Noodle Read Free Page B

energy back as soon as you feed him.” She crossed her arms and leaned against the table. “Butthe question is, what was a puppy doing out there on the ice, all by himself? Where are his people?”
    “That’s what I’ve been wondering,” Mom said. She was standing next to Lizzie, holding the Bean in her arms. The Bean’s eyelids were drooping. He was ready for a snack and a nap. “I mean, this is just a tiny puppy! There must be someone out there who is very worried about him.”
    “He looks fairly well fed and groomed, so I don’t think he’s been on his own for very long,” said Dr. Gibson. She frowned. “No collar, though. And I don’t see a tattoo or any signs of a microchip.”
    “A microchip?” Dad asked.
    “Some pet owners have a tiny electronic identification chip placed under their pet’s skin,” the vet explained. “It’s only the size of a grain of rice, but it holds information about the pet and its owners. If a dog with a chip is ever lost, we canuse a monitor to read the chip and find out who the dog belongs to.”
    “Wow!” Dad looked impressed. “I never knew that.”
    “Microchipping has been around for a while,” Lizzie told her dad. “We should think about it for Buddy. Or maybe we should just get him a tattoo.”
    “Like a fire-breathing dragon or something?”
    Charles asked. “Cool!”
    Lizzie snorted. “It’s not like a human tattoo. It’s just a mark on his belly that identifies him as ours. You can use your phone number or address.”
    “Doesn’t it hurt the dog?” Dad asked.
    “Not really,” said Dr. Gibson. “At least, they never act like it does when I use my little tattoo pen on them. I think it just feels sort of buzzy and tickly. Anyway, what about our little friend here? No chip, no tattoo, no collar. He doesn’t look familiar to me at all, so I don’t think he’sfrom around here.” She gave the puppy a scratch between the ears. “He looks like one of those new mixes, maybe a golden doodle.”
    “That’s exactly what
I
said!” Lizzie burst out.
    “Well, you sure do know your dog breeds,” Dr. Gibson told her. “These doodles often have some of the best qualities of both dogs in the mix. They’re smart and goofy, like poodles, and very loyal and great with kids, like golden retrievers. And both breeds are athletic and love to play. If I were getting a new puppy, I might pick a doodle.”
    “Noodle!” the Bean said drowsily.
    Everybody laughed. “No, it’s
doodle,”
Lizzie told her little brother.
    “Noodle,” the Bean insisted.
    Lizzie thought for a second. She looked at the tired little puppy. “You know, that’s not a bad name for this puppy! How about if we call him Noodle, since we don’t know his real name right now?”
    “I like it,” said Dr. Gibson. “And now, I suggest you take this Noodle home and give him some puppy chow, some water, and a warm place to sleep. I predict that by tomorrow he’ll be feeling one hundred percent himself, and his little dunking in the lake will be nothing but a memory.”
    On the way out of the vet’s office, Lizzie stopped to look at the bulletin board. She always checked the signs there. People whose dogs were missing often put up a notice. But there was nothing there about Noodle. Maybe his people didn’t even realize he was missing yet! Lizzie shuddered, imagining how upset she would be if Buddy disappeared someday.
    “When we get home, maybe we should check with the police and Caring Paws,” Dad suggested as they drove away. “Just in case someone has called looking for their dog.” Caring Paws was the animal shelter where Lizzie volunteered every week. The people who worked there took care of lots of dogs and cats who needed homes. Ifsomebody found a lost dog, they often brought it to the shelter. It would be safe there until its owners came to find it.
    “Great idea,” said Mom. “Maybe Lizzie can make some of her famous signs, too. Then we can put them up all around town and