At a gold shop near City Centre the other day, customers and staff forgot all about jewellery and got busy with something else. Someone else. A petite Pomeranian named Bibhutibhushan aka Bhuto.
“My husband had been waiting outside the store with Bhuto but when I took too long, he requested the guard and entered the store,” says Srabani Gupta. “Immediately everyone left what they were doing and ran over to pet him.”
Not just gold souks; the friendly Pomeranian has visited cafes, puja pandals and more tourist sites in his one year than others have in their entire lives. Digha, Mandarmani, Mukutmanipur…. “We are a family with wanderlust and travel to five to six destinations a year. Initially we were worried we’d have to end our tours if we got a dog but luckily we find pet-friendly hotels wherever we go,” says Gupta. Bhuto is now counting days till their winter trip to Shimla so he can play in the snow.
The family has, in fact, never left the Pom home alone to date. “He tears up if anyone leaves without him and keeps looking out of the balcony till they return. Our dogs love us much more than we can ever love them,” says Gupta, clicking a picture of Bhuto dearest wearing a bow tie. Her mobile cover is full of his photos too.
The only complain about the little tyke is that he refuses to eat. “Meat, vegetables, fruits, packed food…. We’ve tried everything but he looks away. Whatever little he swallows is what I hand-feed with much difficulty,” Gupta shakes her head thinking of his next meal. But then even she refuses to eat till Bhuto has eaten.
Seeing such bonding it’s tough to believe that Gupta and her husband Partha Pratim were forced to get a pet almost at gun point. “Our daughter and son-in-law booked an Uber to the breeder’s place and pushed us into it,” recalls Gupta.
Upon seeing the puppy they felt he was quite unkempt and settled on the nickname Bhuto, from the word bhoot (ghost). “And when we reached home with Bhuto, my daughter and her husband were listening to a narration of Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay’s Chander Pahar on the radio. The author is a favourite of all at home and we decided to name our beloved pet in his honour.”
If you have a pet you have brought up at home as a family member and which has its eyes only for you, write to us with your contact number at The Telegraph Salt Lake, 6, Prafulla Sarkar Street, Calcutta 700001 or email to saltlake@abp.in