Mishi steals Janmashtami prasad

Like every year I celebrated the Janmashtami festival at home with the addition of a beautiful Bal Krishna and a Jhoola and had prepared the typical Sindhi meal for the day hoping to partake of the prasad this morning as my breakfast. But it appears that Mishi, my youngest Lhasa Apso had the same idea!

The Mitha Lola (sweet roti) is made of wheat, jaggery and heaps of cooking oil and just half of it would suffice as breakfast. When Mishi woke me at 7am this morning I let her and Yeshe into the living room to play while I snoozed for another hour. Then at breakfast time I found the platter raided!

So how do I know that its Mishi and not Yeshe who has stolen the Lola? At first I had a few anxious moments because Yeshe has gluten allergy and would have a bad case of diarrhea just from the wheat and God knows what all the oil would do to his sensitive digestion... At second thought, the dogs were back from their morning walk at breakfast time and settling down to their meals. So I only needed to look at who left their meal untouched and was lethargic from this rich and heavy breakfast.

All the evidence pointed to little Mishi who has grown out of her shy and reclusive puppy stage and has become the most mischievous of all my pets. While she will always remains the smallest - or most petite - of Lasya's pups, Mishi has grown out well and is a sharp little cookie. She saw me taking care in placing the platter further out of reach earlier this morning and knew there were goodies in it. Also the fact that I had been giving out yummy looking treats from this platter to visitors yesterday certainly made it most tempting, I must say.

So my little prasad-chor had a feast all by herself leaving proof as crumbs under the sofa. She got to it stealthily and hid in her dark little corner so Yeshe wouldn't come chasing her for this tasty meal. Thankfully, Mishi's digestion was strong enough and after a lethargic day she was hungry and looking at the kitchen by 4pm.

Oh, she did leave a tiny crumb in the platter for me too... I've decided that I've found the perfect nickname for Mishi - Lola!

Lasya's sixth pup Tashi a surprise gift!

Tashi Skamar is Lasya's sixth pup which was totally unexpected and caught me unprepared! Lasya  had shown a litter of five pups in two sonography tests during her pregnancy, which according to the Vet was a big litter going by the size of a Lhasa Apso dam.

On the afternoon of Monday 2nd August 2010, after the fifth pup Mishi was whelped I cleaned up Lasya and her whelping bed - discarded her soiled mattress and the old towels covering it. And then almost an hour after Mishi was born Lasya began pushing out again and I panicked. I called up the Vet and he congratulated me on this surprise pup which he said would bring good luck!
                                                                               

Tashi means Lucky or good luck/auspicious/prosperity in Tibetan language and Skamar means Star. What else could I name this little one but Tashi Skamar - Lucky Star!

A female pup, Tashi came in at exactly 4.05pm, weighing 160gms. Except for Mishi who weighed 145gms all the female pups (including Misa and Lucy) had the same birth weight. With the last three pups normally whelped and with intervals, Lasya now had time to look around and clean each pup as I held them up for her. Tashi was tagged with pink wool while the pup Mishi whelped before her was tagged with light blue wool.

Usually in a large litter there is always a chance of losing a few pups since they'll be jostling for space inside the dam's womb and at feeding time. Some pups invariably get short-changed on their nutritional needs and attention.

As the runt of the litter I was worried about losing Tashi and kept a close eye on her but she turned out to be a true fighter and would race to Lasya at feed time to find the juiciest teat! She fought well to push her way through the crowd and even push away some of the other pups after they'd had a chance.

Tashi grew to be the chubbiest and furriest of all the pups; she soon became the favourite with my neighbour's kids Rehaan and Esha with whom the puppies took their first steps of socialization. Tashi was nicknamed Princess by Rehaan who till date loves and misses her.

This popular little puppy was also momma Lasya's favourite as she seemed to have inherited all her mischievous qualities. As soon as the pups were weaned Lasya began playing with them and training them. But watching Lasya and Tashi together was a pleasure - they were almost like sisters!

