Furholics: Loads of love from the labradors for Mruga Kirloskar & family

Mruga Kirloskar was looking for a typical ‘family dog’ 10 years ago. That search lead her to two options – a boxer or a labrador. “We wanted a dog that would be a family dog, patient and friendly. It was a toss between a lab and a boxer – whichever pup we got first,” she says.

And Sultan, now 10, came along. Two-and-a-half years ago, Mishka the cute girl lab joined the family. They sunbathe and run around in the lawn, try their best to get drenched when the sprinklers are on, rolling on the ground is their favourite pastime and taking muddy paws across the house a must.

Their paw prints have been stamped right across the hearts of the Kirloskar family with their antics, their mischief and most importantly, their love.

Which is why Mishka and Sultan have free access to the house. Everywhere except the sofas and beds. But, very often, when she and her husband Dhaval Kirloskar return from a late night party, they find Sultan sprawled on their white living room sofa! Yes, the same one that he has been strictly forbidden from even coming close to. “When he sees us, he gives us a sheepish look and sort of, slides down as if he is trying to be invisible. And Mishka, looks at us as if to say aren’t you going to scold him? It’s just too funny,” laughs Kirloskar who plays bad cop for the two.

Not the kind to leave the care of the dogs to staff, the entire family is involved with them. Daughter Nikita is extremely hands on with them. She is their mother and she monitors all their appointments, vaccinations, medicines, brushing etc.

Once a week, the Kirloskar family makes a trek to the tekdi nearby. “They just love their car rides, get super-excited when they sense that we are about to take them for a walk.”

Sensitive to everybody’s movements in the house, when they see any suitcases being packed, they know their family is going on holiday. “They seem a little sad and keep following the person whose suitcase is packed. The welcome we receive after we return, even if it’s after an hour, is so so warm. It makes me look forward to coming home after a vacation,” says Kirloskar as she packs her suitcase and is followed around by Sultan.

The difference between looking after a male and female dog is obvious only when a dog is in heat. It is not easy to look after a female dog when she is in heat – keeping the house and the dog clean, keeping her away from other dogs does get difficult, admits Kirloskar. “Frankly, one forgets the gender of the dog, until she comes on heat. After Mishka turned a year old, we got her operated since we were very clear right from the start that we did not want her to have pups,” she shares.

Their next family dog is going to be a great Indian street dog as her children Niketa and Neel have decided! “If more and more people choose not to breed pedigreed dogs, the street dogs have a better chance of finding homes,” she signs off. That’s very well said.