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Brian Paul
Writing Assignment #1
Prof. Gifford
February 18th, 2009
Care and Feeding
“Care and Feeding,” by Billy Collins, caught my attention when I first read it. I tend to
approach a poem with certain expectations of how it will be written or told, and I was pleasantly
surprised that this poem broke those conventions. It is clear within the first stanza that the story
is being told by a dog, but the interesting twist is that the dog is speaking in the first person with
the shared perspective of his owner. The dog looks to celebrate his birthday by treating himself
to the many pleasures his owner would normally provide. The poem’s theme relates to the aging
process and being content with life. Collins takes human perception on the occasion and tweaks
it by relating it through the simple pleasures of a close companion: a pet.
The first stanza states “…I will turn 420 tomorrow / in dog years” (1-2), and since each
human year is seven dog years the speaker would be 60 years old. This poem was published in
2003 when Collins was 62, suggesting that it is about himself but it was not published until a few
years after he wrote it. It seems to be more than a coincidence that Collins was so close to this
age when the poem was published, leading me to believe that it is his own reflection on life. The
perspective of the dog is blended in to simplify the feeling of growing old.
Throughout the entire poem the speaker talks about the many different things he will do
for his birthday, all of which are written in the first person. The speaker describes things that a
dog and its owner would do together, and he does so in a way that makes the interaction of the
two seem like the action of one. A perfect example is in the second stanza when Collins writes
“and when I walk in the door, / I will jump up on my chest” (5-6). The act of walking in the door
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is done by a human, at which point he would be greeted by the dog who would proceed to jump
up on his chest. The speaker refers to these two separate actions as if they are both being done by
one person. This combined perspective helps relate the complicated process of human aging to
the well-known, simple habits that most people associate with an old dog.
One of the best images in the poem comes in the fourth stanza when the speaker states
“Then I will make three circles / and lie down at my feet on the wood floor.” Most people
reading this poem have probably seen a dog circle a spot at its owner’s feet and lie down, or at
least know that dogs do this. The mood conveyed through this image is a content one. The dog
may be old and tired or bored from having the same routine for so long. Much like an aging man
he continues on, content with life and comfortable with his surroundings.
I believe that Billy Collins, nearing his 60th birthday, looked back on his life and reflected
on his accomplishments and companions along the way. His dog likely played a large role in his
later years up to that point, and so he decided to write about his birthday through his close
companions eyes. In order to make the poem about his life and feelings instead of just the habits
of a house pet, Collins merged the dog’s perspective with his own to convey how he feels about
his life as if he were a dog.
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WORKS CITED
"Venerable." Def. 1. Dictionary.com. <www.dictionary.com>.
Allende, Isabel. "Toad's Mouth." Trans. Margaret Sayers Peden. A Hammock beneath the
Mangoes: Stories from Latin America. Ed. Thomas Colchie. New York: Plume, 1992. 83-88.
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Care and Feeding
By Billy Collins
Because I will turn 420 tomorrow
in dog years
I will take myself for a long walk
along the green shore of the lake,
and when I walk in the door,
I will jump up on my chest
and lick my nose and ears and eyelids
while I tell myself again and again to get down.
I will fill my metal bowl at the sink
with cold fresh water,
and lift a biscuit from the jar
and hold it gingerly with my teeth.
Then I will make three circles
and lie down at my feet on the wood floor
and close my eyes
while I type all morning and into the afternoon,
checking every once in a while
to make sure I am still there,
reaching down
to stroke my fury, venerable head.