By:- S.M. SHRIDHAR
I pulled up my car in the lane being blocked by a scene. Two well dressed men tightly holding on to the chain of their pets and pounding over each other delivering loud hot words complaining about the misbehavior of each other’s dog. I enquired from a boy standing there…
“It is a dogfight and happens oftentimes.” He said
“But the dogs are not fighting.” I Commented smilingly.
“Uncles are playing their roles.” The boy said loudly and ran away.
The boy’s narrative invoked the both uncle’s good sense and exchanging hot glances they walked opposite pulling the dog chains. I saluted towards them and drove ahead.
The other day I was driving to my friend’s place to honour his invitation for evening tea. I was not very sure of the purpose of the invitation but to my guess it might just be to have my applause for his newly purchased BMW. At his gate I pressed the bell button and got a barking welcome from his pet dog and the welcome continued till my friend appeared. He held my hand and walked me inside. The dog blocked my walk, sniffing my shoes and then perching his hands on my legs. My friend applauded his pet’s love for the guest. I was feeling otherwise. We sat down on the lawn over tea. He had invited me to brag about his newly acquired SUV and to demean my old car. While I was devising measures to save my shoes and trousers from his dear pet my friend shifted his boast from SUV to his pet and then about the investment on the online procurement of summer and winter dresses, shoes etc.for his fond pet inter alia telling me with pride that he has named his pet,’ Lloyd.’ His father, a retired college principal, joined us. Lloyd left me and started showing his love to the father. I could read from his face that the father was not feeling quite comfortable with Lloyd. A good riddance that my friend declared that he had to take Lloyd out for a walk.
Many of my friends talk very highly of their pet dogs whom they have given dignified names, mostly European and love to converse with them in English while they themselves may not be well conversant with the foreign language. Their belief that the pets having been given the European names have Oxford orientation. They let their pets to sit on their beds, sofas and kitchen and even kiss them. A matter of pride for the pet keepers that their pet is fond of a particular brand of biscuits and refuses if served other brands. One of my friends told me that he does have a liking for pets but he does not intend to infringe their natural freedom and sexual independence. Well, for me it was petty for pets.
Evening time is a fine time when the majority of people love to connect themselves with nature by taking a stroll amidst nature in the open out of home. But the pet keepers love to give company to their pets for shit there perpetually peeping the poo point praying for prompt poop. The pets have their own mood to oblige their master and the master in no mood to care whether the shit is falling in the middle of the road meant for pedestrians or the shit may adorn the front of someone’s gate. By chance and unfortunately, if the owner of the gate spots the event then the master very casually expresses his helplessness over the control on the shit of the animal. You pick a fight if you contest further.
The morning and evening walk is disturbed by the pet walkers when you have to save yourself from the dog bite. An incident of another time terrifies me even now when I recall the horrid face off. A thin lean girl was dragged forcefully by a giraffe size dog and I had to practically hide
myself inside an open gate of a house fearing the assault. And if that had happened, the girl would simply have fled, abandoning her pretty pet.
The dog enjoys a staggering variety of breeds.There are about three hundred forty recorded breeds of pet dogs on the globe, a privilege not granted to any other animal. Dogs may be the only animal on the globe enjoying fate like humans. It is, however, a matter of envy that there are millions of dogs straying in the streets and on the busy roads with no surety for food to eat and place to sleep. On the other hand God has created certain special breeds of dogs who have a commercial value and enjoy the warmth of cosy laps and a special variety of food to eat and comfortable beds to sleep in the homes of billionaires, top politicians, Bollywood Hollywood heroines etc. However, there is law making it illegal to kill the stray dogs but no law against the slaughtering of similar four legged animals by the humans for the taste of the tongue. One of my friends once related the story of how his entire family sat in a circle around their incapacitated pet counting his last breath and that it was only when he chanted some shlokas from holy Gita that his family and the pet were relieved. We would be failing in epical reminiscence if we forget to eulogise Yudhishtir’s passion for his dog when he decides to renounce his berth in heaven upon Lord Indra’s refusal to let his dog board the chariot proceeding to heaven.
The dog has been considered the most loyal animal to mankind but also epitomised with greed. Well! Can loyalty and greed go together? The dog is the most trusted and friendly animal and yet, the man is averse to being called,’ Son of a Dog.’ Rather feels pride in being called,’ Son of a Lion.” Where is the preference when both the subject fathers are animals only. The dog is the best companion of man: lives in his house, sleeps on his bed and sofa, travels in his car, fed with passion and possession of a pet brings pride. But alas! The dog’s death is hated with despisal. Lest anyone should meet a dog’s death.
