It had been 14 years since Ginger my Pekinese died she had been
my best friend while I was growing up.
My mother bought a longhair Chihuahua for companionship after my dad died.
My oldest daughter Debbie had just started her first job and wanted an
inside dog we had outside dogs but I never wanted to become attached
to another animal like I was to Ginger.
After my “she’ll be your responsibility” and “one day your heart will be
broken when she dies” lecture I agreed and talked Glen my husband
into letting her have a dog in the house. She found a breeder right away
and made an appointment for the four of us to go see the puppies.
My parents had raised Chihuahuas for several years when I was younger
so I knew what a good Chihuahua should look like.
When we arrived the lady brought out several puppies from different litters
all were longhair except one little fawn short hair female.
I knew she was a good Chihuahua show quality but my family wanted
a longhair. Debbie couldn’t decide so we went home to think about it.
The next day she called back and asked to come and see only the female
puppies there was one little male that dominated the first visit and we
wanted a female. To my surprise Debbie picked out this little female
almost solid black with white on her chest and feet droopy ears with a slight
under-bite. She put her deposit on the puppy then listened to me all the way
home tell her how there was no expression in that solid black face those ears
would never stand up that she was just pet quality not a good Chihuahua at all.
The breeder insisted upon keeping the puppies until they were 10 weeks old
so they would learn to be dogs and not think of themselves as people.
Besides she was house breaking them at the same time.
A month went by and it was time to pick up the puppy we had bought a
used play pen and put it up in Debbie’s room I vowed not to love this puppy.
She was covered with fleas and weighed only 14 ounces she could go through
our chain link fence so had to taken out on a leash.
We named her Fuson’s Dark Crystal Chrissy for short. This DOG wasn’t going
to be allowed at the dinner table so every night Debbie ate supper with her foot
in a laundry basket Chrissy asleep on her foot. I wasn’t working at the time and
Chrissy demanded attention so I learned very quickly how to cook,
clean and even go to the bathroom with one hand the other arm always
had Chrissy in it. A few weeks went by her ears stood up and then looked way
out of proportion to the rest of her body would she ever grow into those ears?
As her hair grew she looked as if she had more white and two little dots
one above each eye began to lighten.
Several months went by and it was vacation time neither daughter wanted
to go without Chrissy so off the five of us went making potty stops
at rest areas only to reach Florida to find no one on the beach would take a dog.
We stopped at every motels I’d go in and ask Glen wasn’t going to let
anyone know he had a Chihuahua. Finally someone told me to try Sandy
Shores weekly condo rentals for people with small dogs. In the coming
years Chrissy got her own suitcase and when you asked her if she wanted
to go on vacation she knew what we were saying and would get excited
she was ready to go any where “her people” went.
We went back to Sandy Shores every year because we knew Chrissy
was always welcome.
After that first vacation a change came over my family we weren’t four
individual going about our lives together yet separate everyone was
united pulling together because of this little Chihuahua she had
become a member of that family in every sense of the word everyone
put her welfare first. If we ate she got fed first the best cut of meat
she liked vegetables and fruit anything we ate she wanted also she
even had a chair at the table so she could sit with us.
If we were going somewhere and Chrissy couldn’t go someone usually
opted to stayed home with her or if she went Glen would carry her proudly,
she was Daddy’s little girl.
Time went by I went back to work and Pam our youngest daughter was in high
school she arrived home early in the day and spent her afternoons
summer vacations and holidays with Chrissy. When she went to
vocational school and studied photography Chrissy was her favorite model.
Classes were scheduled so she could spend as much time as
possible with Chrissy.
As the years went by and we were all working Chrissy’s favorite place
to lay was on a pillow at the end of the couch next to the door so she
could greet each of us as we came home. She would relax after the
last member of “her family” was home for the evening and would settle
down in our bed or Pam’s until time to sleep with Debbie.
She loved the weekends we would open the front door and she could
spend the day sunning herself but was glad to see Monday morning
come when everyone went off the work it was hard work keeping up
with everyone for an entire weekend. Besides it took a lot of beauty sleep
to be that cute. As our love for her grew we worried that someone might
break in and hurt her or that a storm might blow her away never mind
the house and what was in it just let Chrissy be safe.
She lived for “her family” and just the thought that she might die at
home alone and us not to be there when she would want us most
was almost unbearable.
The white from her chest had crept up onto her chin and now as she
aged her face was turning white she communicated with her facial
expressions and those beautiful brown eyes. Her hair had grown to 6 inches
on her ears and 13 inches on her tail her fine jet black hair curled slightly
and felt like silk to the touch not course like most Chihuahuas.
