Life with dogs

My dogs are my family. They cannot speak but they communicate very effectively. My older dog Ninna is now ten years old. When we moved to Sharjah from Bombay I decided I wanted a dog. I had been wanting a pet for as long as I could remember but my mother was always against it because she thought my sister and I would not take responsibility for it. I longed for a dog.

When Ninna came home she was a two month old puppy and she would put her little paws on the bed and ask to be picked up. Today she is ten years old and has gained a bit of weight and finds it a little hard to climb up on to the bed so she stands there looking at me with her innocent eyes wanting to be picked up. Mili, my two year old on the other hand can climb, hop, jump over anything and everything. Together, they've destroyed my sofa, they tore up the leather then systematically chewed up the sponge inside it. I have to cover the damn thing with a blanket when guests come home.

I gave them a bath today and it is quite a task as any dog parent would know. Ninna hates getting water on her face and no matter how gentle I try to be with her, she tries her best to jump out of the tub and escape my evil paws. I hold her by one leg and bathe her with my free hand. Mili doesn't mind bathing so much and she's smaller so it's a lot easier for me to handle her. She doesn't mind water on her face and likes to lick Ninna after bath. Both of them love being towel dried and brushed. And when the spa treatment is over they like to sit in the sun and snooze for the rest of the day.

Ninna, for some reason, doesn't like walking on grass. Mili on the other hand has a tough time walking on the path where I'm trying to lead her. I don't think it's possible for Mili to walk in a straight line. Once or twice she got off her leash and ran off. Anshuman and I had to go running around yelling her name and chasing her around the car park. She's so spoilt, my little Mili. She is actually hand fed by me otherwise she ignores her food. I don't mind but I think I've really spoilt her too much.

I love my two munchkins. As Anshuman always says,"In my next life, I want to be born as a dog in your house."