WHY THE DOG BARK

A long time ago, in one of the upland barrios of Nueva Vizcaya, there lived a young man named Bagetuling. He was a good hunter but a boastful man. He always liked to talk about himself, his family, and his achievements.
Bagetuling supported his family by hunting. Every day he would go to the mountains to hunt.
One day after having successfully speared a wild pig, he brought this to a nearby brook and cleaned the intestines. And while he was doing this, an old man passed by.
Bagetuling stopped working and recounted to the old man how he captured the wild pig. He boasted of his skill as a hunter.
After a while the old man faced him and said: "May I have a lump of meat? I am very hungry."
Bagetuling laughed at the man and said, "I labored the whole morning to catch this pig. Now you'll only ask for it. I lost my voice shouting and my legs are tired running after my quarry. You may go now for this is not even enough for my family. My wonderful children are hungry too."
And once more he fell into talking about his family- his wife, his children, and many other things about them.
This hurt the old man. Facing the hunter, he cursed: "May you be punished by the spirits of the forest. May they turn you to a yelling and running animal too."
The spirits of the mountains heard the old man's prayers.
Suddenly, Bagatuling became a four-legged animal. He lost his power of speech, and when he tried to speak, he produced a bark-like cry. The people called him ato, a dog, or a barking animal.