Divorced Dogs!

V. K. Joshi (Bijji)

Well the title was to catch your attention, because dogs are never divorced, but their owners do part ways. The epidemic seems to be spreading in India too. Though compared to developed countries we are slightly better off in this matter.

A boy, working with a multinational company, posted in Bangalore, married a petite young girl, also working with a software giant. The boy had been crazy about dogs since childhood. He managed to convince his parents and acquired a Dachshund. And since that day he never lived without a dog. He had developed a fancy for dachshunds and continued to keep them one after another. In order to avoid unnecessary hassle of misalliance, he always preferred a dog.

Dachshunds are pack hunters. With their lithe bodies they enter the burrows of Badgers with ease and kill them underground. They are a unique breed with such a supple skin that they can turn around 360 degrees without moving their legs. This facilitates them in their hunt. Plus their ‘jet shaped’ body; broad front paws, ample chest, all help them in their hunts. When a pack attacks a hideout of badgers, some fearless ones enter the tunnels, while the others stand guard at the mouth of the tunnel to catch the escapers. Their loud barks are scary enough to scare away any one-for badgers it is a death knell!

With this back ground, I am sure the readers can make out the psyche of Dachshunds. They consider the family members of the master as their pack. The master is generally their leader. Thus, when the hero of our story today got married, his dog immediately accepted his wife as the next in command. Their pack instincts are much stronger than other breeds and hence they are difficult to train to live alone. They can be trained to live alone for an hour at best, their after they become fidgety and in their fit of nervousness they may injure themselves or damage the property. I have seen dachshunds digging underground to pass through the strong fence installed by the master. One needs to put cement concrete to a depth of about two feet to prevent a dachshund to dig through.

Since the newly wed girl was not working and the boy’s parents had gone back to their village, the pet was not feeling alone and he enjoyed her company. She did not like dogs as such, but for the sake of her adoration of her husband she had to accept the dog. For her it was a kind of love-hate relationship with the dog. Though, dog found her lap the most secure place in the world to snooze in the afternoons.
Life was fine for first two years. Thereafter, began their daily arguments. The boy had started drinking a bit in the evenings after work. The girl despised the idea. Their quarrels increased and often resulted in shouts and counter shouts, combined with the barks of the dog. He could sense something is wrong. As long as husband was not home, he would hover around the girl, sit at her feet or in her lap. But the moment he returned he would sit on his lap and would growl at her. This was another reason of their hatred.

The girl got fed up of the daily tantrums. She was a qualified girl and took up a job as a school teacher in a neighborhood school. The dachshund left home alone started throwing his tantrums too. He would make puddles on the carpet, chew off whatever he could. He scratched the door so much that it had to be replaced. And finally it happened. One evening while cleaning the mess created by the dog, husband began shouting at the wife, blaming her for her job and neglect of the house. In a fit of anger he even slapped her.

She decided enough is enough and packed her suitcase and went off to her parents by the night bus. Next two days were weekends, so he didn’t feel the pinch. He ordered food from a joint and managed. Even took the dog out on a drive. Then came the Monday, he left at 8, after feeding the dog. He had taken precautions to barricade some parts of the house with whatever he could lay his hands on. When he returned in the evening, the entire house was a mess. Dog had jumped over the fence and dug his brand new Sofa. There was foam all around. There were large pools of stinking urine and he had even passed stool-at the most inconceivable place-his bed!

Tensions reached high and in a drunken stupor he abused his wife and her parents on phone. The father in law was a police officer and he recorded the call and made her apply for a divorce on grounds of cruelty. And that was ultimately granted.

The boy’s parents refused to live with him, after hearing about his behavior. In the meanwhile his dachshund had become rowdy. Dog was insecure and hated visitors in the house. He was caged in his master’s absence and it howled.

The moral of the story is, it is good to love dogs but it is also vital to love human beings too. When a couple decide to divorce they see the inconveniences and insults faced by each other-but they forget about the fate of the poor dog, who only knows the language of love.

For him, strange are the humans!

Image (c) Gettyimages.com

14-May-2013

More By : V. K. Joshi (Bijji)

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Comments on this Blog

Welcome Radha

Dogdom
05-Jun-2013 11:41 AM

Wow! What a tragic story seen from the eyes of a dog! You have truly captured a dog's psyche in this cruel world. It is natural for us to feel pity for the children who are wrecked in a divorce, but here you awaken our senses for our pets. Thank you for showing us the value of human relations in the eyes of our pets!

Radha Joshi
28-May-2013 10:55 AM