Your Pet Story: This Shih Tzu brought lots of joy and laughter to his owner

The writer learnt how to groom Velvet and enjoyed many sessions of trimming his fast-growing fur. — Irene Wong

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Velvet was so tiny when I first saw him as a month-old Shih Tzu puppy in 2010 – he was so very cute. He was given to me by a friend and I loved him at first sight.

Velvet’s fur was extremely soft and fine, which was why my son decided to call him “Velvet”.

Velvet was so much fun and he loved to play. He was a loving companion and would follow me everywhere. I loved to cuddle and play with him all the time.

I decided to train him to do his business in the toilet, and I succeeded. He was an obedient dog and followed my instructions and would run to the toilet to pee. He was naughty at times by doing it at other corners of the house, but each time without me seeing while he did it.

Velvet had peculiar habits. He loved to bark at the mop. Every time I mopped the floor, he would bark non-stop at it until I finished. So I dared not do the mopping too early in the morning, to avoid disturbing the neighbours.

I loved to play with Velvet and taught him a few tricks like “hand”, “down”, “bang”, and “round and round”. The “round and round” was the most fun part of the training. Every time he saw a treat or some food in my hand, he would go round and round me, even without me asking him to do so. That made me laugh. Whenever I said “bang” to him, he would lie down flat on the ground and play dead.

Velvet would follow me around the house, from the living room to the dining room, and stay in the kitchen when I was preparing dinner. He was such a loyal and faithful companion, and I really miss his presence.

I learnt how to groom him and we enjoyed many sessions together, me trimming his long hair which grew so fast. He loved to shake his head, and that made it difficult to trim his fur. He always looked more handsome after each grooming session and I would take many pictures of him then.

Another fun time was bath time. Velvet loved to take baths! When I was getting the towels and hair dryer ready, he would be jumping up and down, making funny happy sounds, before rushing to the toilet to take his bath. Soon, both of us would be wet as he shook off the water. So I too would have to take a bath after that.

He was a wonderful guard dog and would bark at strangers or anyone who came to deliver the gas or do repair works in our house. However, he could be friendly and playful with our visitors whom he knew.

I was very sad when he was diagnosed with kidney failure and started his treatment but more disheartening to see no improvement after the treatment. He was getting weaker by the day and it was a relief for him when he finally passed away on Oct 6,2020, with no more suffering. We had loved him and taken care of him well. Still, it was very sad for me as I had spent a lot of time with him. I miss him so much till this day.

He brought so much joy and fun into our lives over the past 11 years. I really treasure those sweet memories – they will always remain dear in our hearts.

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