The lost and lonely

Sandra Bullock’s husband has hired a pet detective to look for Toto, their missing dog. The couple has been missing their “family member” ever since. While Sandra could hire a detective, the practice is not very common in India. However, we often hear sob stories of pets running away from their homes and never turning up again. The anticipation, anxiety, and feeling of loss makes it difficult for pet owners to “move on” and get another one home.
The Tewary family met with a similar fate. Their cat Dash, a Ginger Tabby, was a darling pet. Ruchika T, a student, talks about her beloved cat, “At night, while my father watched news on TV and my mother served food, Dash would sit on my lap and purr. After dinner, he sat right next to my father as he read newspaper or watched TV.” Dash was in the habit of taking his evening walks all alone. “Everyday, he used to go out for half an hour and come back by himself, but he left one day and we have been waiting since then,” she adds. The Tewaris tried to look for him but couldn’t find him in the vicinity. For several days, the family waited for their cat to come back.
Although cats are known to get lost, Sudeep S, a manager’s dog Chunmun gave him a hard time too. Chunmun tried to escape whenever Sudeep opened the door of his house. She would, then, chase other dogs and run around. Even at 6 am after paying his newspaper bill, Sudeep had followed Chunmum to nearby streets. “She was so fast and before I could realise, Chunmun would be racing with other dogs. It was extremely difficult to bring her back home,” he says.
One day, Chunmun managed to escape, she lost her way and couldn’t come back home. Sudeep was also worried about her safety as she was a small Sptiz dog but attempted at chasing Dobermans. “My friend had come home and after answering the door, I realised that Chunmun was missing. I ran around and tried looking for her. I asked people if they noticed a white-coloured dog but I couldn’t find her,” he adds. This 27-year-old boy, then, came back home disheartened and cried in his mother’s arms.
Although Sudeep still misses Chunmun, he does not feel guilty. Shobha V, a homemaker, thought that she had tied her dog, Teddy, to a leash but was mistaken. She went for a walk with him but came back all alone. “My immediate reaction was worry as Teddy was only four-months-old. It took time for me to realise that he is gone and might not come back ever,” she says.
Shobha has learnt a very important lesson: It is better to be careful than at a loss. Be very careful when you take your pets out and if he/she gets lost, immediately spread the word around.