63 DAYS
The days go by so slowly,
And impatiently we wait.
Just how successful was it,
The first time you met your mate?
We've watched you bloom so fully,
And you've seemed to understood.
You've taken it all in stride,
Your pending motherhood.
But as your time grows near
And you gradually slow down,
Our anxiety increases
For all this waiting around.
The whelping box is ready,
Scales and heating pad are too,
Just to sit back and wait,
Nothing more that we can do.
Excitement is on the horizon,
And labor has begun.
Oh, the precious jewels we'll soon reap,
When all is said and done.

 (by Shelly Baird)


                         THE STORY OF KISSMOOSE

Once upon a time there was a little dog without a name. He had no
name because there was no hoomin around to love him and to give him
a name. He wandered through woods and alleys looking for little
scraps to eat. He never knew what t*r*e*a*t meant. Once in a great
while he would find berries and gently nibble them off the vine for
a special taste.
Winter was coming and it was very cold. He heard howling in the
distance.
"Could it be?" he woofed quietly. "Does some doggie want
to play and sing and dance with me?" asked the little dog.
The little dog followed the sound into the woods but what he found
was a strange group of animals that were not quite dogs and they
growled and snarled and ganged up on him. They tried to bite him.
The little dog was so astonished that he burst away with all his
strength and ran away as fast as his four paws could carry him.
Night was falling and the poor little pup was so cold. He looked for
a place to rest his weary head, but was too weak to go any further
and fell to the ground exhausted.
He lay there shivering and trying to go to sleep but he kept hearing
noises in the dark. He wanted to see what it was but felt his eyes
closing. And just before he fell asleep, he saw a beautiful Moose
lean over him and kiss him gently on the nose and cover him with
leaves.
When morning came, the little dog found himself on the doorstep of
an old farmhouse. He could smell the Moose around the porch steps so
he knew the Moose had brought him there. In just a moment, the door
of the farmhouse opened and two hoomins came out and saw the little
dog. They exclaimed in hoomin words the little dog couldn't
understand but they hugged him and kissed him and brought him into
the house. The house was warm and smelled of wonderful foods. The
ladyhoomin put a bowl down full of good things to eat.
That night, the little dog slept in a warm bed with toys and a full
tummy. And the Kissmoose whispered quietly to the little dog from
far away, "you're home now".
Every year, the Kissmoose visits all the doggies everywhere and
makes sure they have good things and when he finds a doggie in a
cage, he whispers to a hoomin, "Go save the little dog from the
cage". And he always gives each dog a gentle kiss on the nose.
The Beginning
copyright Melanie Horne 1996
Permissions granted to re-post with proper credit.


Go to more poems.