“Feral dogs are the untouchables; they are the ones who ‘belong’ to no one.
They are the hold-outs, the dogs the under-funded pounds can't catch,
And the extremely over-burdened humane shelters cannot deal with.
They colonize whatever neighborhoods afford them the best shelter,
The most food, and the least amount of contact with human beings.
They exist, like genetic castaways, in a sad evolutionary no-man's-land
Between domesticity and wildness. They are completely and utterly, alone.”
Randy Grim, Stray Dogs of St. Louis
I thought that I knew a lot about dogs
Until I agreed to bring this canine home
He was abandoned when he was a puppy
He has spent his entire life, out on his own
We now sadly have an epidemic of his kind
In cities and rural areas, all across our land
We keeping dumping dogs, like they’re trash
Our cruelty now endless, dog now fears man
This abandoned dog has now become my teacher
Although he does make me ashamed of humanity
There have already been both good and bad days
As we two get to know each other, ever so slowly
Some days, it seems like we’ve made progress
And Shadow almost lets his heart lead the way
Then, instinct takes over, from a life on his own
He retreats to his ‘safe zone’ as he did yesterday
I have learned that when he perches atop his dog house
He wants me to leave him alone, so he can process it all
And I have learned that when he comes down, he is ready
To give us another chance, to let the barrier between us fall
I never imagined there’d ever be such a rift between dog and man
My heart now breaks over what we have done to man’s best friend
One day soon, I hope to eliminate all of Shadow’s doubts and fears
He is teaching me a lot, while I now patiently wait, for his distrust to end
©May 2012, Mr. Ed
Share
Print
Save