Chennai’s ‘doctor dog’ Moosa inspires children’s book

It was in 2011, when city journalist and author Sonali Shenoy came across the concept of a ‘therapy dog’ at the CP Ramaswami Aiyar Foundation, where Dr Nanditha Krishna serves as the Honorary Director, it immediately struck a chord with her. “This was actually seven years ago, when I met Doctor Moosa, a black labrador, who was interacting with the kids,” said Sonali. 

“The initiative was fantastic – the kids were asked to teach math to Moosa, but were indirectly learning to count themselves. The incident stayed with me for many years. When I visited the foundation again recently, I learnt that Dr Moosa had died, but now there was another dog, Dr Ruffles to carry the legacy forward. This inspired me to come up with the book,” she added. 

After collaborating with children’s publishing house Ms Moochie Books and illustrator Tanvi Bhat, Sonali’s book The Dog Who Taught Me Math came to life. “It is the story of a little girl Parvathy, who struggles with math, and a giant dog Kutti that becomes her unlikely tutor in overcoming an obstacle. Kutti is non-judgemental and helps the girl gain confidence unlike teachers or parents,” said Karthika, editor at Ms Moochi Books. 

“After my first meeting with the doctor dog, I actually came across several other similar experiences: meeting animal activist Shravan Krishnan’s blind and deaf  Great Dane, my own rescue dog Smokie, and so on that all went into the making of the character of Kutti. This is my first book,” said Sonali. 

Here, Karthika added that the book launch on May 19 at The Book Office in Adyar includes a storytelling and a question-answer session with the author, games and craft activities, and doggie-inspired snacks.