Friends at lunch saw her as they came back
Someone had dumped her down by the track
She was thin and weak and couldn’t even run
So I searched for her when my shift was done
She was under the bridge down by the water
Following a line of ants like a little anteater
She bristled and growled with a fierce alarm
But I managed to show her I meant no harm
Poor little thing not much left of her but bone
She grew quieter when we reached my home
I bathed her and fed her and wrapped her up
And that little mangy dog became my pup
She was starved and scabby and had no fur
But anything I had would be shared with her
She became so beautiful with shiny red hair
And carried her plumed tail with such a flair
That little red dog loved me more than life
She was always by my side in times of strife
The love in her eyes was there so plain to see
It seemed that her heart was beating just for me
I named her ‘Idgie’ from a movie I’d once seen
About a young girl with a survival sense so keen
For fourteen plus years she was my little friend
I made sure her life was good until the very end
Never will I regret picking up that little stray
She filled a lot of lonely days along the way
Her steps grew shaky and her eyes grew dim
but she walked with peace toward deaths realm
Probably with pain but she never made a cry
That brave little chow girl was not afraid to die
She died alone in the night while I was away
I wish that she had waited is all that I can say
She drew her last breath and I couldn’t be there
I hope she knew that I wanted for her to share
Even that small final part of her life with me
I buried her tonight out under the maple tree
Author notes
Her job was just to love me and let me love her in return.
A contest entry
- A Voice for the Voiceless by Raven Tears.
800 points, ended April 7, 2008, 23 entries
Honorable mention
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - for the love of dogs. by jossiemarie.
300 points, ended July 10, 2008, 9 entries
Bronze trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - In Memory of Your Pets by Symphony.
600 points, ended May 26, 27 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Comments
1 - 12 of 12
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This was beautifully written -
You told her story so well, so descriptive - and it's hard when you see strays on the streets in terrible conditions to not take them home with you - and look how rewarding it can be if you do.
thank you for sharing -
So often, dogs like to be alone when they go- wandering out into the woods, or waiting until everyone's asleep. I think it's an instinct. This is a sweet write, and I'm glad you won!
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thats is very beautiful and incredibly heartfelt.
i really feel for you i know it is never easy to lose an animal you care about, and all i can say is good for you for taking in a stray like that.
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Wow! What a beautiful heart-felt piece you have penned and such a compassionate heart mind you, to help a stray that someone's carelessly abandoned, is a true saint.
You gave that dog a second chance at life and nothing could be all the more rewarding, and I'm sure she left happy and full of love, thanking you.
Well done!
Thankyou for showing you care!
Goodluck. -
Damn, This one almost made me cry, It's great
Best dog I ever had was one someone left at my door when she was a pup, Finally at fifteen I had to have her put down. I sat on the floor in the vet's office and held her head in my lap. I'm surprised they didn't have the paper come down and take pictures, You don't often see a hard man cry.
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That's a tough thing to go through, I considered taking my little dog in to the vet to be put down but it would have stressed her to no end. She just sort of withered away daily but died in peace here at home. I put her in a pretty spot marked with a rock and a cherub.
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Very heartfelt write. It brought a tear to my eye as I remembered Bogart a rottweiler who let me live with him for time. Great penmanship. Happy trails
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Dogs have such an amazing impact on our lives. I like the way you describe your meeting her, and her change from what she was when you found her to what she became when you took her home. I also find it interesting how the whole poem is of a fond remembrance of an animal you loved, but the last line is pointed -- a stab, in a way, of sadness that the memory and guilt of not being there brings out. I was sad but felt like you were glad that she was alive with you until that very last line, and then I just couldn't help but cry. It hit me very suddenly, but I think that's good.
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I felt so bad at being gone when she died, I wanted to be there beside her. She would have done the same for me.
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She knew you loved her, though. Dogs know.
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A Fitting Tribute
You write so well that I thought it was me talking...
Sorry for your loss, but, as expected you have turned your grief into a celebration of Idgie's life and meaning. You are a rare person.
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Oh, so beautifully sad, truly...
A magnificent poem that tenderly entreats the reader to rescue something, immediately! 
BRAVO! Sweetly said and splendid. 
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