The Hector Years

Posted bySharabh PachoryPosted inUncategorizedTags:, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

What would you say about a dog who lives the most vivacious life, gives joy wherever he goes, loves everyone unconditionally, never sulks, knows no dog tricks and then dies on you? That was Hector, our pet Labrador who was part of our lives for 8 years. Happy years, growing up years, tumultuous years – the Hector years…a term which later came to be associated with a short era and all that happened in and around the family in that period.

Like our children who perhaps a bit pompously, are known as Army brats, Hector was an Army Dog… except, he was not trained to sniff out bombs or hidden arms caches as Army dogs are. In fact Hector was pretty dumb… except for loving everybody, he could do nothing right. 

  • A young Hector
  • Hector going places

But I digress. So, as an Army dog, Hector moved from place to place in the truck with our baggage. He earned friends, human and animal, with ease in the new places, quite like Army children do. In one of our big, old colonial style houses, Hector, after some early showdowns, got friendly with a turkey, which was part of the animal entourage of the house we ‘inherited’. It was a bizarre sight to see the turkey chasing Hector all over the place and later, after the peace accord, strut along in the garden with Hector in tow. There was never any doubt who the boss was…the tag of acolyte clung to Hector like his skin.

  • The turkey and Hector
  • Hector with Shubbu, Anju and Nimisha

Hector was spoiled silly by my daughter Nimisha, who incidentally had brought him, a month old, in a shoe box from Delhi in a train…ticketless. Not only would she be indulgent to a fault, but would not allow anyone in the house, including me, the purported disciplinarian, to chide or rebuke him. Hector therefore got away with much. It was only when Nimisha left home for higher studies, that Hector could be admonished for anything. But his grooming years were behind him by then.

  • Hector- master of all he surveyed

The Hector years saw happy and heavy moments in the immediate and extended family – wedding, reunions, promotion, success, sickness, failure …he was an inalienable part of it all. Though he would only get in the way and be shooed away, he would sense the moment and do his best to be a part of it. He was happy with people around him and the feeling appeared mutual. In fact the only forlorn part of his short life seemed to be the phase when he lived with me alone in a remote corner of Kashmir, where I was actively involved in intense military duties and would be away for long periods. But there too he made the best of his time by befriending a whole lot of soldiers around my ‘basha’ and generally doing what he did best – being silly.

One of his several endearing attributes was the manner in which he would dash, at lightning speed, to meet & greet  unsuspecting visitors at the gate. His ‘charge’ would often unsettle the uninitiated visitor who would freeze, before realising that it was a welcome routine, peculiar to Hector. He would then escort the visitor inside and, embarrassingly for us, be present throughout the proceedings. 

  • Elegant Hector
  • Nimisha- Spoiler in Chief

Hector was greedy. Food meant the world to him. No matter how well fed he was, he would never miss a chance to eat or grab more. He was a permanent fixture at the dining table… despite admonishments from Anju, my wife, the children and I would feed him crumbs. He would lap them up like a starved cretin. He would then go scrounging around the kitchen for more. I have often thought in the years that Hector has been gone, if overeating did him in. 

There was only one dog trick Hector ever learnt…to not touch a food offering till he was told. A greedy fellow like him would stare at the offering, eyes popping out, drooling from both corners of the mouth, but not devour it till the okay was given. We tested his resolve once too often , I thought, throwing things like chicken bones at him and saying “Hector, no!” We rather selfishly and meanly teased him with this stratagem often….drew some wicked ‘hooman’ pleasure out of a loved creature’s discomfort. I now wonder why.

  • Hector- always swung things his way

The Hector years went by before you could say, well, Hector. My daughter would come home on holidays and Hector would unlearn all that he had painstakingly learnt in the interregnum between Nimisha’s visits home. As I said, she had proprietary rights, both material and emotional, over Hector. You didn’t want to mess with that. I suspect Hector remained amongst the dumbest creatures because of Nimisha’s excessive protection and indulgence… together the two ruled the roost and we could only wring our hands in affectionate despair.

Fun Hector and Serious Hector!

