“If I could be half the person my dog is, I’d be twice the human I am.” - Charles Yu
Resilience, optimism, patience, courage, humour and of course unconditional love are some qualities that don’t seem to miss our count when we think of dogs. Qualities that we as humans often tend to overlook in ourselves or others. They say, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade” as a foreword to the story you make out of your journey. While inspiration and hope are subjective, we often find ourselves convinced by such proverbs, motivated by others, and sometimes just dazed by situations!
One such dazzling journey is that of Saheb’s: a street dog that was reported to us in a critical condition. The streets of Pune’s Chandni Chowk area were home to Saheb. Street dogs, unfortunately, are exposed to some of the hardest lives dogs can ever live. Not only are they are looked down upon by society, but they are also the last ones to obtain any kind of medical help.
Saheb came in with a huge, gaping, maggot-infested wound on his head. The maggots were thriving on the tissue around his eye, causing him a lot of pain. The wound only continued to grow from his head nearing his eye, making us worry if he would ever see again.
We knew we had to act. The first and most obvious thing to do in this case was to thoroughly clean and dress the wound. Following which, the only way to warm up this shy and uncertain dog was our love and attention, both in humongous doses.
They say love can cure anything... and in this case, it certainly did. Within a few days of his treatment, we saw Saheb doing a full 180 circle! With his wound healing and him warming up to the environment, this once shy boy had become a favourite of many at RESQ for his absolute friendliness. In a rather unusual display of affection, this sweet dog would cuddle up to his vets, as if to thank them for having taken such good care of him at the RESQ Centre! A 40-day treatment had Saheb transformed into a healthy pooch ready to go back to his friends back home.
Saheb is now released and back into his element, doing very well, and leaving us proud with this heart-melting story! He also sets a spectacular example of how even a little bit of love can transform even the shyest of dogs. It’s true -- “A Little Love is all we Need” -- and the furries at RESQ couldn’t agree more!