HAIKU DIALOGUE – World of Animals – Domestic Creatures (Pets and More) – commentary

World of Animals with Guest Editor Nancy Brady

As a child, all I wanted to do was learn to read, and I couldn’t wait for first grade because that was when reading was taught. Unfortunately, my younger sister didn’t appreciate the fact that I’d rather read my book when she’d rather play outside so she’d hide it. We’d play, but I finally had a work-around for missing books. I’d randomly choose a volume from our family’s Funk & Wagnall’s encyclopedia. At the time I just thought I was the weird kid. In retrospect, I suspect I wasn’t the only one who spent time with random volumes of encyclopedias. Regardless, I discovered all sorts of things including my favorites:  animals.

Whether it was learning about wombats (still my favorite marsupial) or another kind of animal, I found (and find) the natural world fascinating.  Even now, I find myself watching Nature on PBS as they present programs featuring all sorts of animals, from the smallest to the largest and often those that are being rehabilitated or are in danger of becoming extinct. This brings me to the subject of the next couple of prompts – I am looking for haiku about animals of all kinds, from invertebrates to vertebrates. Each prompt will have a particular focus. Please join me in exploring the zoological world.

For inspiration, listen to They Might Be Giants’ “Mammal”.

Below is Nancy’s commentary for Domestic Creatures (Pets and More):

rescue centre
the soft urgency
of the tabby cat’s paw

Lori Kiefer
London, UK

Lori’s haiku resonates with me. It takes me back to the time when our cat went missing. I put up fliers, searched the neighborhood, and advertised in the newspaper to no avail. I even went to the local Humane Society shelter, but she wasn’t there. The personnel suggested I might want to check back with them in a week or so. She still wasn’t there, but a litter of kittens was in a cage. One black kitten clung to the bars as if to say, “Get me out of here.” I was smitten, and this cat came home with me for the next 21 years.

ancestral campfires
all reflected
in his eyes

Mike Fainzilber
Tel Aviv, Israel

When I first read this haiku, I was intrigued because it didn’t seem to fit into my expectations. Yet, there was something about it that just wouldn’t let me dismiss it so easily. Mike seems to be returning to the past when dogs weren’t domesticated. That a man, sitting around the campfire, saw eyes reflected in the light of the campfires. At the same time, the animal(s) outside of the ring of this campfire may have seen the loneliness of the man. Were the reflections the emotional equivalent of wanting a connection, of wanting companionship? Was it the animal which wanted a connection? Was it the man who wanted a connection, or was it both? Was it all of that, and more? Regardless, at some point during those ‘ancestral campfires,’ wolves/dogs became domesticated, and humans were better for it.

hunter moon
the pangur bán brings a gift
to the poet

(Pangur Bán is the old Irish for “white fuller,” by which was meant a white (Bán) cat: Pangur was a fuller, or one who kneaded – as a cat does – the materials of felt.)

Laurie Greer
Washington, DC

Laurie’s note led me to look much deeper into what ‘pangur bán’ referred to and where it came from. In my research, I discovered that there was a poem written by a 9th century Irish monk about his white cat and comparing the cat’s hunt for mice and his hunt for words. Roughly translated, Pangur Bán means a white cat. The poem indicates that the monk and the cat share their lives together. Cats, white or otherwise, often give gifts of mice or birds to the one they “own” as a token of affection. In homage to both the poem and the poet, Laurie has named her white cat Pangur Bán.

even so
the faith in my dog’s eyes
euthanasia

Mirela Brailean
Iasi, Romania

 

teary eyes
I look at you
for the last time

Tuyet Van Do
Australia

 

still resting
in her favorite spot
polished urn

Stephen J. DeGuire
Los Angeles, CA

These three haiku all reflect the grief that the loss of a pet causes the owners. Mirela’s haiku tackles the difficult subject of euthanasia (putting an animal down humanely), yet the love and faith of the dog for Mirela is unfailing. It doesn’t matter what kind of dog it is, but obviously, there is a strong relationship between them. This is a beloved family member, and even at the end, the dog trusts Mirela to its life (and death). Although Tuyet’s haiku doesn’t speak directly to euthanasia (it could be something else like having to give the pet away), Tuyet is visibly moved to tears knowing this will be the last time that they will be together. Whatever the reason, there is grief for the loss as evidenced by ‘teary eyes.’ Stephen’s haiku again addresses the death of a beloved pet. The urn is placed where she liked to be. It is ‘her favorite spot’ as he notes in his haiku. Stephen keeps her close as well as her urn polished. Mourning for a pet is not unusual, just as it isn’t unusual to mourn for any person we loved and lost to death. Yet, despite knowing that a pet’s life span is typically shorter than ours, we often repeat the process over and over again. Or, perhaps, I am speaking only for myself.

