“One of the guys said that when they had opened the car door, the dog had leapt in, and now they couldn’t get her out,” Meera told FMT Lifestyle.
She added that when the dog finally came out of the car, the guys immediately sped off. It made her wonder if the two men had actually abandoned their own dog, especially since she was clean and looked like she belonged to someone.
What happened next was heartbreaking: the panicked pooch started running from one gate to another, barking. “She was just going right, left, right, left. She looked so anxious and lost,” recalled Meera.
Meera suspected that her hunch was right: the dog had just been abandoned by her owners. Upset to see her so distressed, the sisters took the dog home and fed her. Sometime around midnight, the dog finally calmed down.
As exuberant shouts of “Happy New Year” rang throughout the country, the canine ushered in the new year on a grim note, uncertain of her future.
Over the next few days, the canine quickly charmed Meera and her family. Meera also decided to name her Ruby. After all, she had bought a red collar for her, and she was listening to the song “Ruby Blue”.
“She was also like this black beauty, and I thought it was such a funny thing to name her Ruby!” Meera added with a laugh.
Describing Ruby as “very sweet, obedient, loving and curious”, Meera recalled fondly how Ruby followed her mother everywhere! Clever Ruby also responded to simple commands such as “sit”, “come” and “play”.
However, not every member of the household was happy with Ruby’s arrival. Their cat, Sonia, decided to run away although thankfully, she returned home later. But it left Meera’s mother concerned: did Sonia, who had been with them for 15 years, feel she was going to be replaced?
By then, they had asked nearby shops and restaurants if Ruby looked familiar, but their search for her original owners was futile. So, when a friend with two dogs agreed to foster Ruby, they made the painful decision to let her go.
Although Ruby only spent five days with Meera and her family, they had grown attached to her. On the way to the foster’s home, Meera recalled how she and her sister cried – and they weren’t the only ones. “When Ruby realised that the journey was quite far, she grew very quiet and started tearing up.”
According to Meera, all was going well for Ruby at her new foster home. But sometime in the fourth or fifth month, Ruby got into a fight.
“One of the dogs was very secure while the other needed attention. So, Ruby and the second dog were always vying for the foster’s attention,” Meera said, explaining why the fight broke out.
Ruby was subsequently moved to another foster home. Here, she was renamed Nala as her foster already had a dog named Simba and thought that it would be nice to have both dogs named after characters from “The Lion King.”
Similarly, Nala ended up fighting with the other canine and Meera estimated that it also took place in the fourth or fifth month.
“I think something must have happened in her previous home where another pet was brought in, and she was abandoned. That’s why if another dog gets more attention from the owners, she fights with the dog.”
Nala is currently with a temporary fosterer and Meera hopes to find a furever home for her as soon as possible, “preferably a home with no pets”.
Today, Nala is three years old and weighs 11kg. She is healthy, toilet trained, vaccinated and spayed. She also loves playing fetch and receiving cuddles.
“She’s a beautiful creature, so intelligent. I really do hope she finds a forever home,” said Meera.
If you wish to give Nala a furever home, email Dr Meera Asokan at [email protected].