Why Different Versions May Or May Not Discourage Stealing:

I’m not much for English versions, and this is sort of why:

We've probably all sung this song at some time, yes?

A doggy stole a sausage, 

for he was underfed.

The cook she saw him take it,

And now the poor doggy’s dead.

Now all the other doggies 

were very sad that night.

They dug him a grave and a tombstone, 

and on it they did write-

A doggy stole a sausage, 

for he was underfed…

And so on. Such a trite cutesy-wutesy tune to sing to the children but it conveys nothing, no moral to this story, is there? What gutless lyrics, really, when the original (in German) runs like this:

Ein Hund lief in die Küche A dog ran into the kitchen

und stahl dem Koch ein Ei, And stole an egg from cook

da nahm der Koch die Kelle The cook took up a ladle

und schlug den Hund entzwei.         And struck the dog in two

(Getting the idea here? These are real lyrics with real impact. Don’t fucken steal! At least. not from this cook! You’ll get bisected! Now THAT my friends is a moral and a lesson!)

Da kamen alle Hunde

und gruben ihm ein Grab

und setzten ihm einen Grabstein

auf dem geschrieben stand:

Ein Hund lief in die Küche . . .

So yeah - the original may be a few centuries old and lack some political correctness but it sure as hell taught me that stealing gets you clobbered.