Edited by – Abhirami
Disclaimer : The author of this piece is not a hater of cats. They love cats and would like to have one (at least) ideally.
There is a famous saying that goes, “Dogs are man’s best friend”. While that is true in most cases, I believe that they are much more than just humans’ best friends. If you thought I was going to say family, you were wrong (just for the sake of this point, not in reality). Dogs are mystical creatures that were sent to Earth so that they can provide love and cuddles along with other practical services to humans, and most importantly, look adorable and be perpetual babies. Sure, it can be argued that chihuahuas are actually evil incarnate, but the world needs balance. From a more scientific point of view, dogs evolved from wolves. But this does not mean that they are any less mystical. In fact, wolves, by virtue of being their ancestors, can be seen as the first generation of mystical, adorable, floofy, creatures that descended upon earth. A characteristic of these floofy, mystical creatures aka dogs that is overstated in numeric terms among their kind is their intelligence. Some dogs are intelligent (in the cognitive sense), most others are stupid. Case in point : my dog, Ruby.
Ruby is an indie dog who came into our lives in May 2021. I believe that the universe had smoked something way too much that day because how she came to us is not how dogs usually come to their humans. Ruby was found hiding between the big leaves of one of the plants in our house by the person who delivers gas cylinders. Things happened after that discovery but to sum it up, she refused to leave so we adopted her (or rather, she adopted us). This is how the cat distribution system works- dogs don’t enter people’s life that way. Going back to my theory of how dogs are mystical creatures, Ruby’s case definitely fits that description. The mostly jet black coat, white socks on three paws, brown eyes that can melt the hearts of even people who are not that fond of dogs, and one-floppy-one-not ears further confirm this.
Those who promote the adoption of Indian dogs often put emphasis on how intelligent they are. What they don’t mention is that it is not all indies – those like Ruby also exist. This one cannot understand the concept of reflections or videos. I have tried to show her herself through a selfie but what does she do? Ignore it! Like, dogs on the internet do much better than this, please try to learn something from that and improve your perception skills. Also, the number of times people have tried talking to her over a video call and failed, all because this idiot cannot fathom that the people calling her are doing so through another medium. I have seen videos of dogs and cats video calling each other and having full blown conversations so having Ruby at home seems dull in comparison. I am not trying to be like the toxic parent that compares their child with others their age. Unlike the toxic parents, I find her stupidity endearing. The lack of perception is her personality and that is alright. It is good to break stereotypes.
Another facet of Ruby’s stupidity/lack of perception is her perception of space and territory. According to her, the entirety of our immediate neighborhood, the pieces of land just outside of our neighborhood, the road that leads to our place, and even the sky there in these places belongs to her – it is her territory. Because of this, it is not uncommon for her to bark at crows chilling on our neighbor’s terrace. She tries to chase the stray dogs that “encroach” her territory (albeit somewhat unsuccessfully as they always come back at night when she is not out) but not the fancy breeds. This behavior of hers does not really go with the egalitarian, anti-caste, anti-class vibe of our family. However, considering the fact that she may have been abused and traumatized before coming to us, I do suppose I can overlook it ONLY for her. Anyways, coming back to the topic of her being territorial, the way she tries to chase encroachers (not limited to stray dogs) away is unorthodox to say the least. Other dogs bark when they see other animals encroaching their territory, Ruby cries loudly. Her crying is so loud that even the neighbors who were indoors would come outside and check if everything was okay. If Ruby had a better understanding of things, this is what I would tell her : Both of us know how much of a scaredy cat (sorry not sorry for comparing you to your nemesis) you are. But, if you are putting on a facade of bravery, at least do it properly.
Even with all of this, I believe that the mystical creature that came to my life through a mismanagement of the cat distribution system aka Ruby is the best thing to happen. To Ruby : Your loud crying, although it makes me want to tear my ears off, is a part of your personality. This actually alerts us if stray dogs come in and makes our job of getting them out easier. Since we don’t know the health status of the strays, they can actually pose a threat to you and to us so alerting us about their presence is helpful.Also, I do admit that you have successfully chased some of them away a few times and you do deserve credit for that but please don’t do it at 2 AM in the morning- people need to sleep at that hour. Also, keep language barriers in mind – people from our family know that when you bark at other humans, you are asking them to give you attention and play with you. The other humans don’t know that so maybe you can do something about that? Actually, nevermind, because their reaction lets me see who I can vibe with and who I can’t, so go ahead. I am proud of you. Last but not the least, I love you so much. But also, try being a little less classist and more open minded because this is the 21st century- this would not have flown if you were a human as people are going to think that you are regressive . Being open minded is an integral skill moving forward in the 21st century and you will need it to become a 21st century dog.