Athreya Kadambi delves deep into the intricate relationship between humans and dogs and tries to raise awareness on the issue of dog accidents
Our lives are just a collection of our memories. These memories alter and define our lives. They redefine our value systems and, change us for the better or blemish our identities for the worse. In these moments, we come across someone who changes everything. They waltz into our lives like wispy down feathers, changing it for ever and making lives truly worth living for. That’s exactly what Django did to me. She taught me how to deeply care about somebody I barely knew and my life has never been the same again. But who’s Django? Django is my black-coloured, indie-breed, four-legged friend. she’s a source of joy. a bundle of sheer energy who wags her tail at strangers and greets them with unmatched enthusiasm. she resides outside our community gate on the outskirts of Bangalore – a sparsely populated community who are a mixed lot. a few of them love Django just like me, while the others detest her to the bones.
Django mostly spends her time chasing tumbleweeds or squabbling with other dogs. she’s an absolute rowdy when it comes to keeping her territorial feuds. Otherwise, her life is as simple as it gets for a dog. no fuss, no problem.
Now, I generally go outside to meet her every evening. But one day, I had a bad dream.. I woke up with sweat spots all over my body. Without giving it much thought, I dashed out of my apartment towards the community gate. “Django!!” I yelled as soon as I reached the gate. she sprang to her feet and raced towards me like an unsteady toddler, wagging her tail as if she were waving at me.
Just as she was about to cross the road, a car rushed towards her. I froze. My eyes remained wide open as I held my breath. “Django! no!” I gasped.
I shut my eyes tight as the car whizzed past us with its horns blaring. I struggled like a neonate to open my eyes. after squinting for a few moments, I noticed that Django had vanished. and so had the car. I turned around. and there she was, chasing her tail in circles. she pranced around for a few moments before settling close to my feet. I knelt and gently brushed my hand over her forehead, “Django, please be careful,” I whispered. Oblivious of the danger that had just brushed past her, she tilted her head with a curious expression and licked my hand to console me.
“Look what I got for you today,” I revealed a few treats from my pocket. she was elated. On cue, she did a little dance and then gobbled all the treats at once. “Easy now,” I said while gently caressing her back.
“aye, shoo!!” abdul chacha, the security guard, yelled while rushing towards us. Django got defensive and tried to hide behind me. “sir, what are you doing with this dog? she’s dirty, keeps rolling around like a mad dog. Full on trouble!” he fumed. “arey, abdul chacha, it’s okay. Django is not a trouble, she’s special!” I calmly replied with a smile. “Heh! Django? What sort of name is that?” he chuckled. “Like I said… special!” I retorted while looking deep into her eyes. It almost felt like she was thanking me for defending her. “Ha! she sure is special! All I see is filth!” he shot back.
“stop right there!” I raised my voice. He was taken aback by the sudden aggression. “I’m sorry,” I apologised after a moment. “But it wasn’t always like this. I was cold. Even a little rough when I saw her four years ago,” I paused as she swivelled around with joy. abdul chacha scratched his head bemused. “I used to walk past her. I remember shooing her once for following me. Oh, how I regret that even today. all she wanted was to be friends,” I remembered with remorse while looking down at the pavement.
Then how did it all change?” he asked.
“Well, that’s why she is special. she won me over with her affection. I kept ignoring her but she kept coming back to me,” I replied. “I remember this one time when I was having a rough day. Oh, it was one of those days, you know, when you think nothing good can happen to you. I was sitting right here on this pavement wondering what I would do,” I looked at her while she listened with patience. “That’s when she sauntered towards me. she did not judge, mock, laugh or ignore. she looked at me with kindness in her eyes. as if to say, “It’s okay.” sometimes, that is all you need. someone to understand you. someone to tell you that it’s okay,” I narrated wistfully.
“achaa, that’s why you like this dog so much,” abdul chacha said with a bright smile which revealed a gap between his incisors. “Yeah, that, and more. That’s the thing about dogs, chacha. Once you open up to them, you open doors inside your heart that make you a better person,” I replied while he looked on without a response.
“chacha, I’ve got to go now but promise me that you will take good care of her when I’m not around?” I asked looking straight into his eyes. He simply nodded with a salute.
“Okay, here are a few treats but please don’t overfeed her,” I requested while getting off the pavement and handing him the packet.
“Okay, sahab. Good day!” he said. I looked at Django’s innocent face one last time before making my way back home. The next day, I decided to treat her with a few chicken bones. The plastic bag bobbed up and down as I hopped and skipped like Django on my way to the gate. nobody was guarding the gate and the street seemed deserted. It seemed strange but I didn’t think much of it.
“Django! Django,” I called her out. as always, I had expected her to jump out from some corner. To my surprise, she wasn’t there. I looked left and right, but she was nowhere to be found. I crossed the road and scanned the corners. still no sign of her. “Djangooo!” I yelled one last time. still no response. I turned my back and started walking towards the gate. That’s when I heard a snivel. I froze in my tracks.
