Dogs Are Healers

Without the word a dog
seems to know

licking a wound
can heal it.

When I am ill, my dog

will lie beside me,
breathing slowly,

‘til I feel better.

Sometimes the dog
dies young because he takes
the physical stress
and consumes it as his own.

Soldiers from war 

feel their anxiety
leave when they have 

a dog beside them.

Frighten children 

are calm and serene
reflecting the mood 

of their pet

unafraid 

with their protector 

to guard them.