Man’s Best Friend

Geoff Wijesinghe

Dogs are very close to my heart. They are full of love and loyalty, full of mischief and very very knowledgeable. They understand everything that we talk; they carry out our instructions, most of the time, of course.

They guard the homes they are very much part of, they bark and wag their tails when they welcome someone, they bark and sometimes bite when they feel someone is unwelcome. They guard us against thieves and robbers and pull a long face with their eyes drooping and lie on the ground when they are sad. Indeed, a dog is man's best friend. And at the first sign of trouble, he is by your side.

My present pet, Rocky, a German Shephered has been part of my family for the past ten years.

Each morning, he comes into our bedroom, wakes me up and with a nod of the head, asks me to follow him to the front verandah to read the morning newspapers and have a chat. Through the years, I have learnt the fine art of chatting with dogs. I have told Rocky that when he approves of something or understands thoroughly what I tell him to wag his tail. And this he adheres to perfectly.

Unwarranted abuse

I talk to him about my achievements, my problems, my joys and sorrows. And he lies down on the ground in front of me on the front verandah and listens understandingly. His eyes are also eloquent and you can easily say when he is happy or when he is sad. Rocky was a little bundle of black fur when he was gifted to us. He now is big and strong. But, like all of us age is quietly taking its toll of him.

Ten days ago, he started shivering after a bath and had to be rushed to the Vet. He was diagnosed as having a bout of pneumonia. He has recovered after receiving medication. When Rocky was younger, I used to take him for walks early morning.

One day, as we got on to the sea-side pavement on Galle Road, a man who appeared to be an eccentric tramp, for no rhyme or reason, went into a tirade against Rocky, calling him all sorts of names. But, despite the thoroughly unwarranted abuse, he seemingly did not cognisance to the tramp's tantrums.

The next morning, we were returning home along the opposite pavement when I saw a man approaching us. As we drew alongside, Rocky pounced on the man, who kept shouting “kewa, kewa” (he bit me, bit me).

Daily walk

I discovered that it was the same tramp who had abused Rocky the previous morning. And obviously though Rocky had kept quite then, he took good note of him.

Fortunately, there was nothing serious, and after my assuring the tramp that Rocky had received all his injections, anti-rabies etc., we returned home.

The last time I took Rocky out for a walk was about three years ago. This too, was in the morning, but, later than usual, around little past seven o'clock. We were going up, when he suddenly saw a cat and breaking loose from his leash, which was in my hand, he started chasing it.

This resulted in my falling on my back into a big pothole, right in the center of our lane. There I was with my bottom trapped in the pothole, and my legs askew on the surface, quite helpless to get up. Fortunately, the elderly lady living at the back of our house was returning after buying her morning loaf of bread. Seeing my predicament, she summoned the assistance of some security guards in her stentorian voice.

Soon, I was back on my feet. But I had a bigger problem, Rocky was trotting up the lane in gay abandon, evidently feeling free as a bird.

Now the attention was on him and the security guards and people on the Galle Road pavement ran for cover as Rocky turned right with me rolling along behind him, calling out "Rocky, Rocky, stop, stop, do you hear me stop like a good boy."

But Rocky went down the next lane and fortunately, down a cul de sac where I was able to catch up with him. I now recall that when Rocky was a little baby, we had a beautiful cross-bred, "Laikha". She was very kind and mothered Rocky, and even allowed him to suckle her.

Laikha earlier had her womb removed, but she regularly produced milk.

Later she developed cancer and passed away. Rocky spent many an hour by her grave, mourning his loss for several days. A few days ago, there was near pandemonium down a by-road when a pair of young, zestful and highly mischievous Labradors slipped out of the side gate left inadvertently open, of the house of a friend of mine and started moving down the road.

A flock of female students of a tutory waiting on the road for their turn to attend lectures, shrieked and ran helter-skelter along with several other pedestrians.

The tall, handsome pair of canines who had been seen slipping out of the gate by the chauffeur of the household, were given chase to.

This caused them to increase their speed, and they raced down the lane where they jumped into the rear of a parked three-wheeler.

An amusing incident

The driver who was taking a catnap, was jolted awake and turning round and having seen the two Labradors inside his vehicle, sprung out as if he had seen a ghost and rushed down an ally.

Meanwhile, the chauffeur managed with great stealth to get to his quarry. Seeing the three-wheeler driver returning, he asked him to drive them back home. But, that worthy was terribly frightened of the two Labradors and flatly refused to oblige. So, holding each firmly by the collar, the chauffeur brought the truants home without any further incident.

This reminds me of an amusing incident, which however, caused some pain to the victim. The handler of a big German Shepherd stepped out one morning for their daily walk. In fact, the dog, who was Rocky's father, belonged to a good friend of mine.

Almost simultaneously, a foreign diplomat neighbour, clad in short pants, also stepped out onto the road and began his morning jog. Promptly, the dog rushed up to the jogger, pulled down his pant bit his behind as the thoroughly shocked foreigner yelled blue murder. The handler managed to control the dog while the diplomat fled into his house. Although my friend tendered an apology, his neighbour lodged a complaint with the Police, and the records certifying that Rocky's father had received his anti-rabies injection, had to be produced. And finally, the apology accepted.