A Christmas tale

"This old one, we will never find a place for him,' said the man with the hat, "he is too old and ugly, nobody wants him in their home. People want young dogs with pedigrees. Not such an ugly sheepdog," he snuffed and pushed his hat tighter on his head as if confirming his words.

The other man put down the food bucket, '"Say, is this necessary. You know how much I dislike it," he protested, "and Christmas is nearby," he added a bit illogically.

The other was not impressed. "Then you wait until after Christmas, see that you get rid of him."

Arguing, they fell through the green door which separated the shelter from the rest of the building. Their voices reached nearly the ears of the old dog. The planks he was laying on started to hurt his old bones, and with much effort he turned on his other side.

Joy to the World

"Joy to the World!" - I can hear the people sing

 In the building down the road where all the bells do ring

 What is this *joy* they sing about I wonder to myself

 As I lie here in the cold and wet upon this bare wood shelf

 My sable fur once soft and clean is matted to the skin

 My rib and hip bones jutting out - I can barely raise my chin

 There are others too at this sad place who share a common fate

 What did we do to earn this life and get in such a state?

In memoriam

On this day 11 years ago I had to let my beloved dog go.

Zur Erinnerung

Heute vor 11 Jahren musste ich meinen geliebten Hund Junior gehen lassen.

Special Place

We each have a dear departed pet

and send mail to people we never met,

To let them know we share their sorrow

and there will be a brighter tomorrow.

The pain in our hearts may go away,

but the memories will forever stay.

One day you’ll look up to the sky so blue

and say to your friend who was so true:

“For you my heart holds a special place,

you always bring a smile to my face!”

(WinstonCRogers.net) 

*****

I would like to thank Judy from WinstonCRogers.net for her kind permission to publish her poems on my blog.

The Dancer

No eyes have ever stared into me the way hers did.

No meeting I can remember so cosmically connected two souls.

We understood each other perfectly although we never spoke each other's language.

When I held her, love returned so passionately.

 

She lay next to me into the cold night, as if taking the same form of my body, with such penetrating warmth, she invaded my dreams with sighs of sweet breath and a kiss on my head.

All this time, there was never a pretense, not one desire but to be mine; to be there when I needed love; for the pure want of giving all of herself to no one but me.

 

I am a lucky man to have been chosen by a dog named Dancer.

 

(Cleveland Wheeler)

13 things humans do that dogs dislike

***** 

Der Europäische Gerichtshof (EuGH) hat 2014 entschieden, dass im Regelfall keine Urheberrechte verletzt werden, wenn Website-Betreiber sogenannte framende Links setzen. Dies geschieht zum Beispiel, wenn YouTube-Videos auf einer Internetseite eingebunden werden. 

In 2014 the European Court of Justice (ECJ) decided that normally no copyrights are violated if website operators use so-called framed links. This happens for example when YouTube videos on a website are included.

Pit Bull pup

I was born with my eyes closed looking for milk while my mommy licked and cleaned me all covered in goo I was ready from that moment to start loving you. A few weeks later I opened my eyes and started wandering and exploring and looking up at the sky. I would run to you intently ready to play no knowing what you had in store for me at the end of the day.

When I started getting bigger and stronger you put out an ad Pit Bull Puppies for sale come get one now they won’t last much longer. A man came by and picked me up the next day a few hundred dollars and I was on my way. He took me to my new home and stuck me in a cage "You'll Be A Mean One By The End Of Your Days".

I wanted you to know …

I wanted you to know what happened to the dog you didn’t want anymore ...

You said you were sorry as you rushed out the door.

She was old and grey and overweight.

Her chances of adoption were not her fate.

I wanted you to know that she waited for you every day.

She stood in the yard, and oh how she bayed.

The sadness in her eyes broke my heart.

I was sure she never thought that you would part.

I wanted you to know I took her home.

I gave her love and new place to roam.

She was by far the best dog we’ve ever had.

But she really didn’t treat us like mom and dad.

Homeward found

I live in a shelter, alone in a cage

With food, and a towel on which to sleep

I'm small, with spiky fur, and of kitten age

Folks come here looking for a friend to keep 

Some days others and myself are taken to a home

A place where strangers live, but each is alone

Once an old man caressed me gently, murmured and sighed

As his tears spilled to my shoulder from tightly closed eyes 

We also went where there are machines and bright lights

A big place for babies and children who are ill

As each child checked us over it was hard to stay still

To each patient was given the choice of us to pick

time for a while to forget they were sick

Treuer Freund

Auf vier Pfoten

läufst du neben mir,

mein treuer Freund

und lieber Begleiter!

 

Stets hältst du Wacht,

schaust überall …

und gibst fein acht,

doch manches Mal …

suchst du den Ball!

 

Auf dich kann ich bauen,

mein treuer Freund und

liebevoller Begleiter …

Wenn ich einmal verzage,

dann … hilfst du mir weiter!

 

Nie möchte ich dich missen,

ja manchmal sogar küssen …

denn du bist … mein treuer Freund!

 

(BruniR, Mai 2015)

Why am I the chosen one?

Why is it that I must die?

Can you not see the fear in my eyes?

As you pass by my cage and I wag my tail,

there’s no way of telling whether I will make bail.

To choose me because I am a certain breed

or to choose me because I have no more need?

To choose me because I am ill or am maimed

or to choose me because I am old without a name?

To choose me because you think I am mean?

When it’s just I am fearful, it’s not what it seems.

I am held in an old an unjustified cage;

I know all the rescues are filled with rage.

All I want is a warm place to lay;

and not to live with this being my last day.

If you can please spare what life I have left;

I promise I will make you the very best pet.

Please someone save me, I cannot do this alone;

get me out of here and give me a home.

Thank you to the ones who fought for me;

I guess it was my destiny.

I will see you one day, now I must go;

I will always love you, this you must know.

 

(Jenifer Balber-Byrd)

Here in this house …

Here in this house ...

I will never know the loneliness I hear in the barks of the other dogs 'out there'.

I can sleep soundly, assured that when I wake my world will not have changed.

I will never know hunger, or the fear of not knowing if I'll eat.

I will not shiver in the cold, or grow weary from the heat.

I will feel the sun's heat, and the rain's coolness, and be allowed to smell all that can reach my nose.

My fur will shine, and never be dirty or matted.

Here in this house ...

 

There will be an effort to communicate with me on my level.

I will be talked to and, even if I don't understand, I can enjoy the warmth of the words.

I will be given a name so that I may know who I am among many.

My name will be used in joy, and I will love the sound of it!

Here in this house ...

I’m free

Don’t grieve for me,

for now I’m free

I’ve left behind some misery.

My days of youthful agility

Were no longer a possibility.

My weak joints and cloudy eyes,

Were longing for the heavenly skies.

Before I lost all dignity

You let me enter eternity.

Don’t grieve for me,

You’ve set me free,

Just remember how I used to be!

(WinstonCRogers.net)

*****

I would like to thank Judy from WinstonCRogers.net for her kind permission to publish her poems on my blog.

'Twas the night before Christmas (6) (Shelter dog’s Christmas Eve)

'Twas the night before Christmas

I've found many canine versions of this Holiday classic – here one of the variants.

 

*****

T'was the night before Christmas and the shelter is dark,

The whole place is silent, not even a bark.

The dogs are all locked in their pens for the night.

The staff has gone home and turned out the light. 

As I lay my head down on the cold concrete floor,

I fondly recall my home from before,

The family I loved, loved me right back,

We shared everything - from secrets to snack.