As children we were brought up to tell the truth at all times and lies were frowned upon. When we reached maturity we suddenly realised that the whole truth can sometimes be very hurtful and so "The little white lie," came into being, which I am sure we are all guilty of at some time in our lives. This week's little story is all about lies.

A young couple were out for a drive in the Yorkshire Dales, when on the outskirts of Skipton they came across a little cottage which had a sign outside saying, "Talking dog for sale £10." Intrigued, they knocked at the door and asked if was a joke. "No" said the man who opened the door, "Do you want to see him?" He took them round to the back garden and showed them a large black Labrador. The dog looked up and said, "Good morning, lovely day isn't it?" "That's amazing," said the visitors "Have you always been able to talk?" "All my life," replied the dog, "I used to work for MI5 listening to spies and reporting back to my handler, because no one suspected a dog in the room, I was one of their most valuable spies for over eight years. Then I was seconded to the drugs squad and I used to sit in pubs reporting on any drug deals. Then I did some undercover work at the airport, I've received loads of medals and once I even met the Queen. Then I decided to get married, settle down, had loads of puppies and now I'm semi-retired."

The couple were most impressed, but asked the owner why with such an amazing dog, did he want to sell him for only £10. The owner shook his head and replied, "Because I'm sick of all the lies he tells everyone he meets, do you know, he hasn't done any of those things he told you about."

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