Sparky: The Phantom Dog

I've never, ever seen my dog, 'Cause he does not exist. I try to explain this fact to him, But the truth he does resist. He says to me, "I have no bowl." I say, "You do not eat." He says, "We never go for walks." I say, "You have no feet." But he insists, "I bark all day." I say, "No one can hear." And he persists, "I chase the cats." I say, "They do not fear." These awful truths enrage him so, He says that he will fight me! I say to him, "You have no teeth, How are you going to bite me?" He sadly runs away from me, In a hurry to depart. I fear I may have wounded him, Though I know he has no heart. He sits alone in his doghouse, Like him it is not there, Howling at the lonely Moon, And only I'm aware. What to do about this phantom dog? Only one thing, I feel. Tomorrow, I'll go to the pound, And try to make him real.