Alternate Universe?

One of my most favorite things in this world is a soft serve ice cream cone. I loved them from the very first taste, and well over six decades later I still love them. If something is wonderful, you want to share it with those you love, which for me includes the dogs. (The horses get apples, pears, and very occasionally a white and red peppermint candy.)

Beginning with Nuke, my first German Shepherd, I would occasionally give him an ice cream cone which he gulped down in one ferocious bite! Then Duke came along. On his yearly trip to the vet, I would get him an ice cream cone which he also consumed in one big, unceremonious, wolf-like chomp! Once in awhile I would take Duke with me just so he could have a cone, too. He enjoyed a special treat no reason.

Jake, my least favorite dog of all time, gets a cone after vet visits. His method of eating it is only a tick better than the other two yahoos: two bites, maybe because he is timid by nature.

Then came Ms. Mattie, my favorite dog of all time - Ms. Pretty Girl and Smartest Dog. Well, she got an ice cream cone right away, when she was still a puppy, but I scooped out most of the ice cream first. She daintily consumed the ice cream, holding the cone still with her front paws. Once the ice cream had been eaten she took tiny bites of the cone. Amazingly well mannered!

Jake just had his yearly visit to the vet for his shots and a check up, so I stopped at McD's for cones. He politely tasted the ice cream when I offered it then he ignored it. After a few attempts, I finally threw it away. Entirely unexpected behavior! Jake is a weird dog, so I did not think too much about it. Yesterday, I was thinking of an ice cream cone for myself, so Mattie and I went to town specifically for cones from McDonalds. Mattie reacted the same way Jake did! She politely tasted it when I offered it to her then she ignored the whole thing.

The ice cream tastes the same to me, but for some reason it is nothing my dogs want to eat. Perhaps I shouldn't eat soft serve from McDonalds either. Maybe it is just that particular McDonalds, or maybe it is something that has changed in the recipe of McD's soft serve. Or, the only other possible explanation is that I have fallen into an alternate universe...