Aesop had a fable about a fox.  It seems that a fox had the misfortune to have
lost his tail from an encounter with a farmer's dog.  Instead of a beautiful red
tail, he was left with a stump.

Later, an older fox overheard him addressing a new generation of young foxes on
the fashion of "bobbed" tails:  "Nothing to have to wash, no risk of burrs, and
it is the height of fashion.  Be modern!  The vixens prefer it, too."  

The old fox foiled his plan by observing,  "You might have more success
persuading us of the new fashion if you had not already lost your own fine tail."