With Misa having left our home very early (she lives in my complex and would visit almost daily to join play sessions) Tashi ruled the roost as the naughtiest pup. Diki (Lucy) was quieter but more aggressive while Mishi tried her best to become invisible so that the others would leave her alone!

Princess Tashi reclining on my duvet!

Then came the day just before Christmas in December 2010 when I found a loving home for Tashi. When her prospective Momma came to see her and the family it was love at first sight - for Hetal and Lasya! Hetal asked Lasya for permission to take Tashi, promising to take good care of her and Lasya wagged her tail and gave her a lick! We said goodbye that night itself with a little care package containing kibble, a bowl and a couple of toys until she could get to a store the next morning. We passed on this little 'lucky charm' and the little princess continues to hold court in her own home now spreading the magic of doggie love and joy.

A week late wishing you but... Happy Birthday Tashi!

Long rest before the fifth pup Michewa whelped

Lasya's fifth pup Michewa was a female too, whelped over an hour after the fourth one - at 3.07pm and was the smallest of all the Lhasa Apso pups weighing in at a mere 145gms. Named Phalden Michewa which means Glorious Heavens in Tibetan language little Mishi has grown up to be a petite little lady.

Mishi suffered from colic within the first week itself and refused to take her feed. Instead she would keep racing in circles around the puppy bed and even when I placed her on Lasya's teat she would still climb over and continue her circling. This meant a weight-loss she could ill afford and when the other pups got Diarhea in the second week little Mishi had a further drop in her weight. Four days after the pups were born, on 6th August, I had to call the Vet for an emergency home visit at midnight because the last pup Tashi was sickening. While this pup responded quickly to the treatment the Vet found Mishi's low weight a matter of concern and instructed me to watch her closely for the next 48 hours.

At 3 weeks while the biggest of the pups Rinchen (now named Akki) weighed 762gms, Mishi weighed just 636gms. This is also when I had to introduce a supplement for the pups because Lasya's milk began drying up. Possibly she was stressed because she was constantly feeding the huge litter of six pups who were always jostling with 1 or 2 always being left hungry. At 8 weeks Rinchen weighed 2.2kgs and Mishi weighed 1.57kgs - almost half his size!

By this time they were already being weaned to kibble food and were discovering their taste buds. Mishi was completely overshadowed and outnumbered by her bigger and more aggressive litter-mates who would push her out of the way and finish her meals. The poor little pup would keep crying out to me after mealtimes when the others were sated and took their naps  - and I thought she was just wanting attention. It was only when she reached for and gobble Simba and Lasya's dinner in the kitchen a couple of times that I realized that something was wrong. This added to her weight issue and growth and she has since remained a slow developer.

Mishi sharing a chewstick with Lasya at 3 months

Being a timid little puppy Mishi was also the quietest of them all, which is why she was always overlooked by prospective adopting families who were looking for a playful pup. After four of the pups found their new homes by December 2010 only Yeshe and Mishi were left with us and that's when Lasya began to train her with more one-on-one attention. She helped Mishi gain confidence and coaxed her into playing games and even taught her - and Yeshe - to get a little aggressive with her!

Mishi exhausted and taking a well-deserved nap after the Dog Show

A little after Mishi turned 6 months old I entered her in the Bombay Presidency Kennel Club Dog Show in the minor puppy class where she won the 1st Place with a Gold Medal on 6th February 2011. The two judges gave positive comments on her good looks and coat quality. I'm currently preparing her for the next Showing season and hoping that she does well. The aim is of course to earn a Championship or even a CC (Championship Challenge).

Mishi in a pretty red dress enjoying her 1st Birthday Dinner on Tuesday 2nd August.

Yeshe and Mishi on their 1st Birthday. While Mishi got a pretty red dress Yeshe got a matching bow tie! Happy Birthday Michewa - my petite baby!