About Me

My photo
Mumbai, India
I'm a landrace dog fancier. Founder of the INDog Project (www.indog.co.in) and the INDog Club. Before that, I worked with urban free-ranging dogs of Mumbai from 1993-2007. Also a spider enthusiast and amateur arachnologist.

This blog is for primitive dog enthusiasts. It is part of the INDog Project www.indog.co.in. Only INDogs (India's primitive indigenous village dogs) and INDog-mixes (Indies) are featured here. The two are NOT the same, do please read the text on the right to understand the difference. Our aim: to create awareness about the primitive landrace village dog of the Indian subcontinent. I sometimes feature other landrace breeds too. Also see padsociety.org

Saturday, December 18, 2010

Puppy

Another Puppy - not my Puppy but an equally beautiful one in Canada!

Owner Swati Chavda tells us his story:



Let me introduce you to Puppy, my 12-year old INDog/INDog mix, originally from Fatehgarh, U.P., now at Calgary, Canada.

My husband, Amitabh, and I, are both Neurosurgeons. Twelve years ago, he used to work in a mission hospital at Fatehgarh after completing his MBBS, before joining Neurosurgery training.

One night when he walked to his car, there was this tiny puppy huddled against the wheel of his car. He was only a few days old, barely able to walk due to malnutrition. He appeared to have strayed into that area from another territory, for the neighboring dogs had attacked him and he was bleeding. So Amitabh took him in, fed him and dressed his wounds.

Puppy had jaundice, and he was given Liv 52 and appropriate diet. With tender love and care, Puppy made a complete recovery.

He has been with Amitabh since then, and of course, with both of us since we got married.




We moved to Canada two years ago, and Puppy has accompanied us here.

He has adapted to the climate quite well, and loves playing in the snow. Before the winter began, we had been worried about Puppy's ability to cope, but he has adapted exceptionally well.





Recently, he underwent several major surgeries to treat perineal hernia, and the vets were amazed at his agility and fitness, especially considering his age.











Interestingly, in India, we encountered quite a bit of snobbery from other dog owners who were into "pure breeds." However, here everyone has expressed only admiration for Puppy. We often get comments about his alertness and agility.







He's an excellent guard dog too. His instincts for danger are exceptional - one night when we were in Delhi, we were woken by his frantic barks for which we could not find any cause - there was no noise, no signs of an intruder, no unusual lights - nothing. We tried calming him, but he went on barking. And within minutes, there was an earthquake. He had been able to sense it before it happened.
I've noticed that Puppy is quite sensitive to events in general, and if I'm not feeling well, he tends to cuddle up very close to me and doesn't move an inch away from me, no matter what the temptation.

Needless to say, he's extremely affectionate and intelligent, and manages to communicate his wishes (or demands) and feelings in many ways. We're fortunate to have him.

Story and photos: Swati Chavda

Calgary
Canada

Note: Amitabh is a third-generation Pariah Dog fan. His parents in Delhi and his grandfather in Lucknow are Indi-owners. Kudos to their whole family!

5 comments:

wandereress said...

What a touching story. I am near tears. And yes, INdogs are amazingly intuitive and affectionate.Whenever someone is sick in our house our Sammy does exactly the same thing.

Sarah said...

I love reading these fantastic stories of life and adaptation in Canada! Wonderful! I wish all people could see how wonderful these dogs are.

Rajashree Khalap said...

Me too, I wish more Indians were dog-savvy enough to recognize a "good breed" when they see one. But the encouraging news is, there are more people adopting Indies in Mumbai nowadays - I see several on my street being walked on leashes. That's a good sign!

Tapas Upadhyay said...

After reading all these i just feel we all Indians are so lucky that we have our Desi Diamonds with us all we have to understand their value and their real place which is in our hearts n homes.

Dave said...

I swear this is my dog. I have been trying to figure out what kind of dog she is. Even the mole is in the right place.