Pet Pourri

Have you ever been in a situation where you are faced with a dilemma of 'giving up' a pet for having your expected child? Well, I have.
And I bet you have too if you have had a furry companion in your home especially a snappy one. It’s not easy though to be in such a place when you have wide-eyed, ear drooping and a tail wagging dog of yours staring back at you. Awww.. 

Quickie our first pet.. or (baby u can say) came into our lives almost eight years ago. She was the apple of everyone’s eye. She grabbed all the attention wherever we went for her beautiful black sheen of a German Shepherd and mini looks of a Pomeranian (a combination that I now know is a lethal one). She traveled with us. She demanded her own couch. Our cook was specially called in early to give her company in case we were held up at work. She was the reason then to come back early and go for long walks.

So we did practically everything that we should have avoided in bringing her up. But then came a day she got her first victim.. when she was almost 2, her very first trainer who never returned after the first session of training. We wondered why… and only much later we got to know quickie had bitten him when he tried to discipline her. Not that she wasn’t disciplined in her ways, only she didn’t like being bossed around (apart from me of course, coz she was well aware to listen to her mother). But our absence from home for being at work, didn’t work well with her.

She became territorial as all other dogs are, but she demanded more and her “don’t mess with me” messages were conveyed quite efficiently rather arm twistingly to us. She got a bit out of hand just like any teenager would (in her dog years she was a teenager). And that was the time I was expecting and everyone around tried to convince me to give her up for the sake of my young one arriving. But how can a mother give up one of her babies for another?..at least I couldn’t. I defied everyone… dialed a hundred trainers who would accept this challenge of training my then 4 year old monster. And out of 10 who showed up only one returned and accepted her. She was tamed she was docile she made a perfect dapper pet! Though she still maintained her ‘no-nonsense’ and ‘touch-me-not’ attitude.

I loved her then I love her now… I have fought my way to keep her and care for her. Having pets around a kid is always looked upon with a raised eyebrow, but in spite of her snappy ways.. Quickie has always been gentle with kids. Even after my son was born she accepted him the most surprising way.. she stayed by his crib in the same room, she woke me every time he would wake up, she scrutinized everyone who entered our home. Her ears pricked up in alertness if she would see my son being held by anyone other than the family.

My son is 3 now and she is almost 8, and to add to our clan we adopted one more a year ago, and aptly named her Cocoa, after her cocoa colored coat. They are poles apart, Cocoa likes to be cuddled, hugged which Quickie sometimes find it disgusting. She took a while to accept Cocoa especially after my son coz there was more space sharing.. but finally she came around and now she has found a companion-cum- fitness trainer in Cocoa who makes sure she gets her daily quota of running by chasing her around the entire house.

It’s a lot of hard work to keep your sanity with all 3 around especially given Quickie’s temperament. But all seems worthwhile when we see them playing around, and waiting anxiously for each other when either of them are out. And it feels straight out of a dream sequence.

And dream it is, for Quickie is back to her old ways. Despite her temper and snappy jaws, she is a strong personality and very loving but she is still a baby at heart when she insists for more attention than my toddler. She looks at me and her glassy eyes reflect my emotions for her and I say to her, “it’s not time yet old girl."