The remote dropped from her stubby fingers as she watched in horror as they got smaller and stubbier, the nails turning black. She fell forward trying to reach out for the remote to undo this change when she felt a light swat right below her tail.
Tail!?
"No Jenny! Bad dog!"
Jenny instinctively jumped and scooted away, sitting on the floor to take stock. She was now covered in golden fur, medium length with oversized paws. She suddenly realized she was a golden retriever puppy!
"I need to go to the store," she heard Emily saying. "So into your crate!"
Jenny didn't know what she was talking about, but foung herself herded into the laundry room where a large dog crate awaited. She was locked in, whimpering, while Emily left. She pawed at the cage door, trying to figure a way out. Eventually she gave up, laid down, and contemplated what to do. She had to get the remote back, somehow!
That proved more difficult to do than she ever thought.
She spent weeks, into months, living as the family pet. She was housebroken, taught to catch a ball and beg for treats. It was humiliating. She knew where the remote was, Emily had stuck it on a high shelf and forgotten it. Jenny tried more than once to dislodge it, but to no avail.
After a few months, Jenny also slowly started to realize that time was running out. She was becoming more and more a dog. She realized after a time that she could no longer read. The symbols slowly lost all meaning to her. She then started to lose the ability to follow a conversation. She still knew what words like "food" and "park" meant, but not much else. She still remembered the remote would fix her problems, but she was increasingly having trouble remembering what to do about it.
In her alone time at home, she wasn't sure what she'd do with the remote if she got her paws on it.
It finally came to a head one afternoon. Jenny was home alone, sleeping on the floor near the fireplace, when there was a small earthqiuake. It was nothing serious, but it was enough to knock the remote to the floor. Jenny jumped and looked at it. the words on the screen meant nothign to her anymore, but she knew that she could change something if she chose.