“Paw-Tales” l May-June 2006

Being a grandmother is truly a wonderful feeling, which I underwent recently, when my daughter (Golden Retriever MAGIC) had a litter. Those wonderful days of being a Grandmother were truly the most magical experience of my life. The plethora of emotions that I was engulfed with from the initial joy of looking forward to the bundles, then pangs of guilt as I saw the mother suffer during the last stages of pregnancy, the fear and anxiety during whelping and finally to the sad tears shed as I gave away each one. Those two months were truly amazing. Well, it all began with the first logical step, the match making. I would not settle for anything less for my beautiful, gentle, fair princess. I found ‘Muffin’, exactly the tall, dark and handsome kinds. He is dark golden, an import from Europe with excellent pedigree. “Magic & Muffin” form a perfect couple; we could picture this ideal recipe for charming little sweetie pies! The romance and tender moments soon resulted in the obvious. My child was pregnant and needed pampering. So I took extra care of her and added supplements to her diet, like dates, figs, fruits and greens and numerous supplements with regular exercise. As the D-day arrived I was concerned about Magic. We had made the arrangements, but soon we realized that she had her own plans and quickly shifted to her preferred spot, which was in the living room next to the couch. Quiet a few sleepless nights passed before she finally decided to bring her little ones into the world. The manner in which she handled everything on her own was truly incredible. She gave birth to eight cute puppies, out of which only six survived. We had six sweet darlings and after 10 days, the fun began. Our house became the most popular hangout for all kids in the campus and the pups gained popularity in no time. The pups grew fast, opened eyes on 15th day and walked on 18th day. After 4 weeks we shifted them to a big kennel in a large enclosure with a gate. It was amusing to see them play and fight amongst themselves and their toys, to see the ‘packing order’ being established, and to notice who’s the bully, sweet and shy one in the pack. We knew pups’s personality and had given them our own pet names. Soon, it was time to think about the inevitable, time to find good homes for my jewels. Puff! The magical muffins were all booked in an instant. They all found loving homes, I was happy for them but really missed their sweet antics. – Ramya Bharadwaj