In a place very very far from here, beyond the deep woods, there was a farmhouse. Around it there were large fields. Potatoes and corn were grown on them. Several animals lived on this farm. There were sheep in the barn, a large dog kept watch by the shed, there were horses in the stables, and chickens and ducks ran around the yard. An old and wise farmer took care of them all. He was already a grandfather, but he still had plenty of work to do. Every holiday his grandson Paulie used to visit him. He helped his grandfather take care of the animals and the whole farm. He had many adventures on the farm. But one was the most exciting of all.
It happened in the summer. The sun shone every day. Paulie was spending all his holidays at his grandfather’s farm. Every morning he would go to the henhouse to get new eggs. He and Grandpa would make them for breakfast. But when he went to get eggs one day, he found nothing. That was strange because the chickens were healthy and gave him eggs every day. He looked all over the henhouse and found nothing. Then he went outside and the dog’s bowl was empty too and the dog looked hungry. Something was going on. Something strange.
He told everything to Grandpa right away: “Grandpa, there are no eggs in the henhouse and the dog’s bowl is empty, but he didn’t eat it. He’s hungry. There was a thief.” Grandfather was thinking out loud: “It was not just any thief. It must have been some kind of animal. And we must find out what kind.”
And so they set to work. They set safe traps. Ones where the animal would get caught but not hurt itself. They even kept watch in the evening. A silent watch, watching to see if there is something moving out there. But as the night approached, they grew tired and fell asleep on guard duty. In the morning, as soon as they woke up, they went to check the traps. There was nothing in the first, and nothing in the second trap. But the third was closed. Slowly they approached it. They peered into it carefully. A raccoon jumped out of the corner of the trap. It was nervous. It was jumping in the cage, trying to get out. It was scared. Paulie couldn’t believe his eyes. He’d never seen a raccoon up close like this before.
“Grandpa, look, it’s our thief. He’s got a dirty mouth and paws covered in eggs and dog food”, smiled Paulie. While Paulie was keeping an eye on the animal thief, grandpa knew right away what to do. He called the rescue station and described to them who had been caught. He discovered that the raccoon had escaped from a nearby zoo. Within a few minutes, the keepers came for him and returned him home safely.
Paulie then told all his friends at school how he and his grandfather discovered the thief and then rescued him. And he couldn’t wait to spend the holidays with his beloved grandfather again.
