My Pet Coco
My Pet Coco
Deepak Razdan
New Delhi, 6 April, 2026
This is my pet Coco’s February, 2026 picture. He came
to us in May-end, 2025 and was about one year-old in February this year. Coco
is a male dog of unknown pedigree with a congenitally defective left hind leg.
He was offered to us by a rescue service and we accepted him as family member.
He was naughty as a three-month-old and he continues to entertain us with his
antics, day or night. He was teething when he came and chewed up many bathroom
slippers. Coco got many toys from us and young relatives to test his teeth and
he shredded them as fast as he could. He has not forgotten the pastime and even
now picks up a slipper or a soft shoe to draw attention.
As a kid, Coco had no patience for his morning cup of
milk and toasts. While my wife or I prepared his breakfast, he would keep
jumping, chewing-up corners of bed sheets, loose clothes or slippers. He
continues to do so even now, though not as often. Coco does not take it lightly
if he is relaxing on his bed, or at any favourite spot in the drawing room, and
we are out of his sight. He does not like shut bedrooms, and must see his
family moving around the house. He had Pee Pads for his toilet and used them
with persuasion. This did not mean he would restrain himself until he found a P
pad round. Often he used any open space and let things go. It took me constant
monitoring and a vigil eye to know his coming needs. I picked him up and rushed
him out to grassy patches on road-sides for his toilet breaks. Coco is growing
up normally, but his daily walks remain a matter of study. It is this
experience that I want to share in this blog.
After his milk and toasts breakfast, he can’t wait to
be taken out for a walk. He will keep raising his hands and wants to know how
soon I will get ready with his leash and a small stick to go out. On the stairs
from our second floor flat, he takes a few steps down and then jumps to the
landing. This happens in each four parts of the stairway. Coco is told to go
slow but he does not mind giving a few jerks to my knees. On the pavements, out
of his house for his daily rounds, his first worry is if there are any stray
dogs around. Yesterday, he found his large adversary sitting on a corner across
the road. He would not move a step. Fortunately, for him the big dog moved and
followed a possible companion in another direction. This morning, there was no
such threat. We moved across by the side of the local temple and walked on the
road-bridge.
Even here, his main distraction is men who walk to
their work, carrying large bags on their heads or in hands. It is difficult to
understand why he considers them undesirables. He waits for these disturbances
to pass off and then relax. As he walks, he must sniff every bunch of large
grass. He must know if some other dog had passed that way. Often, he comes
across a young and trim Belgian Malinois of his own age, accompanied by his owner.
Initially, Coco tried to bark at him but the slim dog ignored it. Two days
back, the two came together and sniffed each other, without any threats. This
was comforting. The Belgian dog is highly disciplined and stays close to his
owner and follows his instructions instantly.
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