Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells

It's that time of year again and we've come to realize our dog Dudley can't stand bells!  Every time a commercial comes on television with bells ringing in the background, he just about falls out of Daddy's lap.  We'll be driving down the road and a Christmas advertisement will come on the radio and he starts barking wildly.  I was taking some Christmas decorations out of a box the other night and came across a string of Christmas bells that hang on the door.  Poor old Duds came running from the other end of the house barking like the house was on fire.

Scarlett, the bloodhound that lives down the road, wears a bell around her neck.  Dudley can hear her coming from a mile away.  And when the neighbors hook up their horses to the wagon for their Sunday country rides, Dudley just about has a complete come-apart when they ride past our house with the bells jangling from their harnesses.  It's all we can do to keep him from busting through the screen door to chase after them.

Last night I had to swing by the grocery store for a few things.  Duds was in the front seat, sound asleep.  I drove by the front of the store in search of a parking space and we passed the Salvation Army bell ringer that was standing at the door greeting everyone.  Dudley shot straight up from a dead sleep barking so loudly that I nearly ran right into the buggy corral.  Good grief!  Scared me half to death.  I had to park the truck as far away from the front of the store as I could, just to get him to stop barking.

Just for meanness, I should tie a jingle bell to his collar and see what he does.  On second thought, I better not.  He'd probably go into convulsions chasing himself around the house!