DENVER — Chloe, the teacup poodle, seems to play better when no one's watching.
“She likes to play this game," Jay Hindi said. "We call it 'duck hunting.'
"Wanna go duck hunting?" he asked, squeaking the chew toy.
Chloe sniffed under the bed covers and recovered the toy duck, affectionately known as Mr. Duck.
The bond between dog and duck goes back nearly 11 years.
“It doesn’t even look like a duck anymore. It looks kind of like a piece of trash, you know," Hindi laughed.
Friendship wore out Mr. Duck. Hindi replaced its squeaker multiple times, but he couldn't handle all the holes.
“I can’t sew! No, it’s one thing I really wish I could do," Hindi said.
Last weekend, Hindi decided to turn to Washington Park neighbors on his Nextdoor app for help. He offered $50 to anyone willing to stitch up Mr. Duck.
"Since the day I found Chloe she has had a tiny yellow duck toy that she carries everywhere and won’t sleep without," Hindi wrote in a post to Nextdoor. "She loves this duck like I love her. Sadly, Duck is in need of extensive repair."
Hindi asked requested repairs be made the same day because he didn't want Chloe to be without her duck overnight.
“Like immediately, I started getting messages – like private messages," Hindi said. "And I’m like, ‘wow! Chloe. People are actually responding.’ Like this was a good idea!”
Multiple offers came in from people willing to help for free.
“They said, ‘hey, you know, let’s help little Chloe out. Let’s make her happy.’ And they did," Hindi said.
A school teacher was the one who ended up stitching up Mr. Duck.
“The next morning, [she] came, picked it up, took it with her and like three hours later, had it back to us," Hindi said.
Mr. Duck has a few threaded scars, but otherwise, he's good as new.
“It’s just awesome that there’s people that are willing to do that, and it made me want to help other people, too," Hindi said.
Chloe is one lucky dog to have a special duck and a special dad.
“You’re world-famous, Chloe!" Hindi said, cradling his 5-pound pup in his arms.
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