I loved the purposefully cold language you used in this. The antithesis of the final stanza, of your beautiful 'clean' dog, to the laboratory rat (nothing but a pre-weanling) is simple but really effective. Awesome poem

This was real, and that is what made it so powerful. The compartmentalizing is so real. As a mental health therapist I spend all day working to help people gain control, purpose, balance, positivity, etc in their lives. Then I leave my office and "go back" to my personal life in utter chaos, lacking all the things I spent all day discussion with others. It does really leave this gross feeling.