Peter was a pooch, a rather funny kind of pet,

he didn’t like to play or chase a ball,

just sat down in the lounge room staring at the TV set,

his master couldn’t figure him at all.

He’d wake up in the morning and he’d watch the breakfast show,

he loved the talk show hosts and knew their names,

the midday movie kept him occupied till two or so,

and then he watched the cooking shows and games.

One night he stayed up late to watch the midnight movie: “Jaws”

but half-way through he drifted off to sleep,

then heard a noise and opened up his eyes and gasped because

he’d woken on a boat out in the deep!

Afloat out on the ocean – how could such a thing occur?

and then he almost jumped out of his skin,

a movement in the water came so fast it was a blur,

but Peter recognized a giant fin!

A Great White shark attacked the boat, his jaws came crashing down,

and bit one motor with a sickly crunch,

the boat then started leaning, Peter didn’t want to drown,

or even worse, to end up that shark’s lunch!

The monster grabbed the handrail and he ripped it from the boat,

so easily it seemed a snap for him,

and Peter didn’t know how long the craft would stay afloat,

and what was even worse – he couldn’t swim!

The other motor sank, the shark had bitten it in two,

the dog jumped up on to the skipper’s chair,

the giant fish was coming back, and what could Peter do?

he whimpered soft and said a little prayer.

The Great White leaped on to the deck, his weight the final straw,

the boat began to sink into the sea,

poor Peter held on grimly to the seat with shaking paw,

and wondered how his fate had come to be.

He looked into the monster’s eyes and knew his time was up,

grim death was on the face of that huge shark,

so Peter did the only thing he could do as a pup:

he let fly with his most ferocious bark!

It did the trick! The shark jumped off the boat and swam away,

poor Peter lay down on the deck and wept,

he’d cheated certain death but this had been a tiring day,

he closed his eyes and very quickly slept.

He woke up in the lounge room, with no sea, no boat, no Jaws,

a simple dream he couldn’t quite define,

and then he noticed something that was wrapped around his paws:

a six-foot length of silver fishing line!

Well, Peter was a puppy dog, a realistic one,

and happy to be safe and well ashore,

so now he spends his days outside, and plays out in the sun,

and never watches TV any more!

more of my Kids' Poems here