The dark brown dog in Stephen Crane's story is a pathetic little creature who accepts all the blows and abuse given to him by his child-master and the child's family. Indeed, the humans in the story are often extremely cruel to the poor dog, who does nothing at all to offend any of them. The child even deliberately hurts his little pet at times, but he is only imitating his parents and other family members.

One day, the child's father comes home very drunk, and he decides to have some “fun” with the little dog. He hits the animal with a coffee pot and kicks him until the poor beast can no longer rise. The dog rolls over onto his back and holds his paws as if he were praying, but the father pays him no mind. Instead, he decides that he will see what would happen if he throws the dog out the window. The family lives five stories up.

The poor dog soars out the window as the neighbors watch. A woman watering her plants shouts in surprise and drops a flower-pot. She is apparently quite shocked to see a flying dog. A man leans out a window to watch. He is interested by the spectacle. Another woman yells something and capers around, but no one can understand what she means because she has been hanging out laundry, and her mouth is filled with clothes-pins. She may be excited or angry or a bit of both, but no one can tell for sure. Children run “whooping.” They are certainly excited to see the dog flying through the air. To them, it seems like great sport.

The dog, of course, doesn't survive his flight. He is mourned only by the child, who sits down by the little body in an alley.