, Neptune’s Trident. Each book Susan creates encourages and promotes the wonderful art of story-telling with organic illustrations and characters that portray similar character traits that the readers’ pets share. Susan shares her home with dogs, in particular, Rocky, Stella, Alfie and Digger, from the Astro’s Adventures series, three rescue guinea pigs, two bossy cats and a very patient husband.

If you want to know more about Susan check out her blog, her Astro Aventure’s site and her Amazon author page. Leave her some love on here guys!