Wild Fox in a Stroller

You don’t own me, you purchased me.
Why is this legal?

You tied a bonnet on my head,
now you're wheeling me

through a pet store, zipped into a contraption
that crushes my magnificent tail.

How do I run or hunt in this hard, smooth place?
The fake sun glares.

I need twilight and subtlety,
every smell of a forest.

I can hear a mouse peep
through countless trees.

Shall I rid your field of rodents? Do you have a field?
I won’t play Fetch or be your pal

I travel light, travel private. I could teach you
stillness,

how to find cover
before you pounce.

My night-cry could pierce your heart.