unconditional
the affection of a dog
that strayed into my home

Paul Callus
Ħal Safi, Malta

 

head butts –
perched on my desk
he spreads his love

Anne Curran
Hamilton, New Zealand

 

loyalty-
guarding me from the rainbow
my best childhood friend

Natalia Kuznetsova
Russia

These three haiku all represent ways that our pets show they care and love us. Paul states it simply as ‘unconditional’ affection. This dog is a stray, but obviously, Paul has adopted it as his own. The dog may have wandered in, may have even been dumped, unwanted by another family, but the dog still shows affection and love to someone, who is willing to feed and care for it. Anne’s haiku is similar in that the animal (and though she doesn’t say what kind of animal, I’d bet it’s a cat) gives ‘head butts’ as a sign of affection and gets up close and personal by getting on Anne’s desk, near where she is. Whatever kind of pet it is, he wants attention and is willing to show it in return. Natalia’s haiku represents a pet that is loyal, so loyal in fact that she considers the animal (and like Anne’s haiku, she doesn’t indicate what kind of animal it is, but I’d bet it’s a dog) her best friend during her childhood. What the rainbow represents, I can only guess. I would imagine that the fear is connected to the rainbow like thunderstorms. It’s not unusual for children to fear lightning and thunder, and the pet might lean against, in essence, guarding and comforting her (and in so doing, the pet itself would be comforted as well).

rescue dog Jake
with the red bandana
6 years of love

Margaret Mahony
Australia

Margaret’s haiku reminds that rescues give so much love. With pet parents who show them love, these rescues love unconditionally. Yes, most pets give love to the people who feed, house, and take care of all of their needs, but rescues are different because they have been thrown away for some reason. They may not have been the right fit for a family, as an example, but for whatever reason, they no longer have a person or family that cares about them. Discarded, they may be in a shelter, and their time may be running out. Several million animals end up in shelters around the world every year, and more than a million of them will be euthanized. Taking on a rescue is one of the most rewarding things a person can do. All of the pets our children have are rescues, as well as our cat. One of the rescues our son and daughter-in-law have is a very loving three-legged dog, now living his best life.

a perk of working
for a blind charity
dogs in the office

Jenny Shepherd
London UK

 

border collie
helps brother navigate
Parkinsons

Margaret Ponting
Australia

These last two haiku show the power of dogs, which can act as both pets and support animals. Jenny’s haiku shows the perk of working for a charity which aids those who are blind. Many people who have lost their sight function well with the help of guide dogs. These dogs are trained to guide and protect their partner from harm. Guide dogs become an extension of the person, allowing him or her to live a normal life. Having these dogs in the office, Jenny not only realizes that her clients are better off, but so is she, enjoying her job even more. In Margaret’s haiku, there is a border collie which is helping her brother navigate the day-to-day issues associated with Parkinson’s, a neurodegenerative disease primarily of the central nervous system. It affects both motor and non-motor systems causing various symptoms like tremors and rigidity. This border collie is a therapy dog, trained to assist Margaret’s brother throughout his day. Because this dog is both a pet and a therapy dog, it is allowing her brother to live a more comfortable life.

Join us next week for our next prompt…

Bios:

Guest Editor Nancy Brady is a pharmacist by profession, a haiku and senryu poet by nature. She often found inspiration on her treks back and forth to work as a pharmacist; her first book of haiku, Ohayo Haiku, was a foray into publishing haiku. Three Breaths, her second book, is a mix of haiku, senryu, alternative forms, and other poems. Her work has appeared in journals all over the globe (both print and electronic) and has been rejected by many more. Nancy also writes other genres and has published a children’s book, The Adventures of Aloysius, in November 2023. It is catalogued in the Library of Congress. She also reads lots of novels. Her favorite is, and remains, Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged, but she is also a big Harry Potter fan. Now retired from the pharmacy profession, she works part-time for the local Board of Elections and volunteers at Old Woman Creek National Estuarine Research Center. She, her husband Rob, and their cat, Regulus Arcturus Black, live in Huron, Ohio, a block from Lake Erie, where the bird population is constantly changing.

Assistant Editor Lafcadio, a former teacher, now works from home writing, editing and proofreading study guides for nursing textbooks. She lives in Tennessee. She has written poetry for a long time but a couple of years ago fell in love with Japanese micropoetry and hasn’t looked back. Lafcadio has been published in a number of journals and anthologies. She writes under the nom de plume of Lafcadio because nom de plume is so fun to say. You can read her poems on Twitter (X) @lafcadiopoetry or BlueSky @lafcadiobsky.

Assistant Editor Vandana Parashar is an associate editor of haikuKATHA and one of the editors of Poetry Pea and #FemkuMag. Her debut e-chapbook, I Am, was published by Title IX Press (now Moth Orchid Press) in 2019 and her second chapbook Alone, I Am Not, was published by Velvet Dusk Publishing in April 2022.

Lori Zajkowski is the Post Manager for Haiku Dialogue. She lives in New York City and enjoys reading and writing haiku.

Managing Editor Katherine Munro lives in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, and publishes under the name kjmunro. She served as Membership Secretary for Haiku Canada for ten years, and her debut poetry collection is contractions (Red Moon Press, 2019). Find her at: kjmunro1560.wordpress.com.

Portrait by Laurel Parry

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Banner Photo & Prompt Photo credits:  Rob Smith

Haiku Dialogue offers a triweekly prompt for practicing your haiku. Posts appear each Wednesday with a prompt or a selection of poems from a previous week.  Read past Haiku Dialogue posts here.