Beautiful dogs on stamps:a collector’s pride

Everyone has a hobby or two and if you are a dog lover and a philatelist, then what would you collect? Dog stamps! This is exactly what Vinayak Moorthy does. He has a huge collection of stamps featuring dogs of all breeds, sizes and ages from all over the world. Here’s a peek into his vast collection.
 
An avid animal lover, Vinayak Moorthy has a beautiful collection of over 300 stamps featuring dogs from various countries like India, US, Vietnam, Scandinavia, UK, Germany, China, Tibet, etc. Each stamp has a description of its origin and is filed neatly. It is a real pleasure to see some of the beautiful dogs on these postal stamps. This is indeed a superb way to celebrate our canines.
As Moorthy puts it, “Stamps of butterflies and different models of cars made my childhood colourful. Later, dogs became my favourite and in 1974, I started breeding dogs. My love for dogs prompted me to collect dog stamps six years back and now it has become my passion. The oldest among my collection is a Lhasa Apso breed stamp, issued by Oman in 1971. Besides this, two more stamps I treasure are – a 30-year-old Foxhound and Irish Setter stamp, issued by Cuba in 1976, and the other is issued by Mongolia in 1978, featuring GSD and Labrador. In spite of having stamps from different countries, my favourites are stamps featuring Indian breeds.”
So how do Moorthy collects stamps? “I have lots of friends in different countries and they play a major role in widening my hobby. I also buy stamps through Stamp Associations,” he added.
Moorthy has exhibited his collection in various stamp exhibitions and also at schools. How do dog lovers react to his collection? “Oh! It’s overwhelming. I received huge appreciation when I displayed my prized possession at International Dog Show, conducted by Kennel Club, in Chennai. I still cherish their warm response,” replied Moorthy.
Giving tips to people who collect dog stamps, Moorthy said, “Just like bringing up a pet, a philatelist also has thirst for collecting pet stamps. You should be aware of the breed and origin of the dog and then you can actually treasure your collection.” Just as Moorthy, who finds pride in his own collection!