Priyanka - Dog Mum to many
- Priyata
- Sep 21, 2018
- 5 min read
Updated: Sep 24, 2018
Priyanka had her first pet dog at the age of 13, a Great Dane, whom she called Donna. If you are a pet lover, then you can easily understand what it means to have a giant Great Dance when you are just a teenager. As she grew, her fondness for these furry creatures grew too and she decided very early about her future plans. She is one of those few people in the world, who love going to her work everyday. And the reason is that she and her husband transformed their love into work. Together they both own Progressive Kennels in Hyderabad, India.
My interaction with Priyanka started when I got to know about her through a friend in 2014. We were leaving for a vacation and needed a happy dog place for Mushroom to stay. It was for the first time I was leaving Mushroom with them and her experience was great. She says:
"My journey with dogs started right from my childhood. When I was 2.5 years old, I was sent to a boarding school and there they had 2 dogs. I was responsible for feeding them. Initially I was scared, but soon that fear converted into love and never left me."
I could not agree more when she said that popular tagline of Pepsico's Lays Chips, "No one can have just one." Though in her case it was dogs not the chips.
Me: You are surrounded by these dogs all the time. How does the connection feel like?
Priyanka: In two words, Absolute Bliss. As I told that my journey started very early. Thanks to God for not making me very studious and sincere student. Books and schools were never my cup of tea. I wanted to be around animals always and it was not only dogs. I had pigs, sheep, birds, eagles, rabbits, fish, and squirrels. I loved the concept of having a farm. Though I don't have a farm now but it is a mini farm you can say where I have lots of dogs.
Me: So you were mostly with animals and no friends around you.
Priyanka: Yes. As a kid I never had many friends and didn’t like to go to school too. All my connection and friends were these animals at home. When I was 17, I decided that I have to do something related to animals.
Me: So did you ever think of being a Vet?
Priyanka: Yes, for some time but I knew about myself and was quite aware of my performance in school so I just smartly chose a better option of being Animal Trainer.
Me: You decided of this profession at 17. Quite a difficult and risky decision at that age.
Priyanka: Oh yes it was, but for me choosing to be a Vet was a bigger risk as I was poor in academics. :)
Me: How and when did the idea of Progressive Kennels strike?
Priyanka: Progressive Kennels is Chandra (her husband) and mine dream come true. We started it in 2012 with 12 kennel space for personal dogs only. We started working together and faced lot of challenges and struggle to come where we are right now.
Now we have 2 branches and the third one is opening soon. Though we came in boarding business from 2012 but we were in to training and behavioral training since 2008.
This is our 10th year of Progressive Kennels.
Me: Wow! Congratulations for that. It is definitely a journey. So how does your day look like?
Priyanka: My day starts quite early, we have 2 dogs at home too. My elder dog Peach is 10 years old and second one is a boarder named Hugo who is 11. Both of them are quite old and don’t go out for walks. I just leave them out and then it is tea time for Chandra and me.
As I leave home at 7:30 for Kennel, so need to finish up my cooking and packing of breakfast and lunch before that. After reaching Kennel, I check on all the pets and their well being, feeding, medication, check ins and check outs, training, swimming, sending pictures to their owners, taking care of each individual owners' request and their pets. It is quite tough and sometimes stressful too , but it is a happy job we do.
Honestly dealing with pets in not stressful, it is people who make it stressful. Our job never stops because sometimes we have to attend to emergencies too.
Me: Quite a long day. You see so many breeds in and out. Which one you confirm as the most ferocious and which one is the most docile?
Priyanka: So one thing I’d like to say about this is that it is the upbringing of any dog or any breed. There is no such thing as a ferocious or a docile breed. it is all about how you raise them. That’s same with kids too.
Me: Yeah. So what has been the biggest challenge you have faced so far with your dogs.
Priyanka: The most challenging part is seeing them getting old when they go through all the pain and suffer and still they do everything to make you happy.
Me: And the most wonderful part of being a dog mum.
Priyanka: The most wonderful part is, how happy you can really be with dogs. No one has ever made me as happy as them. They just make you happiest without trying too hard.
Me: So where do you leave your pets when travelling or going for a vacation.
Priyanka: That's a tough one. Well we try not to go on a vacation together. Either Chandra or I stay back with our pets and other boarders. If we have to then we don't take bookings during that period.
Me: That is quite a commitment. You are missing on so much fun!
Priyanka: Not really. It is good to be them so we don't miss holidays much. Being with them is like a vacation only. As I mentioned, people make our job stressful not the dogs.
Me: OK! So what is the most important factor to raise a happy dog: Love, Discipline or Training?
Priyanka: All three together. Your love shouldn’t spoil the discipline of your dogs and every dog must be trained, either by their owners if they have time or by a trainer. When you can educate your kids why shouldn’t you educate your dog? So every dog and every owner must be trained. A trained dog is a happy dog.
Me: Things to think about before having a dog.
Priyanka: Before you have a dog, remember one word and that is "FOREVER." Owning a dog is not an easy task. You need to work daily to make the relationship work with your dog. So if you are not sure about it completely then please don't go for the commitment. But still you feel a lot for them, then spend some time with them in a shelter near your area. And if you are comfortable with everything, then have one for life.
Me: Your take on the campaign: Don't Shop. Adopt!
Priyanka: It is absolutely to each his own.
Me: An ideal routine of a dog.
Priyanka: Proper amount of time for play and walks. For puppies, walks and toilet training are essential. To keep them calm at home, burnout their energies in the parks and open spaces.
Me: Any suggestions for pet friendly places in Hyderabad, India.
Priyanka: Hyderabad is becoming like Banglore and Delhi with lots of pet cafes and resorts. I would recommend:
Progressive Kennels are at 2 locations in Hyderabad, India:
Thank you Priyanka for being part of the blog series, Dog Mothers. It was great knowing you as a person as our communication was very professional because of Mushroom.
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