“Django?” I whispered into the empty air. after a couple of moments, I heard it again. It felt like my heart had stopped beating. a pit had formed in my stomach. I turned to the right. still nothing. I had to squint a couple of times to spot a black patch buried in the depths of a thick bush. I dropped the food packet and ran towards her frantically. “Django! no, no, no, no, no. no, baby. Oh my God, no. Who did this?” I groaned as I knelt next to her.
Django was covered in a pool of blood. Her hip was severely injured and her eyes were barely open. The air smelled sickly of blood and flesh. I took my sweatshirt off and tried to cover her wound. she shuddered with pain. My mind went numb and tears trickled down my eyes like raindrops on a window pane. I yelled in despair. after a few moments, abdul chacha arrived. “Ya allah, what happened?” he asked. I shook my head with dismay. He quickly flipped his phone open and called for help.
The next few moments were a complete blur. I remember people coming in a van. They checked Django’s vitals, transferred her on to a stretcher and drove away. “Go home, sir. You can meet her as soon as she reaches the hospital,”
abdul chacha tried to console me. I was distraught, all I could think of were her innocent eyes. I wanted to rush to her aid and make sure that she was okay.
The next day, I drove across the town to the rescue centre. as soon as I got there, my eyes darted around hoping to see Django. My heart was restless. “Yes?” the attendant asked. “I…uh, want to see Django,” I replied with a deranged look. “Django?” she asked with a confused expression. “I mean, the dog who was admitted yesterday after an accident,” I clarified. “Sir, we get five such cases every day. All of them are involved in accidents,” she said. “Okay. a black colour dog with a severe hip injury,” I tried to provide context. “alright, let me check,” she said while browsing through her laptop. “Oh, right. You’re probably talking about 12036. We call her, alexa,” she paused for a moment to go through her details and continued, “sorry, sir. she was admitted just yesterday, we can’t let any outsiders meet her right now. You’ll only be able to meet her after she recovers,” she said.
“Not even for five minutes?” I pleaded. “No, sir. I’m sorry,” she replied. “Okay, but can you tell me how she is doing?” I asked worriedly. She empathised with me, “I can’t confirm anything, sir. she was very critical yesterday. But rest assured, we’ll do our best,” she said. I simply nodded and walked away with a heavy heart.
A week passed. I called every single day to check up on her. all I could get was, “she’s recovering.” I did not know what that meant and I wasn’t going to wait for them to clear the meeting request. I rushed over to the rescue centre, hopping and skipping just like Django would. The musky odour of dogs greeted me while I made my way to the admin’s desk. Before I could say anything, she prompted with a smile. “alexa, right?” “Yes!” I responded with a nod.
“Please, come with me, sir,” she guided me inside the rescue facility. I saw dogs of different breeds. a few of them lay docile while the others ran around in circles. some of them were inside cages. as soon as I entered Django’s unit, I heard a thin wail from the corner. I ran towards her cage to find her innocent face whimpering and trying to bite the metal barrier between us. “Please, let her out,” I requested the welfare worker. He gently rested Django on the floor. Her eyes were moist and her barks were filled with joy. She tried to lift her lower body but winced in agony. Her eyes met mine and nothing around us mattered. It felt like two friends were united after a long separation. “Django! How are you doing, Django?” I asked with tears in my eyes. Django shook her head in excitement relentlessly.
“she’ll be okay, right?” I asked the welfare worker. “Yes, sir. But she’ll need to be here for another month or so. after that, she should be good to go,” he chimed in. “so, are you planning to adopt her?” he asked with curiosity. I looked at her innocent face. I guess, I’ve always wanted to take Django home. after a few moments, I replied. “no.” “Oh, why not?” he seemed confused. Gently stroking her head, I said, “Django is beautiful, bold and a fighter. She means the world to me…” I stopped abruptly to look at her.
“But?” he prompted. “But she wasn’t meant to be caged in a house. she enjoys my company, I know that. But if I would take her freedom away, she would hate me for it. she has spent many years at the community gate. That’s her home and I would never take it away from her.” I whispered. I had to pause before I continued, “she deserves all the love in the world. and if she does get adopted, I’d be happy for her. But to be honest with you… I would rather see her just the way she is.” He looked nonplussed. “Let’s just say that she is meant to be free. Untamed and unleashed. My Django was always meant to be… unchained.” I said as her eyes flickered almost like the time when she used to dance and prance around me. after that accident, Django’s hind leg was deformed forever. she continues to live outside our community gate but her step doesn’t have the same spring. she doesn’t hop or skip anymore and her eyes are those of a cautious bird rather than that of an innocent child.
That accident changed her life forever. What hasn’t changed is her boundless love for humans. Athreya Kadambi is a professional content writer at a Bangalore-based advertising agency with a degree in Literature and Psychology. He started publishing professionally seven years ago with his blog called fortitudewriter. His recent piece was published in Kitaab
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