The Berenstain Bears' New Pup

Mama and the kids go to the farmer to get some eggs. The farmer's dog had puppies and he's selling the puppies. The kids want a puppy, and they promise to take care of it. Mama falls in love with the puppy, and they take it home. The dog pees in the corner, and poops in another corner, and gets into things, and makes a mess, and mom goes and gets more eggs.

That's it. Not any real resolution. It's kind of left hanging.

It's too short of a story to really deal with what it's like to take care of a dog. Basically just the first day of dog ownership, and you know those kids are going to start slacking off and avoiding their dog-related chores the same way they avoid all their other chores. It doesn't even mention paper-training the dog or getting her not to destroy things. This isn't really useful to anyone.

The best part: “That one is a she,” said Farmer Ben. “How can you tell?” asked Brother. “There are ways,” said Farmer Ben.

Also, “She left a puddle in one corner... and a calling card in another.”