Dog Poems - Dec 24 2025

 

Dog Poems

Dec 24 2025

A poet I greatly admire

has a new book

all about dogs,

poems and pictures

culled from over the years.

I’ve written my share, as well,

but always with apologies

 — too easy,

too sentimental,

too idealized.

Mostly doggerel (sorry, I just can’t resist!)

self-indulgence

and last resort

 — as in can’t think of anything else to say.

But now, I feel validated,

even though a dog poem

has been my default;

the path of least resistance

when I’m staring at a blank page

and nothing comes.

Dogs and poets.

The former, who effortlessly live in the now

 — alert, receptive, accepting —

and poets

who can only try,

even if our frantic monkey brains

confound our best efforts.

Dogs, who own nothing,

and poets

in their ivory towers

and freezing garrets,

why decry materialism

and laud suffering

yet still sell out for creature comforts.

Dogs,

who are innocent 

in the ways of the world

and know nothing of death,

while poets 

are overly dramatic

morbidly tragic

and fashionably cynical,

preoccupied with life’s fragility

and its ultimate meaninglessness. 

Of course, not all poets love dogs.

There must surely be among us

some cat fanciers

rat aficionados

and lovers of snakes,

as well as fastidious ones

who dislike dog spit

vacuuming

and picking up after them,

dutifully stooping

like King Henry the VIII’s Groom of the Stool.

But I suspect such poets are a daunting read,

cold, intellectual

or cringingly confessional;

the kind of poetry

that makes your head hurt.

Of course, dog poets do slip into sentimentality,

mourning lost pets,

elegizing great dogs,

indulging in cute and cuddly

and bottomless brown eyes;

writing paeans to heroic dogs

stoic dogs

and loyal dogs,

odes to man’s best friend.

Penning clichés,

like all dogs go to heaven

and there are no bad dogs

only bad owners,

then quickly renouncing the word

 — because ownership

isn’t really how it feels.

Humanity

has had more than 20,000 years

to produce a dog

that’s the perfect companion for us.

But written language isn’t nearly that long;

so when I think of all the poetry 

that never got written

I feel better

about writing even more.

And if the great poet

can indulge in dog poems

without a second thought

what’s stopping me?

Why not join him 

in this act of love?

(The cover photo and comments that follow it are copied from the Amazon listing for Collins’ new book. I went there just to find a picture to accompany this poem. Ended up buying it  …which Amazon cleverly makes far too frictionless!)

New York Times bestselling author and former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins captures the essence and mystery of dogs in this special collection of poems inspired by our beloved companions, with striking watercolor canine portraits by Pamela Sztybel.

As Oprah says on Oprah Daily online: “This collection of 25 poems by Billy Collins is a sweet gift for dog lovers. ‘A Dog on His Master’ is a favorite of mine.”

“Everyone who has a dog—or still grieves for one—will find themselves in this collection of witty, sweet and poignant poems by former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins . . [an] eminently giftable collection.”—The Washington Post

“There are lots of books about man’s best friend, but none as sweet or as beautiful as Dog Show.”—Air Mail

“The pleasures here are many for Collins fans, dog lovers, and any reader looking for clever, poignant, and spirit-lifting poems accompanied by deft, lively, and affectionate paintings.”—Booklist

Billy Collins’s Dog Show celebrates the joy of our canine best friends, honoring the love we feel for the animals who play such vital roles in our lives. In twenty-five poems, Collins distills the many ways dogs warm our hearts, from the happiness we experience as we watch a dog run unencumbered by our burdens, to the silliness of cradling a dog in our arms as we step on the scale together. Turning his inimitable eye and ear to the complexities of dog behavior.