We once hired a trainer for Hector. In a month, Hector learnt nothing…the trainer however, as per his own admission, became a more loving human being…. that was Hector : stupid, stubborn, silly, but with his heart where it should be. Long after he had gone, Anju and I (both children had flown the coop to pursue their own careers by then) would often try to think of someone who did not like Hector. We finally zeroed on to a  ‘safaiwala’ (cleaning man), who would actually try to hit Hector with his broomstick because he would be all over him, day after day, despite his rebukes. He could, it seemed, never understand Hector’s love. But Hector had the last laugh, or more appropriately the last cry…. when we were burying Hector, Shyam Lal, the safaiwala, on his day off, was at the grave with a bunch of fresh bush flowers. He was actually crying!

The Hector saga is endless. He was so much like, and yet so much different from pet labradors…for one, he probably had a genetic, congenital defect, we thought, wherein his tail would never be still. My nephew Shubbu, who was often with us, and in Nimisha’s absence, was the leader of the ‘Spoil Hector’ gang (with close competition from my son Rishabh), said his constantly and vigorously wagging tail could produce enough electricity to run a small turbine. On more occasions than we care to remember, we have seen him wag his tail in his sleep. Don’t know if dogs dream, but he apparently did. Happy dreams… of probably food and Nimisha.

Hector’s Diwali

On Diwali, when most dogs hide under furniture, scared to death due to the firecrackers and the din, Hector would be super excited. He would whirl around with the chakri and leap high every time a ‘rocket’ was fired from a bottle. Would also run to fetch the extinguished remains when they hit the ground, sometimes smouldering. There were some ‘retriever’ genes in him, after all. He played Holi with equal fervour – would take my wife weeks to get the colour off him. As I said, there are endless Hector stories…

  • Hector- Mumma’s pet
  • Hector’s Fan Club

Hector is long gone from our lives but, clichéd as it sounds, he lives not only in our hearts, but in the hearts of hundreds of people whose lives he touched. This includes a few non-dog lovers in our acquaintance, whom he unwittingly ‘converted’. Anju often asks what his thoughts could have been, as he gasped for his last breaths. I would imagine he didn’t even know about death, so, while in agony, would have only thought of the love of his life – food, and/or possibly Nimisha, who was then literally across seven seas in USA. He could also have shed a dog tear for his family…us. Who knows – none of us have souls noble enough to imagine how Hector’s worked.

Hector’s funeral was grand. Many of my colleagues, their wives, house helps and neighbors were present. As he was tenderly laid to rest in the backyard on a warm March day, many felt that by the time the ‘service’ ended, Hector would already be furtively scratching at the pearly gates of Dog Heaven. Having been let in, he would have made friends with the angels and could have become St Peters’ ‘pet’, even as he was being mourned in the world he just left behind.

Hector- Long gone but never forgotten

When I decided to write an ode to Hector and discussed the same with Nimisha over phone, she had only one advice: do not sentimentalize the write up. I said I wouldn’t… don’t know if I have been able to keep my promise. However, in closing, we would like to remember Hector by the epitaph which Rishabh, my son, placed on his grave:

On the uptake, was often found slow
Never did he put up a very good show,
But for him there was no one high or low
Didn’t matter whether you said yes or no,
Lively, loyal, loving and always on the go
Hector was certainly a nice dog to know!

*******
© Sharabh Pachory, 2019. All rights reserved.
Photographs from personal archives and albums

Published by Sharabh Pachory

Army veteran interested in reading and writing. Wodehouse fan. No mastery so far.

38 thoughts on “The Hector Years”

  3. General Pachori this is the best blog you have written, I felt I know Hector after reading it & must admit he must have been a wonderful dog! I have to confess that as I read it I could not help the tears running down my face. Hector you are in Doggie Paradise & I am sure you must have made a large number of fans & friends ! God Bless.

