For my Dog

My furry friend with big brown eyes.

Forever bulldozing around the house and smush-ing the blankets!

Your guttural snore and ecstatic rolling

Have given me immense amounts of joy.

You once swallowed a toy squeaker and squeaked all the way to the vet.

You once got hedgehog spikes in your nose and lost a claw in the radiator- what a bloody mess that was.

You’ve broken loose across a military base, wandered like a joyful vagrant around the village and attacked my neighbours hosepipe.

I once had to rescue you from the river, not a water puppy.

You’ve scratched the lounge door, pee’d on my bed and bitten the patio doors.

How I will long for these things to continue long after you have gone.

To know I was able to offer you a loving home, endless boiled chicken, cheese and Kong’s.

Offers me great solace as I contemplate life without you.

I consider myself your guardian.

But I know deep in my heart, that you’ve been mine.

My forever, furry friend.