On a hot dry afternoon, I woke up to the guttural sounds of my dog. Studying for my exams, I had fallen asleep, after a heavy lunch. I jumped down from the bed, ran down two flights of stairs and onto the car porch, where my dog was lying. He was still lying in the same state I had left him, covered in a blanket of gunny sack, not able to move, still emoting via his eyes. He had not eaten for a few days now; he had not moved. I would slowly pour water drops on his tongue which he would gulp in as though it required some super human strength(or rather super dog strength). He had not made a sound for days, and I was curious, not really anxious about what was happening. My puppy had become an old dog !
Thinner than his brother and sister, my puppy was a lovely one. He would endlessly try to climb over the wooden door frame. Back in the old days, in Kerala(southern state of India) the door frame consisted of a rectangle block with a full wooden block at the lowest part of the door. My puppy was so small that the door ledge seemed like a big obstacle for him. There was a small room in the old house of my grand parents where the three puppies were kept. This room had various stuff lying around – a small stand, an unused chair, stacks of news paper etc. These were objects of great interest for my puppy. My aunt, who I was staying with at that time would feed the hungry puppies. The older one, the biggest of them would try to eat most of the food. But his brother and sister would somehow find a way get their portions. They would run around wobbling on their feet, but still curious about everything. Any free time I got, I would go to the room, pick them up and play with them. My puppy was the runt of the litter, but boy ! did he have a feisty attitude at times. When prodded by his brother, some times he would lash back and he would be fierce in that moment. I fell in love with the under dog puppy and soon when we moved to my parents newly built house we took him with us.
We moved into the new house, and my puppy moved to the small doggie house built adjacent to the car parking. He became my partner in crime in my adventures through our backyard. He grew up to be a curious dog, who would fiercely guard the house at the same time run out if the gate is open, to run around the fields nearby, for trysts with his doggie friends. Often people in my village would see me chasing behind my dog – on foot when I was young and in cycle as I got older – with leash in my hand and calling for my dog. Many rats fell victim to my “guard dog’s” protection regimen. Like most dogs, all this vigor and energy would disappear and he would be gripped with fear, when taken for a bath. Thunder was him main enemy. Many nights he would jump onto our main door, scratching out most of the polish and decoration on the wooden door. If let in, he would go and hide under the couch. Back then, dogs were not allowed inside home, so it was a monumental task to take him back to his doggie house.
One day he suddenly had a broken tail, no one knew how. Even with the care from the veterinarian, the broken piece became infected. The other piece of the tail was hanging around and small worms could be seen lurking in the opening of the wound. Elders were ruminating on “realistic” options to provide a good quality of life for him, one of which was vaguely sounded like putting him to sleep. At that moment from the depths of my heart some eternal optimism swelled up. I got gloves and wound cleaning solution and got to work. Getting him to lie down in a patch of sand, I would clean his maggot infested wound. I would continue doing this, with discipline and consistency, every day. One day, the broken piece fully broke off and the wound started to heal. Eventually my puppy( really a big dog now) was back to normal, err… almost… back to a normal half tailed dog!
I was transported back to the present by a change in his eyes. I dropped water on his tongue. He gulped it slightly, suddenly making a stretching move. His eyes started changing color and his body started to become rigid. My heart started pounding as I realized what was happening. I patted him and said “so long my friend, so long my friend”. His eyes suddenly filled with an oily layer, as though a curtain was coming over his eyes. His body became relaxed and I could feel his soul leaving his body. My puppy, my dog, a constant presence through my childhood, through my teen years, my friend.. had passed. After an amazing run of many years. it was his time to go…..Thank you !! my friend, thank you !
In loving memory of my puppy !!
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