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Would You Help Me Choose A Pet?

你能帮我选一只宠物吗？

by Gail Foster, Ed.D.

Illustrations by Yumi Izuyama

First Edition 2017

 Morningside PlayCare, Inc.

Third Edition published for the Year of the Ox

Copyright 2021

ISBN: 978-1-7364916-2-1

Hello, my name is Xiaotian.

I need your help.

Would you help me?

I want to choose a pet. I want a pet I can take home with me. I want a pet I can hug and who will sleep on the edge of my bed with me.

Hi Xiaotian. I'll help you find a pet.

No. A horse is too big. He won't fit in my bed. And he would gallop around the house and  make a mess.

Would you like to have a horse for a pet? Horses can run really fast.

马

  mǎ 

Why don't you get a pig? They are very good

tempered.

Yes.  But pigs like to play in the mud.  My mom says mud belongs outside. Oink Oink.

猪

    zhū

Then get a rooster. He will say Cockadoodle Doo  every morning and wake you.

jī

No, not a rooster.

I want my dad to wake me in the morning.

鸡

A monkey! A monkey! I want a monkey! 

 hóu zi

猴子

No. Don't get a monkey. She  will eat all of your bananas. 

Do you like bananas? Yum. Yum Yum.

Why don't you get a kid? A young black goat with nice woolly hair.  

You would be a kid with a kid!

  yáng

  羊

Or you could get a snake. Sssssssssss. Sssssss.

蛇

 shé

Get a tiger. Get a tiger! Rrrroar.

 lǎo   hǔ

No, no, no. I am afraid of tigers.

老虎

Hey! Didn't the rat win the Chinese Zodiac race by riding on the back of the ox? After the rat came the ox. That's why the ox is the second animal in the Chinese zodiac. And now they are good friends.

Do you want a strong and faithful animal? Perhaps you should get a hardworking ox.  They are said to have very good character.

Yes, that's true...  But look at those horns; perhaps the ox should be outside in the field.  

niú

 牛

Squeak. Squeak. Squeak. Wouldn't you like to have a mouse? ...Or is this a rat? 

lǎo shǔ 

老鼠

What about a dragon?

Is a dragon a real animal?

 龙

lóng

You don't have to get a real animal.

Get a stuffed panda!

 xióng māo

 熊 猫

We have puppet pandas at school, 

Gēge and Mèimei. They help us sing the  Morning Meeting Welcome Song...    

Zǎo shàng hǎo

Zǎo shàng hǎo

Nǐ hǎo ma?

Nǐ hǎo ma?

Wǒ hěn hǎo, xièxie.

Wǒ hěn hǎo, xièxie.

Nǐ hǎo ma?

Nǐ hǎo ma?

Sung to the tune of Frère Jacques.

That dog is too big to sleep on your bed.  I have a small dog.  See my photo... Her name is Dubai.

 gǒu

狗

Ruff. Ruff.  Choose me. Choose me. I'm a real animal. 

Yes. Yes. I'll get a dog.

Should you get a rabbit?

A rabbit could fit on your bed.

兔子

tù   zi

 No, no, no.  Rabbits like to run and hop and play outside. They would not be happy in my home.

 兔

羊

蛇

猪

猴

龙

狗

鸡

鼠

虎

马

牛

These are all the animals of the Chinese Zodiac. How many are there? Can you imagine an animal race? Who would win?

Xiaotian, I was born in 2009, the year of the Ox. In what year were you born?

I was born in 2011, the year of the Rabbit.

Have we considered all of the animals? 

No. Not at all. I think there are a zillion animals in the world! Hey! Perhaps I should get a squirrel.

Squirrels like to climb trees. What would they climb in your home?

sōng shǔ

松鼠

Well, if you got a bird, you would have to keep her in a cage, or she would fly all around your house.

Or a bird! A robin red breast!

Hmmm. I think the bird should be free to fly outside.  What do you think?

niǎo

鸟

If you get a fish, you must have lots of water in your bed.

Water in my bed?!!!

Oh, no.

Can you imagine trying to hug a fish?

  yú

鱼

Xǔ duō xiǎo yú yóu a yóu  yóu a yóu  yóu a yóu.

Many little fish swim and swim, swim and swim, 

swim and swim.

Xǔ duō xiǎo yú yóu a yóu kuài kuài zhuō zhù.

Many little fish swim and swim; catch them quickly.

Do you know the fish song? 

Sung to the tune of London Bridge.