Parenting A Pet

Way to happier and fulfilling life: My pets For Preeti Goswami, each of her five ‘little one’ has some unique property I have five pet dogs Milo, Zen, Helen, Roxy and Don. They are all the local breed of the hills the Himalayan Bhutia and Gaddi. I feel all my pets are God's gift for me as I never intended to adopt they just came my way. Why I say this is because all of them were abandoned on the streets and I was the lucky one to find them. I found Milo and his brother who could not survive abandoned in Jageshwar Dhaam where I was visiting and I got him the same year my mother passed away so I feel he is a gift from her. Helen and Roxy I found last year in December by the roadside. I could not have left them there in that condition. And Don someone left at my gate and he had severe skin infection and totally cured now. Zen was the Son of my earlier dogs who passed away. My relationship with each one of them is unique Milo being my eldest son is the most sensible one and understands each and everything about me. He also is the most possessive about me. Milo and I have a beautiful relationship as we have travelled a lot together he was my companion on a lot of trips and also there with me when I was volunteering for an NGO. He loves to sit in the front seat of my car and go on trips. Zen is the shy one he listens to Milo more then me, I guess because Milo is the Alpha male of the group. Roxy is the most thankful and humble one whenever she wants to ask for something she will request you by lying on the floor or just sits and stares at you in the most innocent and sweet manner. Helen I have never seen a dog so demanding and talkative she will express herself with weird sounds and Barking. And she is also the one who will pick fights and steal from the dinning table. But she is the most forgiving one because if you scream at her she will be normal in a second where as my other dogs I have to pet and apologise. Don is the youngest of the lot and the naughtiest one. He wants to play all the time and just bite anything he can get his mouth on from your feet to socks to my bed sheets and the list is endless. I didn't have to develop a fondness for them it was a natural process, the same as the bond that is built between a mother and a child. For me they are my children and I tell everyone that I have five children. All the staff at my place addresses me as their mother. My day begins and ends with them. Until I'm awake they all in rounds keep coming to my room and in my half awake state I keep petting them. All the dogs keep following my schedule if I'm not awake they come back from their walks and keep lying down until I wake up and as I wake up and go to cook in the kitchen they are sitting outside the kitchen and waiting to see what am I cooking. I spend my entire day with them when I'm at home they are my companions and I don't feel the need for any company when they are around. I love my babies I take good care of them. In the morning they start their day with milk thanks to our cow Basanti at the farm. This is my dad's duty and he gives them biscuits. Then their food is served we give them a mix of rice and dalia and mix in it the vegetables growing at the farm. Then they eat some breakfast with us. Evening time we treat them with biscuits, they get their dinner by 5pm and then eat at 9 pm some chapattis with desi ghee I brush them once in two days as all of them are really hairy. And we give them a bath every two weeks. I make sure I deworm them every three months and get them vaccinated yearly. It is so true that pets teach you the value of unconditional love. They teach you to trust more and their happy state of mind is the positive energy I derive from them. I can never be sad around them because they notice your moods and react accordingly. My Milo, I think, has the best sense of humour he does all these cute jumps and when he sees I'm laughing he does that more. The thing I love the most is the warm and loving welcome I get from them when I get back home. Even if I just return in half an hour, they will jump and try to kiss me and run around in happiness. I just love to go back home to them as I know they are really waiting for me and there is nothing in the world that can replace this beautiful feeling of being so wanted. In the end I would like to say they are my lifeline and on these isolated mountains I'm lucky to have these beautiful five companions who don't let me feel lonely even for a second. I'm grateful to God for this amazing gift.