Presha - Dog Mum to Bailey

“Anybody can be a parent but everybody cannot be a pet parent.”

Presha and Ravi with Bailey

Presha is a German language coach who works with an MNC in Gurugram, India. Her life might look normal with her daily work life from afar. But, just get a little closer and you’ll see that her life is wrapped in unconditional love for and from her pooch, with loads of slurps, drools, dog hair and slobbering kisses.

As it is said,

"We can judge a heart of a man by his treatment of animals."

And if this is the only parameter to judge a person then Presha is gifted with a heart of gold. She puts her pets above everything else. Being a pet parent is not an easy job because it comes with lot of unexpected responsibilities and since I have seen her as a Dog mum, I can't think of a pet having a better mum. It needs commitment, conscience and compassion to be a pet parent and she is blessed with all. Yes she is ably and wonderfully supported by her husband, who adores pets too.

Me: Your Journey as a Dog Mum.

Presha: My journey as a Dog Mum started when I got married and within a couple of months my husband got a Boerboel Mastiff puppy home and we named him Hooch. We did have our German Shepherd Leo at home who was 8 yrs old then, but holding Hooch in my arms for the first time made me feel like a mum. He was ‘MY’ first puppy.

Me: Transformation from Non-dog person to a Dog person.

Presha: I was always a dog person but never got a chance to keep a pooch at home before marriage. I would lunge at opportunities of playing with my friend’s pooches all the time. I also would just approach any indie pup on the road and start playing.

Me: Share some beautiful stories of your pooch babies.

Presha: Leo, Hooch and now Bailey... all of them have wonderful stories.

Handsome Leo

Leo was completely my husband’s dog and was already 8 yrs old when I got married to him. He was extremely well trained and very affectionate with me too. But the connect he had with Ravi, was that of the soul.

So anytime Ravi would try to surprise me by calling and saying that he’s getting late at office, whereas actually he would be near the colony, I would know that he’s kidding because by then Leo would go and sit next to the main door and signal that Ravi is somewhere close by.

Leo always knew when Ravi would be around or going to come home. Their bond was a story in itself.

Hooch was a big big Boerboel Mastiff and I always wanted him to do something like fetching the newspaper or do some tricks. So one day we were just discussing this in our bedroom and I mentioned it to Ravi that Hooch never does any of these tricks. To which Ravi said, Hooch is a mastiff and would not do all these things to oblige the master. He would react and protect you when it is needed.

To my surprise, the next morning when the newspaper was thrown in the balcony, Hooch sprang up from his bed and ran to the balcony and dropped the newspaper next to my feet. It was almost spooky... we hadn’t trained him to do that, it was as if he heard me talking to Ravi and just got the newspaper for me the next day. A month later, when this became a regular practice, we made a video of this and posted it on YouTube. We won a small pooch competition because of this as well.

It’s amazing how our pooches understand us and do things to let us know that they are connected at a much deeper level.

Bailey has the most positive vibe of all the pooches I’ve had so far. He almost has a calming effect on me. On days when I feel low, just petting him and hugging him helps me relieve stress and even pain.

The way he greets me and anyone else that he meets, he ensures a smile on the other person’s face instantly. He is therapeutic in his being.

Me: Challenges of being a pet parent.

Presha: As a dog parent the main challenge is to leave them behind when you step out for work or a vacation.Your heart is always in the kiddo and you want to get back with them at the earliest. India isn’t too accepting of dogs in the malls, cafes or at the workplace.

The second challenge is with respect to the first four months when you have to deal with cleaning and training. But it’s the cutest phase as well.

The third challenge can be with respect to providing the right amount of exercise to your pooch.

The last challenge is when they fall ill, have ticks or grow old. It’s like seeing your child suffer and this is when a lot of people decide not to get another dog, but they forget the good times and years that they’ve spent.

Me: German Shepherd - Mastiff - Golden Retrievers. Order them from toughest - easiest to train.

Presha: Just follow Discipline — Exercise — Affection, for all the breeds and you will get a happy dog. Generally people focus only on affection and spoil their dogs. The key to happy dogs is exercise and love. Discipline is to provide your dog with a strong pack leader.

German Shepherds are a complete breed in terms of being protective and friendly and family dogs. They are easily trainable too.

Presha with Mighty Hooch

Mastiff’s aren’t too much into pleasing the owner but will react when needed. They can be trained well but they have a mind of their own and won’t oblige too much with tricks.

Golden Retrievers are a bundle of joy with high energy. They are easy to train as well and are one of the most intelligent breeds. They shouldn’t be turned into protection or guard dogs because they aren’t meant for that. They should be used as therapy dogs and rescue operations.

Me: You sound so much like an expert. Very thorough and clear with the knowledge.

Presha: Yeah! After 3 dogs I think i’m getting there.

Me: I have seen Leo and Hooch and they both were extremely well behaved and trained. Bailey looks too well trained on your insta videos.

Presha: Yes all the dogs are well behaved and trained by us. We have always trained our dogs ourselves. The key to training is communication and connection. We never had the need to train our dogs for any show or protection trials so we never took professional help.

Our dogs have been extremely well mannered and trained only because we focused on basic commands and kept communicating with them regularly.

Me: Communication is the key in any relationship. If you break it, then we miss out on the relationship.

Presha: Yes. Totally. It applies everywhere irrespective of the species.

Me: Pet-friendly places in Gurugram.

Presha: Luckily now there are a few good places for the pooches to run and swim. Our favourite is Nadir’s Ark. There are other options like Off The Leash and Furball Story. Another good place to grab a bite with your pooch is Soul Garden.

Me: Man! So many places now. Great!Things to remember before being a pet parent.

Presha: Ravi and I follow simple and basic rules but we ensure we follow them religiously and it has worked for us. The first and foremost is selecting a breed. Be cautious while selecting a breed. Your selection should be on the basis of your expectation from a dog, your resources, time availability and activity level. Once you get a pooch home then just follow these:

• Be patient for the first few months.

• Invest time in communicating and exercise.

• Love them but don’t humanise them.

• Feed them what dogs deserve. No sweets or chocolate or pies.

Get another dog when your dog starts getting old. Don’t get into the trap of not getting a dog after your dog leaves you.

Me: That is the best advice. I have seen people not having a pet for a very long time once they lose one. I don't get it at all. Either they don't want to make the commitment all over again or they are just done with dogs. Once you are a pet parent, you are always a pet parent.

Presha: Yeah, that is why I mentioned it specifically.

Me: Dog is the man’s best friend. Share your thoughts on it.

Presha: If there is any definition of selfless love after that of your parents... it is this! While we make the dog a part of our world, he makes us his whole world. Indeed the best friend anyone could ever ask for.

I think it’s time to change the saying that a girl's best friends are diamonds. I think a puppy will trump a diamond any day.

Thank you Presha for being part the blog series. It was great talking to you and exchanging notes after years on pets. Wish you a great journey with your pooch babies.

Happy Reading!