A pony owner's regret after lending his pony to a lady who whips and drives him hard through the mud. A useful, gentle opening for talking about kindness to animals.
From Mother Goose / Nursery Rhymes (traditional). See the whole collection.
I had a little pony,
His name was Dapple-Gray,
I lent him to a lady,
To ride a mile away.
She whipped him, she slashed him,
She rode him through the mire;
I would not lend my pony now
For all the lady's hire.
Public domain. Text from The Real Mother Goose (Blanche Fisher Wright, 1916), via Project Gutenberg. View the source edition