Smartest Dog Poem

Smartest Dog poem is a beautiful poem, written by Barbara Vance, who is best known as an author, illustrator, and Visiting Assistant Professor. In this article, we shall examine her poem and the lessons that the Smartest Dog Poem provides to its readers.

The poem is a meritorious attempt to create a love for animals in the hearts of its readers. The poem is encircled around a dog and its strange habits with his/her owner. Barbara Vance shows a beautiful relationship between a pet and the owner, a relationship that is based on love.

Smartest Dog Poem Lyrics

The Smartest Dog Poem has been written with much dedication and fondness which we can see through the lyrics of this poem. The lyrics are written below to proceed further to understand the poem.

When I say sit my dog lies down;

Rollover makes her bark;

I order her to fetch the ball,

But she just roams the park.

When I say shake she lifts her ears

And sits up straight and tall,

So proud that she knows what to do

(She’s no idea at all).

I tell her to speak—she stares at me,

Then rolls across the floor;

I order heels but she just gapes,

More muddled than before.

lie down I bid—she lifts her paw

To rest within my palm;

I tell her to come—she lies in bed

Aloof, detached, and calm.

She barks when I am studying

And comes when I can’t play

And rests real quiet on my knee

When I say go away.

My dog knows countless other tricks—

It’s not that she’s not bright—

It’s just it takes a time or two

For her to get it right.

Sit, lie down, roll over, shake—

She knows them all quite well;

What matters most is how you ask,

As near as I can tell.

- Barbara Vance

The Master and her Dog

The Theme of the Poem

Smartest Dog Poem contains some crucial themes which one has to focus on so deeply. The poem is not only just about a dog but it draws the theme of love for animals which is mostly lost in humans. Vance through her poem tries to show that animals too have the same feelings just like human beings. People more often behave with cruelty to animals just because they consider them as low beings. The author shows pets with much honour like she uses the word ‘She’ for her dog not ‘It’, thus, Barbara Vance is not objectifying her pet and treats them with love.

The Literary Meaning of the Poem

The poem is written in first-person narrative technique, in which the speaker shows her relationship with her dog. The master of the dog orders her certain things which the dog understands in a strange manner and does something opposite of it like if the master asks her to fetch the ball then the dog instead of doing this roams in the park. 

The speaker also mentions that the dog barks when she studies, indicating that the dog sometimes disturbs her but what is notable is that, the author in spite of this, loves her and says that it doesn’t mean that the dog is not bright but it takes time for the dog to get the work right. And at the end, she gives the message to her readers that it all depends on us like how we ask them to do work, suggesting that a master should ask politely and behave with kindness.

Dog: A Faithful Animal

Dogs are usually considered faithful pets and have sharp senses. Smartest Dog Poem illustrates these traits clearly and the word ‘Smartest’ shows dogs’ sharpened senses which can be helped in many ways.  Dog Poems are helpful to show dogs’ capabilities which are often neglected by people.

Dog

Smartest Dog Poem Summary 

Let's have a look at the Smartest Dog Poem Summary which is described below.

Smartest Dog Poem is a brilliant work by Barbara Vance for demonstrating the rights of an animal and her attempt to focus on the need for righteous treatment of animals whether it’s a dog or any other pet all have feelings that we cannot deny. With this moral, her poem is a fun-loving and rhyming poem. Smartest Dog Poem with rhyming words makes the poem more creative and interesting to read, especially for kids. We hope you enjoyed reading this fun poem, in case of any other doubts feel free to ask in the comments.