I had some short stories, poems and photographs to share ... and so here I am

A Pause For A Poem

 

the dog walkers

the hard bucks have never been so easy to reap.
thank you, mam, he’ll be OK in my little pride,
his hair so nicely coiffed, his cutesy wee paws

never been scraped. we can take ten in one hand,
don’t worry; they love making new acquaintances.
they do fall over one another but they really do

enjoy it. two hours for 100 big ones, multiplied
by nine. yes, we take them into the city’s best
parks; they’ll be laughing, walking off all that

energy, watching the birds in the trees. we just
hope you don’t spot us tying them to a pole; they
can sometimes make a right fuss. but we know you

won’t object to an obligatory break: only two or
seven shots, honest. yes, we will take good care
of them; we're the best damn dog walkers in town





© Copyright, 2007. Seamus Kearney.

10 comments:

Wanderlust Scarlett said...

Those look like SEVERAL paws for a poem... and what a fun one!


Scarlett & Viaggiatore

(he's behaving for you, cats and dogs you know)...

Suzan Abrams, email: suzanabrams@live.co.uk said...

You wrote this, Seamus?
Love the theme to the poem. :-)

Unknown said...

Oh, I like that one!

Anonymous said...

Makes me wonder. At first I thought of the image as doggy day care but then it took on a merry-go-round feeling. They don't look too happy.

I've been on vacation for nearly two weeks. I'll see if I can get a Shameless Pride vote in under the wire.

Unknown said...

Hmm, yes, I've always wondered about dog walkers - now you've confirmed those wonderings.
Very smart poem, Shameless.

S. Kearney said...

WS,
A Paws for a poem. I should've thought of that. Very nice. :)

Susan,
Yes, guilty as charged, I'm afraid. :)

Minx,
Thanks. Don't you just want to rescue those poor little bleeders?

Colleen,
Yes, luckily they don't keep turning and turning!

AV + Atyllah,
Hello and welcome back! Yes, someone had to set the record straight in defence of these poor creatures! :)

Dewey said...

Ha ha, I love this, it really made me laugh. I see a woman pass my house with 5 dogs every evening, and I always wonder if she's a dogwalker or just happens to own five dogs.

exskindiver said...

well written.
btw
this also applies to childcare and also care for the elderly and/or disabled.

S. Kearney said...

Hi Dewey,
Thanks. I took that photo in NY, where I saw lots of dogwalkers holding many dogs. The dogs always looked miserable! :)

Exskindiver,
Yes, watch who you get as a babysitter! :)

Anonymous said...

Nice!

Dog walking is popular here in Tel Aviv too. A few days ago, I saw a woman swearing as the five or six dogs in her care wrapped themselves and their leads in an outrageous knot around a lamp-post. The doggy version of a Maypole dance, except they didn't look too happy.