Dog Show: Poems

by Billy Collins, Pamela Sztybel (Illustrator)

In this special collection of poems inspired by dogs, former U.S. Poet Laureate and New York Times bestselling author Billy Collins captures the essence and mystery of our beloved companions—featuring striking canine portraits in watercolors by Pamela Sztybel

“Collins remains the most companionable of poetic companions.”— The New York Times

Billy Collins's Dog Show celebrates the joy of our canine best friends, honoring the love we feel for these animals who play vital roles in so many of our lives. In twenty-five poems, Collins distills the many emotions dogs bring us, from the happiness we feel as we watch a dog trot out the door unencumbered by our burdens, to the silliness of holding a dog in our arms as we step on the scale together. Turning his inimitable eye and ear to the complexities of dog behavior, Collins ponders all that these winning creatures give us and what we learn from them about ourselves.

For more than four decades Billy Collins has delighted readers with his insight, wit, and clear poetic voice. In Dog Show, "America's favorite poet" (Wall Street Journal) illuminates America's favorite pet (sorry, cat lovers). Accompanied by Pamela Sztybel's watercolors that effortlessly depict a dog's humble grace, Dog Show reveals the profound role dogs play in our lives and the meaning they give us.

Genres: Poetry, Dogs, Animals, Nonfiction, Adult, Audiobook, Humor

79 pages, Hardcover

First published November 18, 2025

About the author

William James Collins is an American poet who served as the Poet Laureate of the United States from 2001 to 2003. He was a Distinguished Professor at Lehman College of the City University of New York, retiring in 2016. Collins was recognized as a Literary Lion of the New York Public Library (1992) and selected as the New York State Poet for 2004 through 2006. In 2016, Collins was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters. As of 2020, he is a teacher in the MFA program at Stony Brook Southampton.

Reviews

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Billy Collins is a poet I'd recommend for non-poetry enthusiasts. His poems are very accessible, yet still convey meaningful truths without being too sentimental. Just as the title says, Dog Show is a collection of poems all about dogs. It celebrates the animals who play such vital roles in our lives.

A Dog on His Master

As young as I look,
I am growing older faster than he,
seven to one
is the ration they tend to say.

Whatever the number,
I will pass him one day
and take the lead
the way I do on our walks in the woods.

And if this ever manages
to cross his mind,
it would be the sweetest
shadow I have ever cast on snow or grass.

[R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you would have told me twenty years ago that on Dave Clark’s Rockin’ New Year’s Eve 2025 I’d cozy down with a mug of cocoa and a book of dog poems, I would have laughed sharply and eyed you with suspicion - but it was actually pleasant.

[gray (my.rainbow.bookshelf) · Rating 4 out of 5]

poems about dogs are some of my favorite things in the world even though they make me miss my dog so much

[S · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like how Collins' poetry is so conversational. At the same time, I don't love how some of the lines are really banal. There's a fine line between conversational but brilliant, and just plain meh. This collection finds him on either side, depending on the line.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read as part of Book Girls’ Guide Bingo Book Challenge 2026 (permission given to start early) - Animal Lovers

[Janet Howard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Today marks one year since my sweet pup Camille died. It’s a sad anniversary but I’m so happy to have had her in my life. A friend gave me this book last year and in honor of Camille I spent some time reading these poems and alternately crying and smiling. This collection felt more melancholy in theme than his other works. While I don’t frequently read poetry I find Billy Collins’ work to be very approachable.

4⭐️

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

This doesn’t hold a candle to Dog Songs but then what really could?

Ironically, my favorite poem of the collection is “Trying to Write a Dog Poem in a House with Two Cats.”

[Annotations&Air · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can’t really give this less than 4 stars. However, I was disappointed in the poet’s lack of insight. A few of the poems hit me emotionally, but very few. I just expected more from someone who thought that they were in touch enough with dogs as companions, guides and friends to dedicate an entire volume to them. I also did not find the craft that moving from a poet laureate.

One poem in particular was painful, as he noted walking with an elderly dog who was limping and had fur too matted to comb. What? Why would you not only admit to neglect like that, but memorialize it in a poem allegedly to honor your pet? He also titled a poem “Another Reason I Don’t Keep a Gun in the House” writing about a neighbor dog barking. Big yikes.

In all honesty the emotive artwork saved the collection.

Super glad I borrowed this one from the library and did not buy.

[Elyse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Billy Collins never misses. Silly, sweet, sentimental — just like dogs. I laughed and cried. A perfect collection.

