Jackie

Jackie

I am not very good with pets. Taking them for vaccination, giving them food regularly…that’s all I can do. But getting any closer than that is beyond me. I get all nervous and scared the moment they start cuddling around your feet or any such thing.

A dog is said to be man’s best friend. No other animal is as loyal to him as a dog. My aged parents are alone in our old house. All their children are settled elsewhere with their families. Recently, my father acquired a small puppy as a pet. I am not sure of its breed but it looks so much like a Moscow watch dog. Considering the responsibilities of keeping a pet dog like taking to the vet when ill and for vaccination, keeping them from biting or scratching guests, etc., …all of which is a huge mental block for me, I thought my father was taking up a Himalayan task. So, my father’s decision of keeping a pet dog worried me because at his age, how he was going to manage all these things was unimaginable for me. However, with no children around, my parents’ full attention was on the puppy. With their excessive care and doting, the puppy has rapidly grown up and is almost as tall as my father when he stands up and puts his front paws on his shoulder.

The dog’s name is Jackie and he is a faithful pet.  My father takes him out when he goes for his evening walk every day.    But, the young spirit inside him is so excited with the new world around him and so he wants to go everywhere, even dashing across the road or going near any big vehicle. My father has a tough time controlling him but nevertheless, master and dog are very happy together.   

Now, my parents have to go for a little bit of travelling and will be out of station for almost a week.  It is a sort of a vacation cum pilgrimage trip. Their big tension at this juncture is where Jackie will stay during their absence. So, the first thing my father asked me was whether I would be able to keep him at my place. I said I would. So, it was decided that way. But the next morning he called up again and said since we had our own dog, whose name is Hercules and is exactly herculean in nature and always picks a big fight with Jackie whenever they meet, he was having second thoughts about Jackie’s safety. So, he had been asking around. Our cousin who lives next door to my parents has a dog of her own and when my father asked her, she readily agreed to look after Jackie while my parents are away. Her own dog is quite grown up and mature and treats Jackie like a younger brother. So, my father is feeling reassured about Jackie’s well-being. My mother gave my cousin so many things which she thought Jackie might need. With a heavy heart, they left for their trip.

During their absence they kept on enquiring about his well-being. Finally, after almost a week, they came back. I received them at the airport and after having lunch together at my place, I took them to their residence. Jackie came rushing out even before he heard my parents’ voices calling out his name. Maybe it was their scent which he caught from a distance.

Instantly, he was all over my father. My father asked my mother to bring out the biscuits they had bought for him. My mother fumbled in her bag and finally brought out the biscuits but he was not interested. He whined and made small purring sounds and put his hands on my father’s shoulders as if he was hugging him. After greeting my father, he then turned to my mother and did the same routine and finally put his head on my mother’s lap who had sat down on a chair as she was almost stumbling with Jackie’s overt attention. During the whole time, he completely ignored me!

I was so surprised with the whole scenario. The emotions and sentiments expressed so lucidly by a pet are more than an average person's. Though it cannot speak our language, the expression in its eyes seems to be saying,” Where have you been all these days? I was worried thinking what might have happened to you? Don’t go away again. “

I was so touched and realized that this is the reason why people keep pets. Their firm loyalty and faithfulness are straight from the heart. Virtues like these are rarely seen nowadays in our own kind. There is a thing or two we can learn from our pets!

 

Memchoubi Phanjoubam