The Elephant And The Dog Story With Moral For Kids

We grew up listening to moral stories as kids. These stories, or bedtime stories, taught us the values of love, friendship, honesty and about the ups and downs of life. These takes have been translated into numerous languages and have been around for centuries. These moral stories have been passed down from generation to generation and, thus, have a lot of versions.

Today, we bring to you “The Elephant and The Dog” story in English, which will help your kids learn an important moral lesson about friendship. Continue reading to know more about the “The Elephant and the Dog” full story.

Origin And History Of The Elephant And The Dog

The origin of “The Elephant and the Dog” story lies in Jataka tales. The Jataka tales can be traced back to 300 BC and 400 AD. These tales have been told and re-told from generation to generation. Thus, there are numerous versions of these tales.

Story Type Of The Elephant And The Dog

“The Elephant and the Dog” is a beautiful moral story about the friendship between an elephant and a dog. You can read this story to your little one as a bedtime story and tell them how the separation of the elephant and the dog could not take away their friendship. Read the story to your kids and make them understand what friendship and close bonds are all about.

Story Characters

Here is the character list of “The Elephant and the Dog” story for children:

• Dog
• Elephant
• King
• King’s chief servant
• Farmer
• Elephant-keeper

The Elephant And The Dog Story For Children

A long time ago, a Dog used to visit the stable where the king’s Elephant lived. At first, the Dog used to go there to get the food that was left after the Elephant had finished eating. One day after the other, the Dog used to go to the stable, waiting around for bits to eat. But slowly, the Elephant and the Dog became great friends. As a result, the Elephant started sharing his food with the Dog, and they started eating together. When the Elephant used to sleep, his good friend, the Dog, used to be beside him. When the Elephant was in the mood for playing, he would catch his friend, the Dog, in his trunk and swing him to and fro. The Dog and the Elephant were quite happy when they were together.

One day a farmer saw the Dog with the Elephant and said to the Elephant-keeper:
“I want to buy that Dog. He looks good-tempered and also looks smart. How much money do you want for that Dog?”

The Elephant-keeper was clever and only wanted the money. He did not care for the Dog. So, he asked for a fair price, and the farmer paid it to him and took the Dog away to the country.

The Elephant missed the Dog very much and did not care to eat when his friend was not there to share the food with him. The Elephant would not care to bathe. He only missed his friend. The next day again, the Elephant did not eat and would not bathe. On the third day, when the Elephant again didn’t eat nor bathe, the king was told about the Elephant’s behaviour.

The king sent for his chief servant and said to him, “Go to the stable and find out why the royal Elephant is acting in such a weird way.”

The chief servant came to the stable and looked at the Elephant. The chief servant said to the Elephant-keeper: “There seems to be nothing serious with this Elephant’s body, but why is the Elephant looking sad? Has he lost a friend or a playmate?”

“Yes,” said the Elephant-keeper, “there was a Dog who used to eat, sleep and play with the Elephant. The Dog went away some days ago.”

“Do you know where the Dog went?” asked the chief servant.

“No sir, I don’t,” said the Elephant-keeper.

After visiting the stable, the chief servant returned to the king and told him, “The Elephant is not sick, my king, but he is lonely without his dear friend, the Dog.”

“Where is the Dog now?” the king asked.

“A farmer took the Dog away and no one knows where the farmer lives.” replied the chief servant.

“Very well,” the king said.

“I will send a word all over the country, asking the farmer who bought this Dog to turn him loose. I will give him back as much money as he paid for the Dog.” said the king.

The farmer turned the Dog loose when he heard this. The Dog immediately ran back, as fast as he could, to the Elephant’s stable. The Elephant was so glad to see his friend, the Dog, that he picked him up with his long trunk and placed him on his head. Then the Elephant put him down again. When the Elephant-keeper brought him food, the Elephant watched his friend eating and took his own food.

The Elephant and the Dog lived together for the rest of their lives.

Story Summary

Here is the summary of “The Elephant and the Dog” story.

A king used to own an Elephant. A Dog used to visit the stable where the Elephant lived and ate whatever food was left after feeding the Elephant. Slowly, the Elephant and the Dog became good friends, and they started sharing food. They used to eat together, play together and also sleep together.

One day, a farmer saw the Dog and thought that he was a smart animal. He said to the Elephant-keeper that he wished to buy the Dog. The Elephant-keeper, who had nothing to do with the dog, agreed to sell him the Dog for some money. The farmer took the Dog away from the Elephant.

The Elephant stopped eating and bathing as he missed his friend. After three days, when the Elephant didn’t eat anything or bathe, the king was informed. The king sent his chief servant to go and check on the Elephant. The chief servant informed the kind that the Elephant was not sick but only sad as he missed his friend, the Dog.

The king sent word across the country that whoever had purchased the Dog must let the animal loose and take money in return. The farmer let go of the Dog, who ran straight back to his friend, the Elephant. Both the Dog and the Elephant were happy now and played, ate and slept together.

Moral Of The Story

The moral of The Elephant and The Dog story is that “True friends can never be separated.”

In the story, the elephant was not happy when he was separated from his good friend, the dog. The farmer separated the two good friends. The Elephant was so sad that he would not care about eating or bathing. He only got his smile back when the Dog came back to the stable.

How Can Children Apply The Moral Of The Story In Their Real Life?

The children can apply the moral of this short story in their real life by respecting their relationship with their friends. This story with pictures will teach the kids about the value of friendship and how two completely opposite personalities can become really good friends. So, children should not only make friends who have similar interests or personalities but should be open-minded when it comes to making friends.

Also Read:

A Glass Of Milk Moral Story for Children
The Pied Piper Of Hamelin Story for Kids with Moral 
Moral Story Of The Three Pigs for Children