The calm after the snowstorm

I left off saying that we had found a home for Snowflake.

My husband & I spent a beautiful week with her. She was blossoming. Her confidence was improving and more than anything else, she looked happy. When Saturday drew nearer...a feeling of dread settled in... I was going to miss this dog. I remember sitting in my apartment complex, watching her roll on the grass and thinking how this would be the last time she would do that.... how empty my life would seem after the furor she had created. But go she had to. Saturday came sooner than I thought and Anusha (Snowflake's mom to be ) came to get Snow... both my husband and I were teary eyed from a night of no sleep and a lot of crying.

I don't know what it was but Snowflake knew immediately that something was happening and that she would leave soon. She had taken over this easy chair in our house and claimed it as her own in the week that she was with us.... and almost as if it was her safe haven, she jumped onto it and sat there believing that if she sat there, she'd be able to stay forever.

Anusha and her friend (who had come to help her take Snowflake) saw the connection instantly and even suggested we keep the dog. But we knew we couldn't.... Anusha hugged her, cuddled her... and she was happy about that but through it all... she just looked at me, eyes steady, not blinking... and we spoke. I know all of you are probably rolling your eyes now but really - we spoke.Through our eyes. Mine all bleary from the tears and hers, stoic and unbelievably sad. She willed me to not do what she knew I was about to do....and before my resolve melted, I let her go.

But nothing prepared either me or my husband for what was to follow! After a night of crying and no sleep, we were in for another.... and I'm telling you - it felt like my heart was aching. There was a physical ache! My husband was howling like a baby! We spent the whole night texting Anusha asking her how Snowflake was, had she eaten, had she taken her medicines, was she crying....sigh..... We finally stopped texting her at 3am and settled down to a restless night. At 10am the next morning, my husband asked me rather sheepishly " Do you think it will be horrible if we asked for her back?" We were both worried. It was not a very nice thing to do to Anusha but we realised that this quiet, unassuming dog had gotten under our skin and we were more lost without her that she was without us! So my husband called Anusha who said she understood completely and asked us to come and get her....I swear, it felt like I had breathed for the first time in 24 hours!

Without wasting a moment or even giving anything else a thought, we jumped into the car and drove to Chennai, stopping only for a cup of coffee on the way.

I'm telling you, the reunion was something from a movie!LOL! Snowflake saw us and went crazy!!! I burst out crying and my husband looked suspiciously misty eyed too. Even our driver was howling!! LOL! Our baby was finally coming home. We drove back the same evening and finally reached home at 3am... tired but very very happy.

Snowflake knew she was home too and the first thing she did was jump into her chair! She's home now and as each day goes by, she's becoming more and more our little princess :-)

Homo proponit, sed Deus disponit : Man proposes, but God disposes

Homeless and scared

Never has this phrase held such truth in my life.

I was browsing the "Dog Lovers of Bangalore" community on Orkut when I came across an urgent plea. I clicked on the link more out of curiosity than anything else.... and lo and behold, I saw her... the pictures of this dog were taken by a girl called Shilpa, who is studying to be a doctor in Russia. She was here for her vacations and saw this dog on her street -either abandoned or lost, alone and clearly very very scared. She asked around if anyone had a dog missing but no one seemed to. She was going back to study in a couple of weeks and her family wanted her to place this dog as soon as possible as they already had a pet dog at home who wasn’t happy with this new addition.

Something in this dog’s eyes just spoke to me. I knew the moment I saw her that I had to make sure she would be ok… I called Shilpa, got directions and my father, who was visiting, and I were at her place in a heartbeat.
Since Shilpa’s house dog wouldn’t let this dog enter the house, they had put her just outside their door, on a mat, trying to keep her as warm as possible.
We went armed with some treats, knowing that the best way to gain trust was to feed an animal. We found out, we could have done without.
We weren't prepared for the outburst of love and excitement this dog showered on us. From the moment she saw us, she wagged her tail like there was a turbo engine attached to it and looked at uswith limp yet adoring eyes. We were sold.

I realized that time was of the essence. The dog catchers in Bangalore were closing in so I decided to bring her to my home till we found a permanent home for her.I would be damned if I let another helpless dog die without getting a fair chance.

The hunt was on! First, I had to decide on a name… I don’t know why but the first thing that popped in my mind when I saw her was “Snowflake” She was as pure and silent as that.
I posted on our blog: http://www.adoptstrays.com/ and then the waiting game began… A day later, I realized that our blog was sadly not one of the better read… so I decided to post it on a more visible site….. that’s when petnopolis came into the picture.
Burges, one of the founding members of Petnopolis took a personal interest and together, over two days and nights, we went through each of the 50 odd responses with a fine toothed comb.
I commend this guy for his dedication and persistence. He shared my belief that Snowflake needed a home that would not only provide shelter and food but oodles of love and cuddles.
We called the people we had short listed but nothing seemed to fit… either they were not true dog lovers or their plan was to convert a pure breed female Labrador like Snowflake into a puppy machine or their living conditions didn’t match what Snowflake was used to. She was a year old so she had some habits which would be hard to break…like eating non veg for example.

Three days of hunting went by and I was beginning to lose hope when suddenly, I got call from this girl who sounded like she was as crazy about dogs as I was. I liked her instantly.
She lives in Chennai and was travelling so she requested me to keep Snowflake for a week after which she would drive down and get her. She explained that she lived in a large house with a lot of space and Snowflake would have a five year old Cocker Spaniel for company. She fed her dog non-veg food and the house also had access to the beach! It sounded like a match made in heaven!
Both Burges and I heaved a sigh of relief and decided that this was ideal for Snowflake.

