Kutta: One of the first words I learned in Hindi. It means “dog”.

This dog entered the church during communion and laid down during the consecration.

A few days ago, I asked readers on my Facebook page to tell me what three things they thought of when they imagined India.

One theme emerged: animals. Whether elephants, tigers, or street dogs, everyone seems quite interested in the plight of animals in India. Brian and I rode an elephant in Rajasthan. We have seen a tiger in Sanjay Gandhi National Park. But, our greatest love remains for the street dogs that inhabit our city. They are ubiquitous, even hanging out on the driveway of our building and inside the parking garage. As often as I brag about Powai’s fabled wide sidewalks, those sidewalks are littered with street dogs (and their poo).

I first wrote about street dogs back in September  2012. Since then, we have adopted our very own street dog: Maya the Mumbai Mutt. Before we met Maya, we considered adopting Mitten the kitten, but that did not go very well.

NEWS FLASH: We interrupt this blog to bring you Peanut’s perspective.

Chip and I had many adventures before Maya arrived. First, there was the rather complicated housekeeper hiring process that we had to endure. Chip proved to be an excellent recruiter, however. Then, I experienced the awkward mixup at the vet with regard to my gender. Finally, we endured utter, total humiliation at the hands of our humans when they made us wear those ridiculous rain coats and booties. I’m just glad those did not last long. I think we wore them once only this monsoon.