It was a Saturday, and Little Joe and his family were in the car going to visit their auntie and uncle in the city. Little Joe was a curious puppy who lived with his girl, Anna, and her mamma and dad on a farm in the country near a forest. It had wide, rolling fields and a little pond.
Little Joe loved to adventure and meet new friends. He had ridden in the car many times, but only to the market or to get ice cream in town. He had never been on such a long ride before.
The drive was long. Little Joe spent the first two hours with his nose pressed against the window, trying to smell everything that whizzed by. All the unfamiliar smells made him tired, so he curled up beside Anna and drifted off to sleep.
He jolted awake, startled by a loud rumbling and lots of car horns honking.
When he looked out the window, the world outside had changed. Gone were the familiar hills and fields of the farm. Now all he saw were the narrow, busy streets full of people and cars rushing about.
Slowly, they weaved their way through the maze to a cozy little house at the corner of a neighborhood with trees growing all along the streets. The house had a small, fenced-in yard around a big old tree with golden leaves and long branches that reached way up to the sky.
His auntie and uncle looked happy to see them. The grown-ups unpacked the car and then sat in the kitchen to rest. Little Joe had never met his auntie and uncle or been to their house. He sniffed around the house, taking in all the unfamiliar smells. When he finished exploring, he wandered back to the kitchen and flopped down beside Anna on the floor as she pieced together a puzzle. Little Joe watched Anna concentrate hard, wagging his tail whenever she put a new piece together.
His auntie leaned back and smiled at Little Joe. She watched the two playing and thought to herself how much she wanted an animal to live with her and his uncle in their home, too. Then she turned back to the adults.
“You are so lucky. Little Joe is a wonderful part of your family,” she said to Mama. “I would love to find a special cat to add to ours.”
Little Joe bounced to his feet and wandered over to the low window to see outside. He looked anxiously out at all the new things to explore.
“Anna, why don’t you let Little Joe into the backyard so he can stretch his legs?” Mamma suggested.
Anna brought Little Joe to the yard. She led him out and then closed the door behind him, leaving him all alone.
Little Joe was used to the open fields and vast spaces to explore. He was used to coming and going as he pleased, and he was used to Anna playing with him all the time. A tall fence surrounded the cramped yard, so Little Joe couldn’t see anything beyond it. Here, Anna was inside without him, and he was on his own.
But there were still smells to explore and strange unfamiliar sounds coming from beyond the fence. Little Joe ran around the yard several times, exploring the strange smells and everything else he could find. It did not take long to become familiar with the small yard. All the while, his curiosity about the sounds from outside the fence grew and grew.
He found a shallow gap under the fence, and he squeezed his head through to see what was going on. On the other side, the streets were busy. Men in bright orange vests and yellow hats were working with big, noisy machines that hurt Little Joe’s ears. People were strolling along the sidewalk in brightly colored clothing. A man was walking a dog on a red leash.
Little Joe’s tail wagged. He loved to meet new friends!
Nearby, a fat squirrel ran up into a tree, and a small flock of gray birds gathered on the ground, cooing softly to each other.
He pushed and squirmed and wiggled until he popped out onto the sidewalk just past the fence. He shook himself clean and looked around excitedly. What would he do?
First, he met the pigeons. He ran across the street, yipping and tail wagging happily. The birds did not know what to make of Little Joe. They scattered into the air in a burst of feathers and thumping sounds. The birds settled on a nearby tree branch and did not appear to want to play with a dog.
Little Joe saw the fat squirrel climb down from the tree around the corner and bounce across the street. He snuck up behind the squirrel as cleverly as he knew how. But the squirrel saw him and scampered up another tree farther down the street. Little Joe sat under the tree and barked at the squirrel. The squirrel sat on a low branch and chattered down at Little Joe.
Just then, there was a loud crack as a car drove past. It scared Little Joe, and he ran as fast as he could down the street and around the next corner, away from the scary noise. He kept running until he felt safe again. When he turned around, he did not recognize where he was. He tried to go back the way he had come, but there were too many smells, and he made a wrong turn.
Little Joe wandered an unfamiliar path crisscrossing the street with his nose pressed to the ground, hoping to find a familiar scent. He thought about the meadow near his house and how he could always find his way home if he climbed up high enough to see over the tall grass. But here, the buildings rose way up and closed in around him. He tried to run up some stairs, but he still could not see far.
The sun was setting, and it was getting dark. Little Joe did not know what to do or where to go. He sat, afraid and alone, on the side of the street. He felt scared, and he longed to return home to his family and his warm bed. It was dinnertime, and his tummy rumbled hungrily. Little Joe whimpered, circled around, and curled up in a tight, protective ball on the ground.
As the streetlights flickered to life, a boxy white truck slowly turned the far corner and rolled to a stop near Little Joe. A woman in a green uniform got out and gave Little Joe a friendly smile. She bent down low and rubbed him behind his ear, just the way he liked to be petted. Little Joe wagged his tail and licked her hand.
The woman spoke softly and moved calmly. She gave Little Joe a bowl of water, went to the truck, and came back with a small cage. The cage made Little Joe nervous. He tucked his tail in and backed away until he bumped into a fence behind him.
The woman nuzzled his chin and then picked him up and put him in the cage. Little Joe did not like being in the cage, but he felt scared and tired, and the woman treated him kindly. She gave him a treat and gently set the cage in the back of the truck.
