Dogs

Elisabeth Frost

After the divorce the one who wanted a baby buys a dog despite a tiny apartment and no money. The dog is sick. It needs expensive medicine and dog-sitting while the owner works a low-paying job as a sign language interpreter. A second dog is bought to give the sick dog some company. This one barks, requiring costly obedience classes. Meanwhile the former spouse, still in the couple's original apartment, passes the pet store twice a day. Taped to the window, photos show pets and their new owners, including the ex- and the two dogs, which are sick and disobedient, not unlike the children they never had.

Elisabeth Frost is Professor of English and Women’s/Gender/Sexuality Studies at Fordham University, where she is founder and editor of the Poets Out Loud book series from Fordham Press.
Originally published:
January 1, 2004

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