Fifteen dogs

by Canadian Andre Alexis. A friend gave me this because I like dogs. It's one of the nastiest books I've read lately, about fifteen dogs which are given human consciousness.
I knew stray dogs were common in the US whereas here it is rare and great efforts go into finding a lost dog or returning one to its family. In Canada 15 dogs can live in a park and rapidly kill each other, or are poisoned by humans and their brief lives are dominated by the long-discredited idea of constant dominance among dogs and people.
I like the dog who makes up poetry but that's one of the more plausible bits.
I've given up before the end.