Have you ever met a dog who thinks he’s the epitome of suave and debonair?
Meet Orio, who without hesitation comes running excitedly to Keshma Gunasegaran’s mum whenever she calls out “Handsome”. Never mind if her dad is sitting right there too. “Handsome” means Orio, and he knows it!
A Toy Poodle who just turned five years old, Orio came to Keshma’s family when he was about three months old. He was adopted from her mom’s friend. Today, he is an integral part of the household.
“Step into our home and you will notice mummy’s clear bias. Orio failed his obedience test and got away with it. But when we came home with low marks… she turned into a tiger mom,” 15-year-old Keshma says good-humouredly.
“In fact, mummy says Orio – her fur-son, will inherit our house. Sure, we can stay here but it is only to care for him,” she adds.
Keshma says Orio is a brilliant dog, who uses all the lessons he’s learnt to his advantage. For instance, he is more than willing to “high five” if it means he’ll get what he wants.
He is also rather crafty, having mastered the art of silently sneaking into the kitchen so no one is the wiser for it.
According to Keshma, Orio is quite the attention seeker as well. The unspoken rule in the house is that everyone pat him on the head the moment they walk into the house.
In fact, when he stayed once at her grandma’s house in Kuantan, he was given the royal treatment. While her grandmother’s dog slept outside as usual, Orio was privileged to sleep in a warm and cosy spot in the kitchen – just so he could be closer to her mum’s bedroom.
Like all pets, Orio loves to play with his toys, especially the squeaky ones. The irony is that the squeak does not last even for a day. Within hours of being given a new toy, Orio would have punctured it with his sharp teeth, rendering the toy silent forever.
Again, he never gets scolded for ruining every toy he gets his paws on – what a lucky dog!
Keshma says that Orio was initially fed store-bought pet food but that over time, he became ‘Indianised’, showing a preference for rice with sambar instead. His favourite food however is apples, which he devours within seconds. He also loves peanut butter.
Keshma says that having Orio around is certainly a stress reliever. “Orio is smart, cheeky, protective, playful and really, really caring.
“Whenever I feel a little under the weather, Orio seems to understand my feelings and will lick my hand and rest his chin on my leg. He certainly puts a smile on my face,” she says.
As an indoor pet, he has his playpen aka “doggie room” in the living room. He enjoys being around the family and when Keshma’s little sister takes her afternoon nap, he too will sleep and stay very quiet.
As playful and caring as he is, Orio can he quite fierce too. Because of his high-pitched bark, many people have mistaken him for a Rottweiler.
“Once, a postman got scared after hearing his bark and took off on his motorcycle. When he came back and saw Orio, he went like: ‘Kecil je, tapi suara besar’,” Keshma says.
She adds, “Orio is a pet who we can’t stay angry with for more than a few seconds. I love him so much and if you met Orio, your love for dogs would multiply ten-fold.”
TELL US ABOUT YOUR PET: FMT Lifestyle readers are invited to send in pictures (landscape format) and a short video (if any) of their furry, scaly or feathery friends to [email protected]. Don’t forget to include details like your pet’s name, age, breed and a short story about them.