Poem #234 - This poem is a reflection on what it means to have a dog as a pet.
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Joshua Brown
In the middle of the skirtage of the bay
By the wild wispish willows in their deep and mortal sway
Sits a man among the shadows with a sword
Wearing trousers pleated sharply in a lonely boat that’s moored
A bird calls.
Across the waters glistening in the sun
Beyond the pelicans.
Beyond the lakeweed.
Beyond the mosquitos.
Looking o’er the pastiched landscape with a sadly drooping gun
Fighting tears in solemn sorrow of the day
For his dead dog,
Choked to death by time unstopping with a forceful urge to slay.
I simply could not grieve for this man
A whore to loneliness
Who enslaved a species by societal norms
To cry, now, that this dog died
With no offspring, no legacy, no genetic memories
All those instincts, including survival, wasted.
The wolf, defined by its murder.
The dog, defined by its sterility.
The boat tipped over
In the middle of the skirtage of the bay
By the wild wispish willows in their chilling wafty way
With the spooky sound of gunfire ripping hell
As the murder weapon poisoned all the fresh and calming smell
Wagging his tail, panting his breath.
The silent buzz of nothing now embraced the last of death.
He came back up, his deep creases softened
The orderliness turned to convenience
For life is seldom made up of pristine caricatures of empathic clarity.
#poem #poetry #pets #dogs #love #affection #codependence #loneliness
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📅 Written January 20, 2026
📍 Written in Centennial, Colorado
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I've had plenty of dogs in my life, and I deeply care about them as animals, especially the ones that were in direct connection to me or a friend had. Something I struggle with is what happens to these dogs the longer that they go unmolested by free will. No choice in partner, no autonomy of sexuality, no litters to call their own.
Of course they are just animals, but to many humans, they are not "just animals" they are "family" which seems like such a juxtaposition of morality because you would never neuter your family members! But just because I personally struggle with this idea does not mean that I make it my personality, I can spend months never thinking about this topic, and when I visit friends that have pets I do not bring it up unless cornered in some debate on morality.
It is simply a passing thought and a pain that must be borne.
a Joshua Brown poem #234 "On Dogs"
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