There may be other animals with curly tails but the humans have a special fancy for curly tails of dogs. The pets with curly tails are preferred but the curly tail in itself is hated. The popular saying is that the curly tail of a dog was put in a steel pipe for straightening and when taken out after twelve years it curled back to original. The point is why humans want to straighten the tail when it has been made curly by the god. Strange that human incorrigibility is mischievously attributed to the dog’s curly tail. The audacity of humans is compared with dog’s some bone. The pets are loved but the laundryman’s dog is bestowed with special attributes about its whereabouts: neither home nor riverbank like a person who has run out of options. The sudden and unexpected rise of a person is generally dogged,’ Every dog has a day.’ Why only dog? Every animal has a day in its life. The powerful persons have their rivals oftenly saying,’ Every dog is a lion in its own street.’ Any person spurning the offered luxury is generally equated with dog,’ The dog cannot digest the butter,’
All animals wag their tail when needed but the dog’s wagging is linked to sycophancy because the dog’s wagging tail is synchronised with body language. And during the act of sycophancy by humans they bind their hands on their back, perhaps to soothe their Coccyx (Human tail bone) tending to wag. And during the cowardly act the dog pulls in the tail between the legs and flees the spot.
The dog is loyal, yes, very loyal till the morsel is coming his way unabated. The dog is loyal to man but not to his own brethren that is why,’Dog barks Dog.’ Humans have faith in dogs but mistrust for fellow humans.The stark enmity between two persons is punned,’Brick-Dog enmity.’
Why would a non living material, that is, brick hate a living creature and vice versa? This is a research point. Hypocrisy is the way of life. Biscuits for the pets and bricks for the street dogs. Ah! Farcical double standards?
There are numerous animals which coexist in our society but the dog is the closest one with the human. All other animals deliver something, some way to mankind but the dog is the one which does not contribute anything to the society it lives in. In the streets and roads it roams about waywardly or sleeps carefreely and at night it barks when the residents need a peaceful sleep in silence. And what to talk about the pets. They wake up at their will, enjoy a passionate welcome and food, roam about freely and sleep. One member is duty bound to walk him in the open for the shit which he does at his own choice. The dog in general sleeps when the whole world is at work and barks against peace when the world sleeps. The dog lives rightfully with humans but humans living with humans often go doggish like,’ Brother living with married sister and son-in-law at in-law’s place is equated with dog. It is strange and weird too that the protocol of comparisons and attributes of dogs has been discovered / invented by human beings and not dogs.
One day I was driving through a busy road and passed by a temple very popular among the locals. I spotted a crowd of beggars near the temple surrounding a person distributing food packets. The crowd seemed unmanageable and the person in problem. I looked closely and to my surprise the person was none other than my friend’s father, a retired principal. I parked my car in the temple parking lot and rushed for help. I greeted my friend’s father and took control of the situation directing the crowd to form a queue. After we were done I asked uncle the occasion for the food distribution. Uncle seemed trying to avoid the answer but a little more request I got to know that that was his birthday. The birthday cake was no option. I requested him for a cup of coffee in a cafe. Once there I ordered two pastries and thus we celebrated the birthday. I asked uncle about the celebration of birthday at home and uncle simply smiled to avoid the answer. I tried in vain to find the answer for lack of love for elders.
I got an invitation from Lloyd friend for a birthday party. I Purchased a costly gift for my friend and arrived there at the right time and parked my car among the many already there. Reaching inside I got a glittering birthday cap as everyone out there was wearing one. To my amazement lloyd was also wearing the birthday cap. The only exception was uncle. Everyone in the party was in an upbeat mood: cutting jokes, laughing ostentatiously loud. I handed my friend the gift wishing him a happy birthday. He took the gift and placed that among the gifts lying on a side sofa. After about half an hour when all the guests seemingly had arrived the birthday cake was laid out on a table placed in the center. A chair was placed alongside the table on the cake side. It sounded like an aberration to me. And then to my bewilderment Lloyd was made to sit on the chair and cake was cut amidst the chanting,’ Happy Birthday to lloyd.’ The cake bearing the name ‘Lloyd’ was cut into pieces and the guests longed on for their cut. I was a fool to have not known about the actual fact of the birthday. A sense of aversion erupted inside me. I looked at uncle’s face. He too was among the guests clapping for lloyd. Our eyes met and I could unmistakably sense the disdain on his face and invisible tears held inside. The moment was difficult for me to stay there anymore. I took out my mobile and feigned an incoming call alluding an emergency at the caller’s end. Continuing the call I took leave from my friend, sounding emergency. My friend chased me and handed out cake piece and I took the exit.
Outside I sat in the car for a little while, eyes closed, pondering over the scene inside. I opened my eyes and spotted a stray dog sitting docilely on the roadside. I felt that the cake in my hand was worth him and not me.
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