Sweet nose for trouble
MALAYSIA AN fashion stylist Peter Lum is a familiar fa ace, thanks to One In A Million and So Youu Think You Can Dance. He made a significa nt life choice recently when Dindi, a sw weet toy poodle, entered his life.
“When I first told my family I was thinking of getti ing a dog, they were totally against it,” ” Peter shares. “My mum said, ‘ No pets fo or you, I’m babysitting your tortoises alre ady!’ But I researched secretly, talked to f friends and learned what it would takee to be a good dog daddy without causing tro ouble to myself or family.”
Peter sp pent a lot of time reading up on everything g from toilet training to the types of di iets that are popular. Being new w to dogs, it wasn’t an easy ta sk but he believes it was the foundation n for his relationsh ip with Dindi. “I w wasn’t like, ‘ This is cute, let’s buy it t’. This was for ke eeps.”
Thankfu ully, the tortoises w went to a friend w who’s crazy abou ut them. What is eq qually wonderful l is that Dindi and Peter fell in love at f first sight.
“Life in public relations c can be hyperintensive,” ” Peter admits. “It t’s crazy! So at the end of the day, when I com me home and I wan t to just lie down for a few minutes on the sofa a to recover, Dindi is w ith me.
“When I I’m asleep, she wakes me by gently pawing my shoulder. Then she just lies down with me, curled up against me. “If I’m on my back, she lies on my ches st, just watching me. The second I open my eyes, she’s licking my chin. She doesn’t make a sound! She just gives me love. It’s s assuring. On stressful days, Dindi’s kind of love makes me feel that nothing can be that bad.” Curiously, living with the toy poodle ha as changed Peter a little bit, too. “Dindi’s lov ve makes me a better person. In a world where there’s less love, I’m more toleran nt, less likely to snap.” And there’s a practical application. “I have Dindi’s picture on my phone. When n I’m having a tough day, I look and say to myself, ‘ At the end of the day, I go home, Dindi and I will play together a nd everything will be OK. It giv ves me an incredible sense of f peace.” Peter quite delib erately sought out a loving pet companion to enrich h his life but he wasn’t expecting g Dindi to act as a health monitor, to oo. “I’ve been diabeti ic since I was 17,” Peter shares. “When my blood sugar is low, like a 3 when it should be 6.6, my energy levels go down. I don’t always know, especially if I’m asleep.
“One morning, Dindi was fussing, refusing to be quiet, and I was like, ‘ Let daddy sleep’ but she was determined to get me up. It was quite unlike her. I got up, realised what was wrong and as soon as it registered, Dindi was all quiet again.”
Peter is a practical person, and at first he thought he was imagining it. “You hear of dogs being trained but Dindi isn’t. But this didn’t happen once; it happened again and again and again! When my sugar drops, Dindi will start fussing. It’s not her normal sounds, either. It’s different.”
Peter believes that Dindi doesn’t understand exactly what’s wrong, and she doesn’t know what diabetes is, but he thinks she’s sensing something about his body is changing and therefore “wrong”.
“I’ve no way of knowing exactly what she senses but Dindi is with me all the time, she knows me very well, and dogs have well- developed senses. She’s smelling something.
“I don’t claim Dindi is 100% accurate. There are days when she misses but then again, she’s not trained.”
They are certainly close. Dindi is a typical young toy poodle: energetic, into everything and super- bright. She’s friendly with everyone she meets, too, but when she looks at Peter, there’s a special softness in her eyes. Together they’re the poster couple for happy dog ownership.
However, Peter cautions that being a pet owner isn’t all sunshine and roses.
“Dindi can be a handful. Sometimes when I’m packing, she’s jumping around, stealing things, and when I’m tidying, she’s busy messing things up. I’ll shout, ‘ Hey! Stop that!’ but the affection she gives me is overwhelming. I would never want to be without her.”