[1] It was later recorded by Blake Shelton, and his version of the song was released in March 2002 as the third and final single from his self-titled debut album.
The narrator bribes a guard to let him send a letter to a cousin in Tennessee, who brings in a female Bluetick Coonhound and pens her in a swamp just south of the prison.
Once they start doing so consistently, the narrator intentionally keeps the dogs apart for several days, then escapes from the prison one evening and heads north toward Tennessee.
When the warden turns Ol' Red loose, though, he is so eager to mate with the Bluetick that he runs south toward her pen and completely ignores the narrator's escape.
[2] Although it did not reach the Top 10 on the U.S. country charts, "Ol' Red" is one of Shelton's most commonly requested songs in concert (as well as one of his best-known hits).