“Fetch the ball, Spot!”
Spot went chasing across the field. He grabbed the squeaky ball in his teeth and raced back to Matt. The ball made a dreadful noise as he ran.
“Good boy, Spot!” Matt, Spot’s owner, knelt down and stroked his Dalmatian puppy’s silky black-and-white ears. “You’re a really fast runner!”
Spot wagged his tail proudly and licked Matt’s hand. Spot loved running nearly as much as he loved Matt. He would put his ears back and race from one end of the field to the other, feeling the wind rushing past him and ruffling his fur. It was better than a big, juicy bone, or even a roll in a dirty puddle.
Matt looked at his watch. “Time to go home, Spot, or I’m going to be late for school.”
Spot whined grumpily. He didn’t want to go home yet. Every morning Matt took him for a long walk in the playing field behind their house, where Spot met up with some of the other dogs that lived in their street. They usually had races and Spot, of course, always won. But this morning Matt seemed in a hurry.
“Sorry, Spot,” Matt said, as he clipped the lead to his puppy’s collar. “I promise I’ll take you out for a longer walk tonight.”
Spot woofed. He didn’t really mind going home because he had a special secret. A very special secret. When Matt was at school and Mrs Robinson, Matt’s mum, was at work, Spot could run around the field as much as he liked!
Matt and Spot went across the field to the Robinsons’ back gate.
Matt opened it and then closed it carefully behind them. “Come on, Spot! Race you to the kitchen!”
Spot dashed up the garden path, his white tail wagging furiously from side to side, and got to the open kitchen door just before Matt did. He dived into the kitchen and skidded across the floor, stopping with expert timing in front of his empty bowl.
“You’re just in time for breakfast, Spot!” laughed Mrs Robinson, who was spreading butter on toast. She shook some dog biscuits into the bowl and Spot began to crunch them noisily.
“You won, Spot!” Matt said with a grin. “Mum, did you wash my kit ready for Sports Day this afternoon?”
Spot stopped eating and pricked up his ears. Did Matt say Spot’s Day?
Matt saw Spot looking eagerly up at him and smiled. “No, not Spot’s Day – Sports Day!”
Spot didn’t know what Sports Day was, so he wasn’t very interested. He went back to eating his biscuits.
“You are coming to watch, aren’t you, Mum?” Matt asked.
Mrs Robinson nodded. “I’ll be home from work at lunchtime, so I’ll be there to cheer you on.”
“Great!” said Matt. “I’m going to try really hard to win one of the races this year!”
Spot’s ears pricked up again when he heard the word race. He still didn’t know what Sports Day was, but he was beginning to like the sound of it! He hoped that he would be allowed to go this afternoon too.
“Time to go, Matt,” said Mrs Robinson.
Spot dashed over to the kitchen door, and barked.
“Do you want to stay in the garden this morning, Spot?” asked Mrs Robinson with a smile.
Spot barked again, so she carried the puppy’s bowls outside and gave him some more biscuits and some fresh water. “Matt, you did shut the back gate properly, didn’t you?” she asked. “We don’t want Spot getting out.”
Matt nodded. “Bye, Spot. See you later.”
Spot waited until he heard the car start up and drive away, taking Mrs Robinson to work and Matt to school. Then he scampered eagerly to the other end of the garden. He scrabbled about at the bottom of the hedge and uncovered his secret – a small hole. He squeezed his way through, and then he was out in the playing field again.
Spot ran joyfully across the grass, sniffing the air as he went. He knew he wasn’t really allowed out on his own, but he got so bored at home when Matt was at school. This way he could meet up with all his other friends!
He ran about on his own for a while, scrabbling in the hedgerows and finding lots of interesting smells. Then he saw Jasper the black Labrador, who lived a few doors away from the Robinsons. Jasper was out with his owner, Mr Smith.
Spot bounded up to him and gave him a friendly nudge with his nose. “Come on, I’ll race you to the other end of the field!” he barked.
“Oh no, not again!” Jasper groaned. “You always beat me!”
“Hello, Spot.” Mr Smith bent down and patted the Dalmatian. “You’re out on your own again, I see!”
Spot woofed and wagged his tail. He hoped Mr Smith wouldn’t say anything to the Robinsons, or his special secret would be discovered!
Spot and Jasper set off across the field. Spot was soon in front and he won the race easily, before Jasper had even run halfway. The Labrador gave up, panting.
“You shouldn’t eat so many biscuits!” Spot yapped at him. “Then you’d be able to run as fast as me!”
Jasper lay down and put his nose between his paws. “I need a rest!” he whined.
Spot suddenly thought of something. “Jasper, do you know what Sports Day is?”
“It’s a special day for children at school,” Jasper woofed back. “They have lots of races, and all the mums and dads go to watch.”
Spot’s eyes lit up. A moment later he was running away across the field again.
“Where are you going?” Jasper barked after him.
“Home!” Spot barked back. “I don’t want to miss Sports Day!”
It seemed a very long time to Spot before Mrs Robinson arrived home at lunchtime. He jumped around, whining impatiently, as she opened the back door.
“Hello, Spot!” She patted him, then checked that he still had water in his bowl. “I’ve got to rush – I’m late for Sports Day!”
Spot began to bark at the top of his voice, feeling very excited. He could hardly wait to go and join in all the races!
“No, you can’t come, I’m afraid, Spot,” said Matt’s mum, and she quickly locked the back door again.
Spot slumped miserably on the grass. Why couldn’t he go to Sports Day? After all, he was the fastest dog in the street! If there were races going on, he ought to be allowed to take part in them . . .
Spot’s ears pricked up. He could hear voices. Lots of them. It sounded as if there were suddenly lots of people in the playing field.
He hurried down to the end of the garden and looked through his secret hole in the hedge.
There were lots of people in the field. And there were some strange, exciting things happening too. Balloons and streamers had been tied up in the trees. There were lots of chairs laid out in rows, as well as a small platform with people standing on it.
Spot was puzzled. Who were all these people, and what was going on?
Then, to his delight, Spot saw Matt! The puppy could hardly believe his eyes. So this must be Sports Day! And it was happening right there, in his own playing field! Spot only had to squeeze through the secret hole to go and join in the fun. And that was just what he was going to do!