Since he was a six week old puppy, Willis had lived uncomfortably with the acclaimed botanist, Mrs. Chipperfield (who specialized in orchids) and her brown and fidgety cat, Babs. So much of his time was taken with Mrs. Chipperfield’s insomnia and her rants – for some unexplainable reason, always directed at Willis – about the current condition of the environment and the difficulties she had coping with people, opposed to animals. In the mornings when Mrs Chipperfield went away to the university, Willis then had to put up with the inconsistencies of Babs. One minute she was all purry and friendly to him, the next minute she lashed out at him with her claws and sharp tongue. If only they’d both just go away for good he could finally get down to his life’s work – an exhaustive study of the hidden innuendoes in the story of Old Yeller.