Poem 21/31- A Dog that Bites

"Boo"

April is National Poetry Month. I've selected "Dog Days" as my theme, and am attempting to write thirty dog-related poems. Tonight's poem is a story poem about Boo. Boo was a puppy mill mama, churning out litter after litter of puppies. She was finally rescued, and my mom adopted her from the Mill Dog Rescue. My mom had her for a year or so, maybe even closer to two, when she had surgery and was no longer able to care for a dog. I volunteered to bring Boo home with me. I only had her for about two years, and then she had a liver problem, and had to be put to sleep.

"A Dog that Bites"

puppy mill mama
you bit my finger
the day i brought you home
we were in the backyard
it was dark
you were the tiniest dog
I had ever owned
I was afraid I would  lose you
so I tried to pick you up
and you drew blood

later i understood your rules
you didn't tolerate being picked up
unless i asked permission first
you liked to observe the world
from your pink princess bed
in the corner of the living room
you wanted your food
brought to the princess bed
you would eat it from a bowl
but you preferred if i just dumped it
right into the corner of the bed
it had to be soft and mushy
because you didn't have many teeth left
you would sit on the couch with me
while i did schoolwork
but you did not want to sit too close
nor did you want to cuddle or be petted

your needs were simple, Boo
you just wanted a safe, quiet place
with people who understood your prickly little heart
and knew that you didn't bite
unless you felt afraid

(C) Carol Wilcox, 2019

20/31- Dog Days

Happy National Poetry Month! This month I'm writing a series of 30 poems about dogs. Today is a story poem about my dog Star. Star is an eager eater, to put it mildly. Since she was a puppy, she's been notorious for digging food out of the trash, snatching food off of the counter, and even finding food when we are out walking. As she has aged, her caloric intake has impacted her weight just a little. My vet reminds me every time we go that carrying extra weight is not good for her. I know that, and I try really hard, but...


"Maintaining Her Girlish Figure"

Dr. Margo examines Star's chart.
"She's gained a little weight," she says.
"What are you feeding her?
Senior Weight Loss," I respond.

I wonder if I should mention
the empty tuna can she managed to snag off the counter
or the moldy hamburger buns she dragged out of the trash earlier today
and then there's the oreo she snatched out of my hand this morning
and my son's hamburger helper pan which made quite the crash
as she pulled it off the stove last night.
Two nights ago when we were out walking
she found a discarded ham and cheese sandwich
on the south side of the middle school
and she chased that with a half slice of pizza
she discovered on the north side.
Then last night, there was
that half-eaten Chinese takeout box
a treasure she discovered at construction site
and the bread crusts at the Italian restaurant around the corner.

How much do you feed her? the vet asks.
"One cup, twice a day." I answer firmly.
"I use a measuring cup."

(C) Carol Wilcox, 2019

Poem #19/30- A Dog-Eat-Dog World

I found these cute babies here when I googled Dog-Eat-Dog World.
I love Golden Retrievers and couldn't resist!

I'm feeling a little bummed today, because I missed posting yesterday. I didn't do it intentionally- I posted the link for my Thursday night poem as my link on Poetry Friday. It was a really long week and  when I got home last night, I was really tired. Somehow, I got confused and thought I had already written my Friday poem, when really all I had done was post the link to my Thursday poem on Friday.  This morning, when I was more clearheaded, I realized my mistake. Maybe I will end the month with 29 poems, or maybe I will write two poems one day, or maybe I will go until May 1st. Not sure yet....

"A Dog-Eat-Dog World"

It's a dog-eat-dog world.

If you want to be the alpha dog
you will have to demonstrate dogged determination,
work like a dog, and even if
you are dog tired or sick as a dog
you will still have to dog paddle 
and keep your head above water.
Expect to put on an occasional dog and pony show. 

There will be times 
when you will feel like the tail is wagging the dog
or everything is going to the dogs
avoid barking up the wrong tree
Understand that everyone spends some time in the dog house.

In spite of your best intentions,
expect to encounter a lot of dogfights.
Do not act like a hot dog

or rub people's fur the wrong way
understand that many people's bark is worse than their bite

sometimes it's best to let sleeping dogs lie

but you can teach an old dog new tricks

if you throw them enough bones

if you do have to fight, know when to call off your dogs

occasionally you might even have to turn tail
and slink away with your tail between your legs.

Remember, it's a dog-eat-dog world. 

(C) Carol Wilcox, 2019

Poem 18/30- Dog Days

Baxter, a chiweenie looking for a home

April is National Poetry Month. I have chosen "Dog Days" as my theme, and every day this month, I will be attempting to write a poem having to do with dogs. Today's poem is totally ridiculous. Tonight, on the neighborhood website, someone shared a picture of Baxter, a "chiweenie" (chihuahua/dachshund) that she is currently fostering. That got me thinking about other "designer dogs." I knew about golden doodles, and my search led me to two other websites, with all kinds of cross-breeds. A lot of them are really fun to say, and I just kind of started messing around with them. The poem has absolutely no deeper meaning, it was just kind of fun to play around with...

