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For Sasha
The Dog I Never Wanted was our
first foster collie,
Her owner brought her -- a dreadful
mess of matted fur.
Another casualty of war – divorced
from each other,
They had no more room for her in
their hearts.
Thanks to heartworm and human
indifference
She was very sick for months -- but
rallied,
And never lost her sense of humor.
Although I may have – once or
twice.
Not charming to look at, she seemed
Hardly a collie at all - shaven,
pudgy and short.
In her Elizabethan collar, with one
leg bandaged,
She looked like a mutant canine snow cone.
The Dog I Never Wanted flunked
adoption.
Not once, but twice.
The last family called her vicious.
And so she came waddling “home”,
Once again 10 pounds overweight.
With a bad back.
Rescue Clubs have rules, and so a
choice,
To keep her as our own, or have her
put to sleep…..
I didn’t want another dog, but --
put her down?
That’s no choice at all.
The Dog I Never Wanted
Was an eager teacher, a reluctant
student,
Never without her own opinion,
Never hesitant to lend it voice.
The Dog I Never Wanted
Loved her humans, her cats and her
dogs.
She blessed us with ten years of
total devotion.
Accompanied by frequent deafening
commentary.
The Dog I Never Wanted
Died today. We buried her behind
the house,
Where, in happier days,
She rolled in the grass, waving her
paws at the sky,
Barking – at what, only God knew …
And I realized -- in the sudden
silence,
That the only thing I really want
Is to have her back forever. |