Renni the Rescuer Read Free Page B

very attractive.
    From the very beginning Renni took a strong dislike to her. Gay, jolly, full of fun, apparently harmless, ready for everything, the girl set her cap for George. Naturallythe dog had not the slightest idea of that, but in some instinctive way he felt her insincerity and simply could not stand her.
    It happened this way. George had begun to take Renni with him when he went walking in the city. That was when Renni was about seven months old. “There’s no need for him to have to wait for me,” thought George. “I’ll take him along and let him get used to me, let him learn to behave himself out in the world.”
    His mother suggested that George might learn something from it, too.
    â€œCertainly,” agreed George. He would always agree to anything reasonable. He had a great deal of sound sense and Mother Marie never said anything unreasonable. So they got along very nicely.
    George led Renni by a leather leash, talked to him all the time and helped him out of the confusion and fear of the heavy traffic in the street. He took him on the street car, praised and petted him when Renni at first crept fearfully into a corner of the platform. “Now, now, that’s right! That’s your place! Good boy!You’re learning.” People looked scornfully or smiled in friendly fashion according to the kind of people they were. George paid as little attention to them as Renni did to those who petted him. He kept his eye solely on his master.
    When they reached open country George unsnapped the leash and turned the dog loose. Renni ran in wide joyful circles, galloping happily over the meadows, or rummaged about, his nose to the ground in obedience to some hunting impulse awake in him. If George called him he would stop instantly, dash up in wild career and act as overjoyed as though he had just discovered his master and was charmed to find him again after being away ever so long. Sometimes he would pay no heed to call or whistle, assume an air of independence, behave like a complete stranger. George put up with these whims, waited for them to end. He never thought of punishing the dog, but greeted him in all friendliness when he came up wagging his tail. Mother Marie was a good prophet when she said George too would learn from these trips together. George practised patienceand came to know the dog better and better.
    Most of the time Renni had his tongue out of his open mouth, sometimes because he was tired, sometimes because he was excited. He was often tired and often excited. He was panting nearly all the time.
    Renni had several little adventures and encounters with strange dogs. On the street when he was on the short leash they seldom spoke to him, though George did not object to friendly meetings if they amounted only to the long ceremony of mutual sniffing. If a strange dog challenged to a fight, George would shorten the leash and say, “Come, Renni,” and Renni would come at once. George took good care not to seem hostile toward the strange dog or try to drive him away. If he had it would only have excited Renni to attack and the battle would have been on. George wanted to keep Renni from becoming quarrelsome. If a stranger was especially stubborn, George had only to stoop down quickly and the troublemaker would scamper off as fast as he could for fear George would throw a stone at him.
    When they came to a park George would sit down on a bench so Renni would have a chance to rest. Usually the dog would stretch out at his master’s feet, yawn, pant a little and finally go to sleep. When he awakened no longer tired he overwhelmed George with demonstrations of affection. Often Renni set out quietly but wholeheartedly to climb George. He would stretch his forepaws up onto George’s knee, and with great difficulty drag his hind legs up after them, and not be satisfied until he lay in George’s lap. To be sure, he was three times too big for a lap dog. He covered