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  4. A very touching story, so easily relatable for those who have really loved pets. They have such short lives, love so much, give so much, yet take so little with them. To not have experienced the love of a pet is a life lived less.
    May God bless Hector and keep his tail wagging in heaven. Almost read like my tribute to our German shepherd Chloe, except that she is still alive, I haven’t written it yet and I certainly haven’t been half as good pet parents that you, Anju & Nimisha have been.
    RiP, Hector

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  7. That was a roller coaster of emotions I was not ready for on an idyllic Sunday afternoon. Hector was not just a pet , he was a bundle of unbridled emotions. I am sure if he could read this blog ( which many of us thought he could) he would just wag his tail like a man(dog) possessed.( We already established that he can read, let’s not stretch it by saying he can express his emotions via words as well) . Beautifully penned.

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  9. Wonderfully put up the story of a pet…Gen Pachory…Hector would definitely been a wonderful soul but the family who has made him so loving is more special…besides ..the photos and the feelings are so touching and heartwarming…a piece right from the heart..👌saritasharma

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  10. Sir
    Beautifully written and very touching blog. My daughters still talk about Hector, whenever we pass through Hazrat Mahal road.
    Regards

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  11. Excellently written.

    In my opinion, dogs are really a blessing for all humans as friends and if you have had 50 dogs, you must have written 50 similar blogs only with different dog’s name.

    Dogs are very unlike u
    s the humans, each and everyone is as good as Hector.

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  14. “Dogs have a way of finding the people who need them, and filling an emptiness we didn’t ever know we had.”
    Very well written and expressed the love all had for Hector.

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  15. It is always difficult to recapitulate the lives of pets since we outlive them. I remember Hector from the J & K days. The trainer would come for him with the another dog. Both about the same age – one obedient, our Hector stupid and making a fool of himself.
    Hector allowed Aru to ride him, as if she were riding a mule. He humoured her even when she was rather grown up in Secunderabad, where both Ashwika and Aru would ride him and he never said a word except wagging his tail. I think the one thing he learnt, which you missed out, was his going back on the hind legs in lieu of biscuits and treats. I have a picture of him, arms folded begging from Papaji.
    Also, the time when he had just disappeared and had to be hunted out from his captors in Lucknow. Quite unlike a dog but these days that is what we want pets to be. Their role of being a watch-dog is diluted or perhaps non-existent.
    He will continue to bring a lot of memories of our times with him.

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  17. Hector… sounds wonderful, and very loved. I smiled all the way through the read! These were probably my favorite lines:

    “In fact Hector was pretty dumb… except for loving everybody, he could do nothing right.“

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  18. Pawsome Hector… you have touched many hearts with your cute dumbness & love. you will be fondly remembered for all your extra curricular activities,enjoying festivities wid color & crackers.

    Pachory family, thank you for introducing Hector to us . Very well written blog and it has spread smiles.

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  19. Pawsome Hector… you have touched many hearts with your cute dumbness & love. you will be fondly remembered for all your extra curricular activities,enjoying festivities wid color & crackers.

    Pachory family, thank you for introducing Hector to us . Very well written blog and it has spread smiles.

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  20. Wish I got a chance to meet Hector especially after I became a ‘converted-dog-lover!’
    Delightful piece; hope Hector is having a ball in dog-heaven!

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  21. I am amazed to learn that Hector has been to so many places. Kashmir, of all places. Well, I was a bit sad at first, when I read that he lived for eight years. However, when I learned that Hector has been to Kashmir, I was relieved. I told myself Hector had seen it all. After all, धरती पर अगर कहीं स्वर्ग है, तो यहीं है, यहीं है, यही हैं | (Kashmir). I also have to rationalize the short lives that our pets have. It angers me that our pets have such shorter lives. Having outlived 3 pets, I still have trouble letting go and I try to find rationalizations.

    I never met Hector, but I am already convinced that everyone loved him. If Hector could conjure up voting for the Pulitzer prize for canine reporting, this blog post would surely give other reporters a run for their money. You, sir, are an artist with words.

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  22. Thanks so much Sunny!! That’s such a warm and touching comment.
    Blessed indeed are we to have such ardent pet (dog) lovers as neighbours. Cooper reminds us so much of Hector!
    Thanks 😊

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