Shanti is my miniature schnauzer. The Hindi word ‘shanti‘ means “inner peace.” Shanti is anything but calm. Call him cute, cuddly, loyal, but definitely not peaceful. Shanti is sweet if he knows you, but if not, he will bark incessantly, growl, attack, and scare you to death. How pray tell was this beast bestowed such a lovely name? It was a manipulation tactic used on Raj to get him to warm to the idea of getting a dog, something he vehemently opposed. I thought that by suggesting an ‘Indian’ name it might work to soften up Mr. I Don’t Want a Dog. Raj bit and the rest is history.
Prior to moving to Amman, Shanti was ALL mine: he followed me everywhere; he’d coo when I came home; he worshipped the ground I walked on. Raj left for Amman two months before I did with Shanti in tow. As much as I missed him (Shanti, that is), I was pleased with the arrangement because I didn’t want to fly alone with his cumbersome kennel and have to deal with all of the logistics by myself. Unfortunately for Raj, Shanti was kicked off their flight from JFK to Amman because the airline claimed his barking was so bad that “he wasn’t breathing.” (I’ve seen this bark and it is terrible, but he certainly wouldn’t die. He’d eventually get tired and sleep.) As a result, Raj and Shanti were holed up in a dive motel in Jamaica, NY for eighteen hours. Raj was NOT pleased, but as you can see in the photo, Shanti looks pretty relaxed, even happy (perhaps he had found his shanti?). They BOTH made it out the next night, worse for the wear, but together. Maybe this was the critical moment that Shanti switched teams. I’m not sure, but after two months of hanging out with Raj, he’s no longer my dog, but Raj’s. Nowadays, Shanti spends his time napping on the sofa, sunning himself on the back porch, and chasing feral cats out of his yard.
Jen Maan in Amman 
Who is the real traitor? Let’s see. You insisted that he go off to a foreign land and territory without you….did not want to be bothered with his crate,etc. on a flight…indeed! Of course he would switch allegience to the person who safely conveyed him to these new surrounding and assuaged his doggie fears.
Or Raj? Could he be that he secretly was jealous of your bond with Shanti and deliberately set off to win Shanti’s heart once you were out of the picture?
No fear… the boy will stray back to you, but it will take time.
The pictures are great!
Janice
Leave it to you to take the dog’s side. I’m going to stick to the second scenario, the jealousy one. Thanks.
Time for a new dog anyway.
“spends his time napping on the sofa, sunning himself on the back porch, and chasing feral cats out of his yard.”
You sure you’re not talking about Raj?? 😉
haha great post! Looks like Shanti is enjoying it out there.
Well, who do you think trained him over the two months during my absence?
Jen,
I knew there was something funny with that dog. I easily converted him to my side on my visit to D.C. last summer. Be weary of taking him back. : )
I think you’re right, Eric. I should have known something wasn’t quite right when Raj willingly agreed to travel with the dog, alone.
Hi Jen, I used to work with Raj at Yuba City PD and he just sent me the link to your blog. I love it! I wanted to let you know we have two mini Schnauzer’s (female) and they are both traitors as well. My son and I went to Italy and Greece for 3 weeks in 2009 and they totally fell in love with my husband. Nothing has changed and it has been two years! I beg them to sit by me on the sofa and they just look at me…..he barely pats the sofa and they jump right up and snuggle down. They kiss him on his nose and ears and ignore me! He didn’t even want the dogs! I’m the one who feeds them, takes them to the spa (baths & haircuts) and I get no appreciation at all. Must be the breed!! lol Anyway, keep blogging, I really enjoy your stories and you have beautiful toes! – Lynda Verstelle
Hi, Lynda, Thanks for stopping by. I’m glad to hear that it’s the breed and not me. Raj gloats on a nightly basis as Shanti completely ignores my pleads for affection. I pampered the dog for 6 years and it was all forgotten in two months. Maybe it’s time to get another puppy?
You’re lucky Shanti didn’t choose to just stay with Blaise and Mads.
And fon’t forget Mr. Gregory. Shanti would have stayed if he had a choice. Unfortunately for him, I showed up and shoved him in my car.
You can win him back!!
I’ll be heading back to your site for inspiration.
I’ll be heading back to you site for inspiration!