A cosy fireside conversation between a cat and a visiting dog, all polite good manners and rhyming small talk. Two voices and a warm scene make it an easy one to act out with a child.
From Mother Goose / Nursery Rhymes (traditional). See the whole collection.
Pussy-cat sits by the fire;
How can she be fair?
In walks the little dog;
Says: "Pussy, are you there?
How do you do, Mistress Pussy?
Mistress Pussy, how d'ye do?"
"I thank you kindly, little dog,
I fare as well as you!"
About this rhyme
A polite little exchange between a cat by the fire and a dog who comes in to ask after her. 'How do you do, Mistress Pussy' is as formal as two animals get, and pussy answers just as properly back.
Good for two voices, one gruff for the dog and one prim for the cat.
Public domain. Text from The Real Mother Goose (Blanche Fisher Wright, 1916), via Project Gutenberg. View the source edition