Poetry Friday: In Celebration of Animal Adoption

Carly Day '08
Originally uploaded by celerysoda

In our household, February 1 is Carly Day! Five years ago, a skinny brown dog with enormous ears charmed us into taking her home from the Anti-Cruelty Society. She's got plenty of issues (especially with wheeled objects: motorcycles, mail carts, wheelchairs, etc.), but her sweetness continues to win us over.

In honor of Carly Day, today's Poetry Friday contribution is a stanza from "The Dog," by Edgar A. Guest, which, along with dozens of other dog poems, appears in Doggerel: Poems About Dogs (Knopf, 2003):

I like a dog at my feet when I read,
Whatever his size or whatever his breed.
A dog now and then that will nuzzle my hand
As though I were the greatest of men in the land,
And trying to tell me it's pleasant to be
On such intimate terms with a fellow like me.

Now, I have my doubts that Carly thinks I'm the greatest of anything, except possibly people who might be inclined to rub her tummy. But it's true I do my all my best reading and writing on the futon, with Carly nestled in a ball beside me. It's definitely a symbiotic relationship.

In continuing honor of Carly Day, here's a bit of doggerel I've just made up:

A clever brown canine named Carly
saw something that made her quite snarly:
a passel of squirrels,
mocking her from the burls.
So, she caught them and stewed them with barley.

Finally, I'd like to highlight one of the best books about animal adoption out there: "Let's Get a Pup!" Said Kate, by Bob Graham (Candlewick, 2001). It beautifully captures the value of pets as part of the family and the experience of visiting an animal shelter to pick a pet to bring home.

The first few times I read this book, I got teary-eyed. If we had the resources, I'd love to bring home another dog (though I'm sure Carly wouldn't be too thrilled about that). In the meantime, we're a one-dog family, and Carly gets showered with affection every February 1...

Catch this week's Poetry Friday round-up at Karen Edmisten's blog!