Marlon Brando of Dogs

~ Lalitha Krishnan

I know.

Another dog blog!

Can’t help myself when it comes to these three mutts. The loves of my life – Chingoo, Kajal and Chokli.

[Unacceptable monkey-behaviour, according to Chingoo]
[Unacceptable monkey-behaviour, according to Chingoo]

   There are moments when Chingoo’s killer instinct surfaces and then he surprises us with his gentleness. Once a troop of 3understandsus monkeys decided to party on our tin roof, antagonizing the dogs to no end. I let them lose; Chingoo went berserk. Next thing I knew, he was pursuing the simians round and round the house with an infant monkey in his mouth; with me yelling “Drop it” in hot pursuit while wondering if the last Rabies shot I took was still valid. Things quickly turned around. It was the turn of the monkeys to act tormented. They screeched the place down and finally, Chingoo let go, of  ‘baby-in-the-mouth’, without so much as a scratch. Reunited with their kidnapped ilk, the hysterical primates promptly did the disappearing act in a blur of grey.

[Watching the Langur watching him]

[Khaleej Pheasant]

[Chingoo and Kajal] Chingoo has a great trust in humanity except, for the delivery guys. [For which he can be forgiven.] He used to take it upon himself to escort dog-friendly folk to their homes or on their walks. He learnt his lesson the hard way. He returned home one day, brutalised, the bone on his leg showing through the wound and two front teeth missing. Betrayed and all shook up, he wouldn't leave my side for days. He became rather quiet. It took him a while to get over his fear of people. That's when I decided 'absolute' freedom might not be such a great scheme in the long run.

                                                            [Chingoo and Kajal]                            Except for delivery guys, Chingoo takes kindly to humans. He used to take it upon himself to escort dog-friendly folk to their homes or on their walks. He returned home one day, brutalised, the bone on his leg showing through the wound and two of his teeth missing. He was pretty shook up by the experience and wouldn’t leave my side for days. It took him a while to get over his fear of people. Perhaps, ‘absolute’ freedom is not such a great scheme in the long run.

[Kajal=Khol]
[Kajal=Khol]
The outlined eyes, part of Kajal’s genetic make-up that Chingoo inherited. Kajal is a gentle and elegant middle-aged lady who loves her creature comforts besides being the best rat catcher I’ve known to date. She catches and then releases the rodent, sparing it a torturous death and us from dealing with a gruesome carcass. Kajal’s winter fur is as soft as goose down, I often think how cool it would be to knit it into gloves. Collectively, our dogs shed enough to lace the air, our food, and every surface of our home. They would indeed make great gloves. If I only could harness it, instead of ingesting it.

[ Kajal with a friendly calf]
[ Kajal with a friendly calf]

[Chokli as a pup]
[Chokli as a pup]
I found Chokli abandoned in a ditch on the hillside. Mistaking her yelp for a bird call, I whistled. I knew I had found a survivor when she crept out of a bush and yelped back a reply. I was instantly drawn to her hyena stripes, the glint in her bright beady eyes and the white ‘socks’ on her paws. She was one smart little stray. My husband called her a pocket edition. She may have been petite but she charged like a speeding bullet every time she saw a monkey, dog or cow. Fear was not part of her canine vocabulary. She baby-sat Chingoo when he was a pup and let him swing by her tail till he got heavier and bigger than her.

[Chokli]
[Chokli]
Chokli was also way more alert than both  Kajal and Chingoo. While they dreamt through the night; fluttering eyes, stirring paws et al, Chokli’s pointed ears would cock-up at the mere hint of a sound. She died prematurely because of a careless vet who overdosed her with antibiotics for a  fungal paw infection. She is missed.

[The threesome in better days]
                              [The threesome in better days]

Related content: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaddi_Kutta

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himalayan_Sheepdog

http://mastiffdogssite.com/Himalayan-Sheepdog.php

 

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