One thing a city mouse must become accustomed to India is the presence of so many animals roaming about untethered. This particular gent is more pet than livestock. His name is Fighter. A moniker he earned in his early days when he and the resident dog were jockeying for alpha position. They’ve long forgotten those turbulent times and are now the best of friends.
Fighter thinks he’s a dog. He wants to be pet and nuzzled. And he makes it easy. He’ll come to you with just the hint of a glance in his direction. His hair is coarse and matted but the appreciation he seems to feel compels you to continue scratching behind his long, floppy ears.
He’s quite the guard sheep as well. While a group of us was sitting in an outdoor pavilion listening to Yogi Amrit Desai we were being stalked by an assertive peacock. He was just intimidating enough to cause each one of us to move to one side as he approached. To say that he was disruptive would be an understatement. In walks Fighter to the rescue. He maneuvered himself between the human and the bird and ushered the peacock out of the pavilion then stood sentry to be sure he wouldn’t return.
Once the threat was gone he joined us. And the dog.
Allison's Wanderland 