My Experiences and Moments of Bonding, Fun, Love, And scare of Dogs

Dogs can love you or hate you it is for you to find out

Pets in my home

Do you have pets? Have you ever kept a dog?

I never had a dog as a pet. Why?

My mother never liked to keep dogs. She would say it is difficult to look after them. So I grew up seeing parrots, birds, and cows in my house but not dogs or cats.

When I got married, my husband was also not interested in pets. Moreover, I always felt that pets needed space, like the type I had as a kid living in a very big house with a garden and orchard.

In Delhi (India)space is scarce and so we never thought about it. None of our sons asked for a pet either while growing up. They were keen on sports and enjoyed cultural shows and a lot of outdoor activities.

The first time I saw a dog in the house was when my son and daughter-in-law kept two dogs whose pictures are given above. They were Xena and Matilda. Xena was a Labrador and Matilda was a Golden Retriever.

Xena and Matilda

Xena and Matilda had been transported from the USA by air when my middle son and daughter-in-law moved from their jobs on transfer to India. They landed at Hyderabad with the two cute pups.

Matilda and Xena were both very loving. They greeted you affectionately. Matilda would put her head on my lap and keep licking me. Xena would play ball with me and it was really fun to be with them.

I felt a kind of friendship with them. I just did not feel scared of them. I took them out for a walk but I was slightly scared because I did not know how to keep a leash on them and often they would run away here and there.

On the whole, it was fun with them. They played Holi which is the festival of colors as you can see in the picture above they were colored by the kids and they did not mind it at all.

Then my son migrated to Gurgaon near Delhi where I lived. He came bag and baggage with his family consisting of his wife, two little daughters snd two dogs.

Xena and Matilda passed away when they were about 14 years of age after illnesses. My son cried a lot and swore he would not keep dogs again.

The next episode

I met many dogs after that. There was Prince, Leo, August, Dollar, Elli, Jimmy, Jill, Chottu, Kallu, Ranga to name a few but I could not call them my friends.

I liked some but they did not like me. Others wanted to be friendly with me but I was not comfortable with them. Some dogs barked at me as though their lungs would burst. They were loud and repetitive and I was scared of them.

Momo a Shihtzu dog comes home

Just before the Covid -19 episode my daughter in law who is very fond of dogs brought home a small toy dog an Asian breed Shihtzu

Momo is a toy! A delight! She barks at me a lot whenever I go. Then after a while, she ignores me, and then she is indifferent towards me. She does not have the same warmth as Xena and Matilda but I play with her whether I get the warmth or not.

My bonding and friendship with Champ

A few days earlier, I made a new friend finally with a dog. I went to my friend's house. I had never seen a dog in her house earlier and yet he was always present in the house but probably did not come to the side of the room where visitors came and was hidden as some people are scared of dogs.

As I rang the bell of her house, Champ came out and stood at the door guarding it. He would not let me enter. He kept standing there till my friend came and opened the door for me and welcomed me in. He realized that I was a friend and visitor so he stepped aside and quietly went and sat in the room.

My friend asked me if I was afraid of dogs. I said some dogs do scare me, some are friendly and others are indifferent. Let us see what this dog feels about me.

Champ slowly came up to me and put his head on my lap, licked me, and started showing interest in me. I loved his vibrations. He would not move from there and I did not want him to go either. I loved him so much.

Champ would not let me leave. When I came he would not let me enter. Now he did not want me to go. He became so friendly with me.

When he listens to my voice. My friend switches on Whatsapp video and he jumps with joy.

When I go to her house, he comes up to me and I can almost hear him say that he has given his heart to me.

The takeaways

#1. Dogs also have their likes and dislike as human beings have theirs. They do not give equal importance to everyone they meet. They are selective in nature.

#2. Dogs do not like delivery boys. I do not know the reason but when they see the Zomato, Swiggy for food deliveries or Amazon packets they are rather unkind to them. They keep on barking. No one knows the reason but it is observable.

#3. You do not have to try to make friends with dogs. There are certain vibrations and sensations of people they like and they get drawn towards them and become friendly to them.

To conclude

Not all dogs who come into your lives are special for you but when you find a friend in a dog the friendship lasts a lifetime.

If a dog becomes your friend enjoy the companionship. My experiences with dogs are aptly described in the quotation below:

“A dog doesn’t care if you’re rich or poor, educated or illiterate, clever or dull. Give him your heart and he will give you his.” — John Grogan

©Dr. Preeti Singh, 2021.