"Designer Dogs"

golden doodle, labradoodle
double doodle, chusky

chiweenie, malador
cheagle, alusky 

yorktese, yorkipoo
yoranian, chug

puggle, pittplot
papshund, frug

beabull, labrabull
sharpassett, dorgi

schnoodle, cockapoo
cavador, morkie

Designer dogs are not for me
 Heinz 57 fits perfectly!

(C) Carol Wilcox, 2019

And in case you didn't get enough, here are some more I considered using...
beaglier, labradinger, pomski, germanpei, bassettpei, corgipoo, labradinger, papateese,aussie doodle, golden dachs, gerberian shepsky, goberian, weimardoodle, jack-a-poo, basschund, cavador, bo-jack, jackshund, cavachon pomchi

https://boredomtherapy.com/unique-cross-breed-dogs/

https://www.slice.ca/breaktime/photos/the-cutest-mixed-breed-dogs-you-can-get/#!pomsky-e1506543649747

Dog Days- #17/30- A Dog-Filled Life

Therapy dogs at Walter Reed Hospital. The golden retriever is Warrior Canine Connection's Lucy. 

April is National Poetry Month. This year, I've chosen "Dog Days" as my theme. Every day, for these thirty days, I will write a poem about dogs. Today's poem is an abecedarian. I usually do one of these every year. It's not a one day process; I usually create a post with the alphabet really early in the month, and then mess around with the letters, adding ideas as they come to me, until I feel like I'm ready to post. I hate "o" this year, but it's the best I can do...


"A Dog-Filled Life"

an abundance of
barking and begging,
chasing and chomping,
diligent digging (and a great deal of drooling),
ecstatic eating,
frantic fetching,
glorious garbage-digging,
happy heeling, and  horrific hairiness, 
instinctive intelligence,
joyful jumping,
kissing and caring, 
leashes and loving,
muzzling and mouthing,
nudging and nuzzling,
opening and closing,
playful paddling
quiet cuddling,
raucous romping,
sandwich scrounging and sock stealing,
tail thumping and toenails tapping,
underwear eating,
vim and vigor,
wild wagging and a little whining,
extra energy gives way to exhaustion
yawning and finally…
zzz's

(c) Carol Wilcox, 2019

Dog Days- 16/30

"Maggie"

Most owners adopt dogs
but you adopted me
on that rainy November morning.
You planted your muddy yellow paws
on the front of my lavender raincoat,
enthusiastically licked my face
and declared me yours.

I knew you had followed someone to school
and so I dragged you back into the building
sure that the secretary would say,
"That's Cinderella, she visits every morning."
She would call your owner who would come and get you
and I would go on my way.

But that's not what happened.
Instead we stood, dripping on the marble floor
 in the middle of the two story vestibule.
Your howl bounced off the high ceilings
until  finally the principal kicked us out
and I took you home.
No one ever claimed you
and so I became yours.

You lived with more gusto
than any dog I had ever known.
The first month you ate through three leashes.
You  knew how to open the refrigerator
and took the word "doggie bag" literally
You loved to swim and had a knack for pulling away at the park.
Ramsey and I would sit on the banks of the stinky duck pond,
watching you paddle joyfully back and forth,
and waiting for you to tire
so we could go home.
You were so naughty.

And yet, when the boys came,
with their broken hearts and broken spirits
you jumped right into the role of therapy dog.
As soon as you heard one of the boys
start to tantrum
(and there were so many that first year)
you came immediately
from the farthest corner of the house
and laid down next to them.
And they would scream and rail and cry
and throw things at me with one hand
while petting you with the other.
You laid there until they were quiet
and then a little longer,
just to make sure.

You, Maggie girl,
were a four-footed angel.
sent into my life
become someone knew
I would need you someday.

(C) Carol Wilcox, 2019

Poem 15/30- Dogs Teach Us Many Lessons

Tonight when I was trying to find the article about lung cancer,
I found a whole different article about using dogs to detect stomach cancer. 

April is National Poetry Month. This year, I've chosen "Dog Days" as my theme. Every day, for these thirty days, I will write a poem about dogs. Today's poem is a found poem. This morning, on the way to work, I heard about a study, where dogs were able to detect lung cancer with 97% accuracy.  Tonight, when I was trying to write a poem, I hunted down the article and made it into a found poem. 

"dogs teach us many lessons"

dogs teach us many lessons

highly evolved 

sense of smell 

can identify cancer 

in blood samples 

with 97 percent accuracy

it is possible

that researchers will determine 

the biologic compounds

dogs detect

then design

cancer-screening tests

based on those compounds

dogs teach us many lessons

dogs

provide us 

with unconditional love 

and support, 

remind us to be grateful 

and present,

 and keep us walking 

and healthy 

well into our golden years

dogs teach us many lessons

(C) Carol Wilcox, 2019