the starter dog

she wants a dog,
but not a young dog, not a pup,
not yet.
she needs a practice dog.
so she gets a fifteen year
old pug
from the pound,
an hour away from execution.
the thin blue
lenses of his eyes
makes him
bump into doors when he
struggles
to move about the slippery
floor.
he can't hear.
he sleeps and snarls
all day
in his round soft bed,
coughing, wheezing.
he's unwalkable, no tricks,
no nothing
given in return.
isn't he cute, she says,
holding him like the baby,
she'll never have,
his grey fat
body limp in her arms.