The Dog in the Manger

Aesop

The dog growled at the cattle

A Dog was lying in a Manger on the hay which had been put there for the cattle, and when they came and tried to eat, he growled and snapped at them and wouldn’t let them get at their food.

“What a selfish beast,” said one of them to his companions; “he can’t eat himself and yet he won’t let those eat who can.”

From Aesop’s Fables: a new translation by V.S. Vernon Jones, with an introduction by G.K. Chesterton and illustrations by Arthur Rackham. 1912 edition. This work is in the public domain.