Little Joe could see nothing from inside the truck, which drove for a long time before it came to a stop. Then the woman brought him into a long, loud room full of cages with lots of other animals who all seemed to make noise. The pleasant woman took Little Joe into a clean, white room and let him out of the cage.
She petted him and inspected his body. When she got to his collar, she stopped and saw two names: Little Joe and Anna.
“Nice to meet you, Little Joe!” the lady said as she rubbed his belly.
Little Joe liked her and the attention she gave him.
“I’ll be right back,” she told him before stepping out of the room. When she came back, she picked Little Joe up and took him back to the noisy hall with the other animals. She carried him to the end of the hall and placed him in a narrow crate with a fluffy blanket and a bowl of his favorite food.
Little Joe ate the food and lay down on the blanket. The crate felt cramped and dark, and he was ready to go home. The other animals were still making lots of noise, and it made Little Joe nervous. He got up and paced, listening carefully. There were barks and howls and meows, but underneath those sounds, close by, he could hear a gentle purr.
Little Joe pressed his nose against the side of his crate and smelled another animal in the next crate over.
“Hello?” Little Joe asked, speaking into the darkness. The purring stopped, and a furry body rubbed along the side of the crate.
“Hello, little dog,” the stranger whispered back. Little Joe could not see the stranger, but having someone to talk with made him feel better. Now that he was not alone, he stopped pacing. He turned around in a circle on the blanket and curled deep into the folds.
“My name is Little Joe,” he said, “and I am lost.”
“I’m Mura,” the voice purred softly, “and I have been here for a long time. I don’t have a family anymore.” The mysterious animal slid down beside the side of the crate and stretched out.
Little Joe saw a splendid cat spill into the light. Her fur had a tortoise pattern that was brown, tan, and white. On her chest rested a brown patch of fur in the shape of a heart. Her eyes were bright green, and her fur was soft and well-groomed, not too short or too long. She licked her paw and dragged it gracefully across her ear.
Little Joe stared; he had never seen such a beautiful animal before. She continued to take a bath while Little Joe thought about what she had said.
“Why don’t you have a family? Don’t you have a girl?” Little Joe asked, thinking about Anna. He slid closer to Mura until his nose pressed against the side of the cage.
Mura shifted and looked sadly back at him. “When I was a kitten, I had a family, but I got too big, and they gave me away.” Mura stopped and closed her eyes at the memory. “But I was lucky. I found a new person, and she loved me very much.”
Little Joe tilted his head as he listened. He had never realized you could have more than one family.
Mura continued her story. “My new person was wonderful. We would sit together for hours in the sunlight, and she would feed me my favorite soft food. She did not move around very much, so I helped her rest and gave her plenty of attention.”
Sadness came over Mura’s face. “One day, there was a great commotion, and people in bright uniforms came with a rolling bed and took her away. I was alone for days, and starving. Then someone came and put me in a cage and brought me here.”
At this, Mura whimpered quietly. “Now I am alone again,” she finished.
“You are not alone. I am here!” Little Joe wagged his tail and panted. “And now we are friends, and we can play and explore together.”
Mura smiled and blinked at him. “You are very sweet and very young. You have a family that loves you. They will come to rescue you from this place. I have no one. So, when you go home, I will still be here.”
With that, Mura crept back into the darkness and lay down at the back of her cage.
Little Joe watched her go and thought he should say something to cheer her up, but he did not know enough words to be that helpful.
As Little Joe sat wondering how he would get home, the door at the end of the long hall flew open, and in burst Anna, followed by Mamma and Auntie. Anna had a worried look on her face, and Little Joe could tell she had been crying.
Little Joe yipped excitedly and wagged his tail. Anna pried the crate door open, scooped him up in her arms, and squeezed him tight. She scolded him for being a naughty dog and running away. Little Joe looked at his auntie and thought about earlier that day in the kitchen. He looked back at the dark cage where Mura was hiding.
Suddenly, he knew how to help!
Little Joe barked and pulled away, trying to go back to the cage. Anna held him tight and tried to leave with him. But the harder she tried to leave the kennel, the harder he tried to stay.
“What has gotten into you, Little Joe? Let’s go home!” Anna held Little Joe up curiously. Then she set him down, and he ran back, barking and twirling in circles under Mura’s cage. All the noise brought all the other curious animals to the front of their cages, including Mura. All the other dogs began to bark and yip in a loud chorus.
“Here, sweetie. Let me help.” His auntie moved past Anna to help gather up Little Joe. She lifted him and stood facing the row of cages along the wall.
His auntie let out a small gasp as she stood and came face to face with Mura. “Oh my, what a special cat!” she exclaimed, her eyes fixed on the perfect heart on Mura’s chest.
Little Joe squirmed back down and danced excitedly around his auntie’s feet as she reached into Mura’s cage and gently stroked the cat under her chin. Mura purred.
Little Joe sat in Anna’s lap the entire ride back to their auntie and uncle’s house. He did not leave her side while she got ready for bed, and when she climbed in, they curled up happily together.
As Anna read a story, the door creaked open, and light footsteps padded across the floor toward the bed.
Mura jumped up and purred loudly. She rubbed against Anna and curled up next to her, on the side opposite Little Joe. The two rested their heads across Anna’s lap as she read to them, their noses nearly touching. As the story went on, Little Joe fell asleep with Anna’s arm wrapped around him, snuggled deep in a soft nest of blankets.
Little Joe slept peacefully and dreamed of his next adventure.
