6. Some Dog Food Is Eaten

Chapter 6 Some Dog Food Is Eaten On Sunday, Waldo's bowl was still full of food. Maybe the food had gone bad. It had been in his bowl since Wednesday night. Marvin took the bowl into the garage and dumped it into Mrs. North's garbage can. He returned to the kitchen. He found some green dish soap under the sink. He washed Waldo's bowl. Then he rinsed it a long time so it wouldn't taste like soap. He dried it with a dish towel, which he found in the drawer next to the sink. Waldo watched him. He filled the bowl with fresh dog food. "Here you go," he said, setting it down in front of the old whisker-faced dog. Waldo didn't even look at it.

Marvin picked out a piece of dog food and held it in front of Waldo's nose. "Yum, yum," he said. Waldo turned his head away. He whined. Marvin sat on the kitchen floor and stroked his back. "I tell you what," he said. "If I eat it, will you?" The bit of dog food was still in his hand. Marvin opened his mouth wide so Waldo could see. He took the bit of dog food between his thumb and forefinger and held it inside his mouth. He was careful not to let it touch his tongue. He quickly pulled out his hand, closed his mouth, and swallowed. "Yum, delicious!" he said. The dog food was hidden in his fist. Waldo wasn't fooled. "Okay," said Marvin. "I'll really eat it this time. But then you have to, too." Waldo watched him. Marvin touched the dog food with his tongue. It wasn't horrible. It tasted a little like cereal. He bit into it. It was chewier than cereal. And a little bit gritty, like it

had tiny seeds in it. He chewed and swallowed. It wasn't gross. It wasn't something he'd ask his mom to get for an after-school snack. But it really wasn't too bad. "Okay, your turn," he said. Waldo whined. "Like this," said Marvin. He crawled to Waldo's bowl and picked out a piece of dog food with his teeth. He chewed it up and swallowed. He smiled at Waldo. "Delicious!" he said. Waldo lay his whiskered face against the floor.