My dog has died.
I buried him in the garden
next to a rusted old machine.

Some day I’ll join him right there,
but now he’s gone with his shaggy coat,
his bad manners and his cold nose,
and I, the materialist, who never believed
in any promised heaven in the sky
for any human being,
I believe in a heaven I’ll never enter.
Yes, I believe in a heaven for all dogdom
where my dog waits for my arrival
waving his fan-like tail in friendship.

Ai, I’ll not speak of sadness here on earth,
of having lost a companion
who was never servile.
His friendship for me, like that of a porcupine
withholding its authority,
was the friendship of a star, aloof,
with no more intimacy than was called for,
with no exaggerations:
he never climbed all over my clothes
filling me full of his hair or his mange,
he never rubbed up against my knee
like other dogs obsessed with sex.

No, my dog used to gaze at me,
paying me the attention I need,
the attention required
to make a vain person like me understand
that, being a dog, he was wasting time,
but, with those eyes so much purer than mine,
he’d keep on gazing at me
with a look that reserved for me alone
all his sweet and shaggy life,
always near me, never troubling me,
and asking nothing.

Ai, how many times have I envied his tail
as we walked together on the shores of the sea
in the lonely winter of Isla Negra
where the wintering birds filled the sky
and my hairy dog was jumping about
full of the voltage of the sea’s movement:
my wandering dog, sniffing away
with his golden tail held high,
face to face with the ocean’s spray.

Joyful, joyful, joyful,
as only dogs know how to be happy
with only the autonomy
of their shameless spirit.

There are no good-byes for my dog who has died,
and we don’t now and never did lie to each other.

So now he’s gone and I buried him,
and that’s all there is to it.

Grief and Loss: The poem is an elegy that expresses the speaker’s profound sorrow over the death of his dog. It highlights the deep emotional impact and sense of loss that comes with the death of a beloved pet, demonstrating how such a loss can be as significant and heartfelt as the loss of a human companion.

Companionship: The bond between the speaker and his dog is central to the poem. The dog is portrayed as a loyal and understanding friend, offering companionship that is both independent and respectful. This theme underscores the unique, non-verbal connection that can exist between humans and animals.

Joy and Simplicity: The dog symbolizes pure, uncomplicated joy, living in the moment without the burdens that humans often carry. This theme contrasts the dog’s simple, natural happiness with the speaker’s more complex and troubled emotional state, highlighting the beauty of living life with simple pleasures.

Mortality: The poem addresses themes of death and the afterlife, reflecting on the inevitability of mortality. The speaker, who does not believe in a human heaven, imagines a special heaven for dogs. This imaginative leap speaks to the universal human desire to believe in a peaceful afterlife for loved ones, even pets.

Honesty and Integrity: The relationship between the speaker and his dog is characterized by honesty and authenticity. Unlike human relationships that can be complicated by lies and pretense, the bond with the dog is straightforward and genuine, emphasizing the value of truth and integrity in relationships.

Nature and Connection to the Earth: The burial of the dog in the garden next to a rusted machine symbolizes a return to nature and a connection to the earth. This theme reflects the natural cycle of life and death, and the speaker’s acceptance of this cycle as a fundamental part of existence.