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful and made me want a dog in a serious way

“I’m not even here anymore.
I’m somewhere else,
leaning against a tree, as it happens.
It’s a Monday around dusk.
Lots of yellow leaves float down.
I’m 27. A dog stretching at my side.”

[Abby · Rating 3 out of 5]

can I pet dat dawg???

[Kristen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Liked the dog pix with the poems, but overall they didn’t do a lot for me. Alas

[sonia · Rating 5 out of 5]

ts got me crying on the treadmill

[Anastasia Artemis Bailey · Rating 5 out of 5]

“So, instead of following your bliss,
follow around some lighthearted dog.
Surely, it’s better than doing nothing,
if anything were better than doing nothing,
which, setting dogs aside for now,
is said to be the best thing one can do
or not do, but in a positive way, forever, amen.”
Another great book of poetry by Billy Collins. This collection captures the wonderfulness of having a dog and the important space they occupy in our lives. 10/10.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Billy Collins collection of poems in his new book Dog Show struck a deep chord with me in many of these poems. Anybody who loves reading and listening to the boiled down impressions and memories of others' lives with their companion dogs will smile at the similes, metaphors, and alliteration that rolls off the tongue when reading aloud or melts heart calluses as one considers the dogs eye view of us and our shared world. The watercolor illustrative paintings imprinting the perfectly imperfect dogs of our lives.

[Vera Versteeg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really, I didn't intend to rack up an easy read to boost my book count. But there it was, on the new book shelf, looking at me with delightful verses and floppy eared watercolors, so how could I not take it home?!?

[Stephanie ((Strazzybooks)) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 rtc

[Rachael Dockery · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5/5

[Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This lovely book made me laugh and broke my heart. Billy Collins is a favorite of mine but except for one poem, all of these were new to me. I can’t pick a favorite but highly recommend the whole collection to all fellow dog and poetry lovers.

[Eden Burrow]

For some reason rating a poetry book feels wrong. But I read this in the bath and I wish my puppies were in here

[Karen Jenkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

If all poetry was like this, I''d read more. Wonderful poems-some sad, some funny-about man's best friend.

[Margaret Russell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A perfect collection of poems on the depth of love, the magic of what a dog companion adds to our lives. The illustrations are gently beautiful as well. The whole piece seems like a cute little conversation book, but it really serves the place of poetry: finding and showing facets of the beauty in our little lives. A great place to start seeing how reading poetry from time to time can add an extra layer to our experience of the world.

[Barbara Kochick · Rating 5 out of 5]

I savored this gift book a few poems at time. Accessible poems reach all emotions.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5
Some true gems of verse in this short book of poems! If you have or ever had a dog you loved, you will surely recognize your dog in some of Collins' ruminations. The very first poem, Dharma, captures the jaunty, joyful dog pushiness that is the nature of dog.. on the walk, around the food dish.. As a witness to that same behavior over the years with our various dog companions-- I was in awe to see it set so skillfully to paper. Recommend Billy Collins to anyone who normally avoids poetry. You won't be disappointed. Oh! and take your time and savor a few poems at a time.

[Evalynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorites were: Weighing the Dog, A Dog on His Master, All Dressed Up, The Guardian, Good News, and Two Creatures because they remind me the most of my beloved mutt, Maggie Mae.

[Jennifer Fitzpatrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Billy Collins is a master at capturing the spirit of a dog in poetry. As he says, …”instead of following your bliss, follow around some lighthearted dog.” This tiny tome is a tender collection of observations of our canine companions and their role in our lives. Absolutely perfect observations. And the watercolor paintings by Pamela Sztybel that accompany each poem are wonderful. A must read even if you’ve never had a pup companion.

[Lianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely not his best collection, and some of the poems were perplexing. But there were a couple great ones, and a couple that made me tear up a little. I'll never tire of poems about dogs.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A b&n best audiobook of 2025 for a reason

[Jennifer Pruett · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet and very funny collection of poems about dogs and how they affect our lives. Some poems made me chuckle out loud, and I insisted on reading many to my husband as I found them so charming or fun. Highly recommended (even if you think you aren’t a dog person)!

[Wil Hobbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whimsical and thought-provoking poems about canines and human-kind’s relationship with them. Collins’s work includes “role reversals” where canines take the role of narrator-poet and observe the world poetically from a dog’s perspective. If you’re a dog-lover, You know that dogs connect directly with us. And you wonder what’s going on in a dog’s mind, Collins tells us (or attempts to tell us)…it’s a poetic conceit that Collins indulges in.

Dog Show is a wonderful and fast read. If you love canines you’ll adore it.