Homeward Found

I live in a shelter, alone in a cage
With food, and a towel on which to sleep
I'm small, with spiky fur, and of kitten age
Folks come here looking for a friend to keep

Some days others and myself are taken to a home
A place where strangers live, but each is alone
Once an old man caressed me gently, murmured and sighed
As his tears spilled to my shoulder from tightly closed eyes

We also went where there are machines and bright lights
A big place for babies and children who are ill
As each child checked us over it was hard to stay still
To each patient was given the choice of us to pick
A time for a while to forget they were sick

I was brought to a girl, with hair the color of night
With her hands she explored my body and face
And her touch as fragile and intricate as lace
She lifted me up so she could smell my fur
I mewed and she smiled, then stroked me, and I purred
She said, "I am blind, but you have made this moment bright."

During the week many come to the pound
Down each aisle they make the rounds
Sometimes a kitten is chosen and homeward bound
And even rarer, a lost loved one is found

The last of summer passed, then gone, too, was fall
No longer a kitten, I'd grown lanky and tall
In the wintry months fewer folks came to call
So the kittens were gone on a visit, but not us all
Lonely, I watched shadows move at the end of the hall

I fell asleep, dreaming of the visits I did make
When my fur was spiky and my pads pink and small
Then hands tenderly shook me and stirred me awake
As a man carried me, he took my picture from the wall

When he stepped outside, he wrapped a blanket 'round me
Put me in the backseat of a car and drove away
I sat up, wondering where we were -- trying to see
But the windows were frosty, so back down I lay

The car came to a stop and the man turned around
His expression gentle, he took me out of the car
He climbed some stairs, knocked, then opened a door
He strode in and laid me in another man's arms

I was hugged, caressed tenderly, and the old man sighed
As his tears spilled to my shoulder from tightly closed eyes
Thank you, my son! It is he, the one I had held before.
"Hey, fella! I'll bet you wondered where you were bound?
"Well, my furry friend, you need worry no more.
"In time for Christmas, you are, and -- homeward found!"

Copyright 2005 Kathy Pippig Harris

The Great Until

Beyond a shimmering mist is another special land

A place that God created with the brush of His hand

A sun-washed valley, with grass-covered hills

Filled with joy for us, for before the "Great Until"

This place is for we who had no human kin

and those who did, but were abused--discarded on a whim

When we lay hurt, dying and helpless on the roadside

someone stopped, cradled us tenderly, and cried

We may have been in pounds when they held us close and dear

and as our vision dimmed, they softly whispered away our fear

There was no chance to share our hearts with them on Earth

And no time to show them what their love for us was worth

Now we can give our all to them for we have all of time to fill

So here we abide, a waiting, until the "Great Until"

Our hearts will be near bursting, from here our heavenly post

Until they stride through the mist, so that we may greet . . .

The ones who loved us most

Copyright © 2006 Kathy Pippig Harris
*~Dedicated to those who work in shelters & for all who have ever reached out to help a stray~*

Domestic dogs and raccoon dogs are killed in brutal ways for their fur in China. The raccoon dog is a wild member of the dog (Canidae) family with markings resembling those of a raccoon. They are known to be skinned alive for their fur in China, where they are caged and killed in large numbers. Clothing with fur trim from Raccoon dogs has shown up in U.S. stores.

The Humane Society of the United States filed a legal petition with the Federal Trade Commission seeking to enforce the Fur Products Labeling Act against 14 major retailers and designers concerning false advertising and false labeling of fur garments.

In response to the investigation, many retailers and designers took positive action to put customers and animals first, but a disappointing number did not.