Snowflake is with me this week while she waits for her new mom to come get her. She has taken over every nook and cranny of the house and is almost unrecognizable! From the gaunt, scared dog to the tigress of Cunningham Road – this snowflake has indeed settled.

Here are updated pictures of her new, albeit temporary, life:

It's a dog's life - but someone's gotta live it.

Sleeping on the job

Another dog .... another sad day for human kind. Shame on us. Really.
Sunshine, a beautiful, lovable and extremely snugly golden Cocker Spaniel was left to breathe her last at CUPA by her horrible ex-owners.
With not a care in the world, they abandoned this beautiful, yet helpless dog in the twilight of her life and went about life as if nothing had happened.
Me and a few of the members of this blog tried to place sunshine but we had very few takers for a blind dog... I was losing hope and getting restless. My fellow bloggers sent me encouraging emails, telling me to keep my faith in mankind intact and that very soon, the sun would shine for this dog...
Unfortunately, we were all wrong.
Sunshine passed away, alone, scared and totally helpless at the CUPA shelter last week.
So, again... what we all did was stand and stare.
I feel like my energy and enthusiasm died with her and it's shaken me up quite a bit.
I remember holding this quivering dog in my arms, hoping to comfort her, in what I didn't know were her last few days... she was shy at first, vary...wondering who I was and if I would inflict cruelty that hadn't already been inflicted on her...but when she felt my touch and heard me whisper loving words in her ear, she relaxed and blossomed....a lot like a flower... and she shone...oh how she shone..and that's when I thought...she's like a little sunflower...that faces the sun and shines... and that was the moment I knew that she should be called Sunshine. Later that evening, Jellicles and I were chatting online and we both agreed that Sunshine was truly befitting a name for her.
Sunshine sat in my lap for over two hours, often nuzzling the crook of my arm when I stopped petting her...gently reminding me that the caresses should continue.... I wept like a baby at her plight and she licked my tears to comfort me .... almost as though she understood that I felt her pain.... I left the shelter... completely heartbroken with the promise that I would do everything in my power to give Sunshine a decent home to pass the last few years of her life with dignity and love.
I failed. And if I could, I wish I could apologize to her...because I did promise... to come back...and take her to a home where she would be loved.
I feel I've failed. Not only have I failed her... but I feel that we as a race have failed.
If you beg to differ... tell me... how do you justify leaving a loving companion in the twilight of her life.... to die a lonely death in unfamiliar surroundings?

Stand and Stare

What is this life if full of care
We have no time to stand and stare?
No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep, or cows.
No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.
No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.

No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.
A poor life this, if full of care,

We have no time to stand and stare.

- William Henry Davies 1871 - 1940

And yet we do - stare. I know I did. In horror when I saw this beautiful spaniel who is currently housed at CUPA. She was brought in by her owners who didn't want her because she had become blind. After a few years of having her around, she was redundant now. They could no longer show her off so they decided to dump her - just like a lot of young people dump the elderly into old people's homes.If I ever met the owners, I'd want to shake them to "see" her again, with renewed vision becuase really - I think they are the blind ones.And they call themselves humans - bah!

Some of us at CUPA call her sunshine.... she is blindening and spreads so much joy

And my life changed.....

I truly believe that everything happens for a reason. And today, after what I feel has been one of the truly enriching experiences of my life, I believe it more than ever.

It started pretty innocently. One of our closest friend's in Bangalore invited us for drinks to a pub. We are relatively new here so meeting new people is always good. Over deafening music and lip-smacking food, somehow conversation veered towards animals and my love for them. I was desperately looking for an animal shelter that was good and could do with some help. One of the people at our table said she had heard of such a place. My ears perked up - NOW we were talking! We decided to check this place out and after a few email exchanges over the week, we met and set out for Compassion Unlimited Plus Action (CUPA) Headquarters.

Over the years I have always been associated in one way or the other with stray animals and shelters for them. I have seen some pretty horrific sights. From uncaring staff, improper use of funds to complete ignorance about animals and their welfare - I have seen it all and it can be quite grim. So with no illusions and only the lure of having the opportunity of playing with puppies, I entered this facility.

I knew immediately that this was not just a shelter. It was a safe haven for animals that have been abandoned, have deformities or to whom life has been a little less kind.
Situated in the compound of the Karnataka Veterinary and Fisheries Science University in Hebbal, this 10 ½ acre sanctuary is maintained and run by a small group of dedicated and hard working people. I had the opportunity to interact with a couple of them and their affection for the place and what they do was palpable. When I visited for the first time, the facility had cats, rabbits, cows, horses and of course – dogs. Incidentally, CUPA is also a crèche for pets whose owners are travelling and who need a home for a short time. They also house the animals that are being treated at the hospital.

From the three-legged Micheal (a white, black & brown street dog with an attitude of gold) to the completely blind alsation who looks out at nothingness but rolls on her back with affection, paws flailing when she makes human contact, I realised one thing very quickly : these animals were not unfortunate, they were home. All the animals were well fed, well treated and above all – loved. If life was fair, these dogs could all live at CUPA - always. But who says life's fair? The resources are limited and space - a constraint. CUPA volunteers and members are tirelessly on the lookout for a good home for these animals so that they can take in the next lot of unfortunate beings.

Being a staunch dog lover, I was in heaven. I had gone there armed with biscuits, thinking I'd feed a few dogs, pat a few puppies and leave. We stayed for 3 hours and I felt like I knew everyone and every animal there. I had come home.

I left with a lot of hesitation but with a promise of going back next weekend. The eager yaps and frantically shaking tails that will meet me is motivation enough.

Funnily enough, after this experience, I felt more rescued than the animals at the shelter :-)

If you'd like to be rescued too, please do visit www.cupabangalore.org or http://adoptstrays.blogspot.com