On Sunday morning, when Lara, my pet golden sunshine baby, panicked over her favourite missing toy, the morning came to a complete halt.
Lara, usually sparkling and her tail almost always wagging, presented a picture of desolation and despair instead. From her gaze, I suddenly understood what had gone missing - her favourite denim drumstick-shaped toy, which she carried around like her bestie. Together, they literally turned the house upside down - not to mention the thrilling squeaks that Lara adored when she pressed down on her squeaky toymate!
But now her soft cushy playmate had vanished.
And I saw the despair in Lara’s eyes.
To Lara, it wasn’t just any toy - it was her constant playmate and companion that had gone missing - and I knew my girl wasn’t going to simply let it go like that - she had a fighter spirit and I had to help her find her best friend.
“Sorting out something at home, can’t make it today,” I WhatsApped my two friends who were expecting me to join them on a shopping spree.
“Come on, girl, we are going to find this in no time,” I told Lara and she perked up, knowing exactly what I meant and I saw a flicker of hope.
We began searching every place where the denim drumstick was likely to get lost. Under the sofa, dining table, store room shelves, even inside the wooden toy chest where I usually keep Lara’s toys.
In full detective mode, Lara was approaching the mystery like Sherlock Holmes. Except that she had a superpower he didn’t - her nose!
With her tracking-something-interesting sniff, I knew Lara was following a trail. I mean, we humans rely on our eyes but these furry babies have superpowers we can’t imagine. About one-eighth of a dog’s brain works to process smells. A fun fact: our noses have six million receptor sites but a beagle’s nose has three hundred million and a sheepdog has over three hundred million!
As we continued searching and Lara went on sniffing every inch, I could sense her frustration mounting. With a determined crawl, I followed her eyes as her gaze was fixed on something only she could see. Her stance changed as she headed towards the rarely opened linen closet in the guest room - my heart began pounding a little more than usual, and I could feel it against my ribs.
Was there somebody in there?
Lara had begun to growl - a little.
Was it possible that someone had got in or snuck into the room and we didn’t even know it?
In my house, we rarely had guests, especially with the kind of work schedule I have. The guest room was almost empty throughout the year.
Now why was Lara heading towards the least used room in the house?
We entered together - she headed to the closet while I switched on the lights and the AC. It was already too hot for me but Lara was focused on solving the mystery more than I was. It amazed me how professional she was about finding her missing friend - her focus and sincerity overwhelmed me!
One part of the wooden closet accommodated neatly folded towels, bedsheets, duvets and blankets. I hadn’t checked this earlier. I didn’t consider it a likely hiding place for a soft denim drumstick. Sniffing around, Lara demonstrated the unerring instinct of a detective at work and she stopped at the bottom rack of one of the shelves.
For a brief pause, Lara kept her head slightly tilted, as if tuning into a silent conversation.
I held my breath. “Baby, what is it? Do you feel something here?”
By now, Lara knew I was useless in solving this mystery. She must have a very low opinion of humans’ ability to solve missing cases, I am certain now.
Before I knew it, she reached out with her paws, tugging at a neatly folded pile. She tugged, and then with a harder tug, she pulled out… an entire stack of neatly folded soft towels… and yes, her bestie, the denim drumstick!
Oh my god, the jubilation that followed - I swear she was literally bouncing me around with joy - showing off, “I found it, I found it - you didn’t even follow the clues!”
Now, how did this gentle, eco-friendly denim drumstick find itself here?
The only possibility is that the domestic help who usually helps with these chores must have unknowingly folded this toy into the stack.
Lara’s joy was boundless!
Her body seemed to quiver with relief and excitement as she hugged her missing buddy, her eyes shining with pure elation.
I felt breathless as I watched Lara - seeing so many sides to her amazing personality, the undeniable commitment, focus and passion which she displayed, her deep emotional bond with a toy that she considered her bestie and most importantly, her discipline and trust in her intuitive self - her superpower of sniffing. She didn’t wait around or waste time - she was thoroughly focused and committed to doing whatever it took to recover her lost toy.
And now Lara was ready to play - she was sending her play signs clearly - with her play bow, bending low on her forelegs, tail high and wagging.
It reminded me of the first time I saw Lara engage in a play slap with other furry babies at the park, when I first took her out for a walk. I felt hit by worry and tension as I didn’t even know what was happening - her front legs clapped on the ground and there was a quick bob of her head, as if she was inviting others to be ready for a fun-filled game.
Over time, whenever I took her out for walks, I began to grasp how precious and serious Lara was about her playtime - it was a top priority in her life - to relax, play and enjoy - a valuable lesson for someone like me who is forever stuck to the laptop 24x7 and never pausing to relax, watch the skyline change colours or do something as leisurely as take a deep breath.
Somewhere along the way, this entire experience taught me a lot - it felt like a lesson in humility. Humans are known for intelligence and yet at every step of the way, I knew Lara was way ahead of me - in her sincerity and dedication, besides her emotional involvement.
Through this mystery that Lara solved, it struck me that we humans are bound by logical constraints but pet babies are led by a higher sense of intuitive intelligence they trust. The unspoken language of love and emotional connection makes it possible for furry babies to stay sincere, loyal and determined in any given situation to detect and find out what is truly important and precious to their world. And for that, I felt more deeply humbled and proud of my pet baby than I had ever been before.
Dear denim drumstick buddy, I’m so glad Lara found you - thrilled to bits you guys are a team again!
