by Fiona Black

Created on: February 21, 2010   Last Updated: May 23, 2010

Backyard Bob

Backyard Bob was a glorious cat; a slinky, stealthy purrious cat.

He pranced and danced with his tail in the air and lifted his chin when the other cats stared.

He looked over fences and over the trees and

Thought he was just the bees very knees.

 “My beautiful fur, my eyes like the stars, are made for just more than moggies in yards.

“The world needs to see what a true gem I am.” And with that he jumped over the fence with a scram.

He strutted and strolled and ran and he rolled, until into a tent with a circus he bowled.

When he saw the high fliers, he said, “I’ll do that!” but one fling in the air and he landed “kersplat”

So he picked himself up and licked his poor fur and said, “well the circus is not the answer,”

so he went to the zoo and asked for jobs there and the keeper said, “you’ll be our new dancing bear..er cat.”

 And he gave it a whirl with a swing and a twirl till he spun to the jaws of a very big  girl

who had very sharp teeth and a very big tongue and let out a growl…ooh, look Bob has sprung!

 He leapt up the gate and got into a jam 'cause he landed in old Mrs Ogilvie's pram,

who tickled his chin and she said, “Cootchy coo. My sweet furry babe. I’ve a present for you.”

And shoved a big dummy right into Bob’s jaws, who only liked fish and so out came the claws.

 -Poor Mrs O! With her eyes like two biscuits heard baby meow; saw him straighten his whiskers.

 “Ahem,” he said proudly, “Excuse me madam, but it’s time now for baby to leave this ol’ pram.”

And into the night and most of next day he prowled and he pondered and pawed the highways.

He slipped over fences and slid down the drains and did some skate boarding and catching the trains,

till he came to a theatre and said, “here’s the thing-I think the world needs to pay me to sing.”

So he put on a wig and very big dress and got onto

the stage and got into a mess.

For right past his paws ran a little brown mouse and he leapt from his draws and he sang down the house.

And the stage man; he cried, “What a hullabaloo. All that screeching and crying in opera won’t do.

-You’d best find some drums and a glove for one hand and get out of the theatre into a rock band”

Bob took his advice and he bought a guitar and he thought, “here’s my chance now to be a big star.”

So he put on his glove and he banged on his drums -but it was no fun because one has no chums.

And he packed up his mike and went home to his yard and his mates asked him “Life in the world a bit hard?”

But his voyage had taught him-he’d learned a great deal

and just smiled as he took up his old life with zeal.

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