Once upon a time there was a dog called Pluto, whose fur was brown and whose eyes were black, and whose shape was slender and sleek.

Pluto lived with his master, Philip, a somewhat absent-minded student at the university, whom Pluto occasionally had to get out of trouble…

Yesterday was no different. Can you guess what happened to Pluto and Philip when they went into the country for a day out?

Well, it was a Sunday when Philip liked to take Pluto out to run around as much as he pleased. The field they usually went to was very pretty, full of trees with big pastures, and there was even a river where Philip would settle into a boat to read and relax.

Like always, Pluto was dashing around here and there and everywhere, while Philip lay in the boat by the riverbank and read his book. Suddenly, a strong wind began to blow, the boat began to tilt madly from side to side until eventually it turned over and tipped Philip into the water with a splash.

Philip yelled for help because he didn’t know how to swim…

he couldn’t get back in the boat because the wind was gusting so fiercely…

So Pluto raced towards the riverbank to help his friend, took a big jump and fell into the water close to Philip.  He grabbed Philip’s shirt with his mouth and began to swim to shore.

When Philip reached land, he was so shaken that he couldn’t say a word. Even so, his fear didn’t stop him from realising that his brave dog had saved his life, so he gave him the biggest hug he could and said: “Thank you so much, my friend. You’re the best swimming dog I ever knew!”

THE END