The old man frowned when he saw the collar, but picked it up. "Who the devil does this belong to?" There were no markings or tags, but it looked like a nice piece of leather. Too small for Butler, by far.
"Hey, Gramps!" Mark, his 14 year-old grandson, came over. "Want to play catch or something?"
Mr. Smith shook his head. "Not right now, Marky. I've got to run to the store and get us some fixin's for dinner. Why don't you play with Butler? Oh, and here!" He tossed the collar to the boy. "When you go back inside, put that on the counter."
Mark fumbled the catch, and the collar landed on the ground. As he bent down to pick it up, Brutus lept on him playfully, sending him sprawling. As Mr. Smith got in his car, the two were wrestling in the grass, a favorite pass-time between the boy and dog.
After a few minutes, Mark sat up. The huge Great Dane barked and pawed at him, then grabbed the loose collar and shook it in the boy's face. Mark laughed. "What? You want me to wear a collar too?" The dog woofed again and dropped the leather strap in Mark's lap, then sat and watched him with his tail wagging.
"OK. I'll be a dog." Mark picked up the collar and slipped it around his neck with a grin. It was just the right size to buckle on, and when it was secure he looked at Butler and said "Woof, Woof! What do you think, boy?"
Butler perked his ears up, and start sniffing Marks face. His tail began to wag faster, and he licked Mark's face all over.
"Bleh!" The boy laughed, turning his face away from the slobbery kisses. "Dog germs! I'm gonna have to rrroowwff." Mark blinked and cleared his throat. "Whrrrasss.. whoosss.. Woof!" Except that this time the sound Mark made was a real dog's bark, just like Butler's!