She wasn’t a Chihuahua she was a little person trapped in a four legged
body she was our forever baby to be carried on her back and cared for
she was my third daughter. She never got a doggy odor and when
she was sleepy she had a sleepy smell about her.
She understood what you said minded better than most children
she remembered people and places even after a year or more,
if she got impatient she’d stamped her little front feet of if she was
mad she’d just turned her back and wouldn’t look at anyone until
we made peace with her.
Once Chrissy became completely deaf from some drops the vet gave
her for an ear infection she would look at me as if to say why don’t you
understand what’s wrong it took 2 days but we realized she couldn’t hear.
I called the manufacturer of the drops and started out “let’s get this straight
right off the bat she is not a dog she is a little person in a fur coat she is my
CHILD!” She regained her hearing after several weeks but we were
much more aware of how frail her little body was. When she became unable to
jump onto the couch we placed the center cushion on the floor so she could
jump half way at a time. She lost all of her front teeth and one fang and couldn’t
keep her tongue in her mouth so it hung out slightly that made her all the more
beautiful to us we felt it was our fault for not taking better care of her teeth.
We knew Chrissy was aging and wasn’t feeling well she had been having
stomach problems when we’d take her to the vet they wouldn’t find
anything antibiotics would clear the problem up but it always returned.
Chrissy’s vet found a heart murmur so we took her to a specialist and
she was put on heart medication.
The family was busy designing a new house one that would
have long windows and doors low enough for Chrissy to look out
the open side of the stairs was built up slightly so she couldn’t fall
bay windows for her and I to sit in and watch the snow and a screened
in porch so the bugs wouldn’t get us in the summer.
I made it my job to make sure the contractor knew this house had been
designed to meet Chrissy’s needs also. We had lived in the same house
all of Chrissy’s 13 plus years so when it sold 6 weeks before the new
one was finished and we had to move in with my mother we were
afraid how Chrissy would take two moves once again she showed us,
home was anywhere “her people” were. The new house was completed
two weeks before Christmas and we moved in each took turns taking
vacation time so Chrissy wouldn’t be alone in a strange new place
her couch was there and “her people” were there so that was home.
Her health began failing rapidly she lost from sever pounds to just
under five and the stomach problems became more severe and now she was
sick once or twice a week. Now in the backs of our minds we were
all thinking her stomach problem was CANCER how could we have been
so busy not to see the danger she had been to the vet several times
why hadn’t we pushed the vet harder for answers if it was cancer would
be able to save her if it was and we couldn’t save her which one of
her Mamas would quit their job and stay with her?
The specialist we used earlier had move now we insisted our vet find
out what was wrong. A more urgent conditions arose the heart
medicine that was supposed to save her life was now killing her her
potassium was elevated and her heart might stop she was given fluids
to flush her system her veins were so small blood had to be drawn
from her neck. Chrissy was a fighter she held on but could no longer
take her heart medication at least not for the time being the stomach
problems had to be addressed first. The vet suggested an endoscopy at
Knoxville’s Veterinary School but to get an appointment would take several
weeks time we didn’t feel Chrissy had to spare. I started calling other
vets in our area to see if anyone closer had one small enough for a
dog her size. We found Dr. Ladd he had a plan of attach.
Since Chrissy did not like strangers and was afraid of men I made it very clear,
she was a CHILD and that we could not and would not leave her.
I explained how anytime Chrissy was put under anesthetic all three
Mamas were there and how the other vet would sedate her while she
was in my arms then when asleep took her and did whatever
she needed returning her to me before she would awaken I then held
her until she could go home. He agreed Chrissy had an upper GI
x-rays ultra sound an endoscopy and exploratory surgery.
Someone always stayed with her usually Pam all three of her
Mamas were there for her surgery and afterward all three of us slept
on the floor with her for several days. Dr. Ladd and the entire staff
seemed to know how much she meant to us and never objected to us
taking up their waiting room. A week later we were so relieved when
the biopsy came back no cancer.
Her stomach and intestines were thickened from an infiltration of
white blood cells she was put on a steroid and an anti nausea medicine
and began to gain her weight back. She needed to slowly come
off the steroids because they prevented her body from fighting
infections but if she missed a dose or we cut it down she would
become sick again. Most of the time she was like her old self again
happy and running through the new house.
At times the stomach problems would crop back up but not as often
and when they did she was back to normal in 24 hours or less.
Dr. Ladd and I talked once or twice a week and there were visits
in between trips to the emergency pet care center and even a bath
in ice to bring a fever down. I think Chrissy knew how much we
needed her and would always fight to stay with us.
Then on Good Friday Chrissy scratch her eye so first thing
Saturday morning another trip to the vet’s office for eye medicine.
A couple of weeks later another crisis her eye began to get ulcerated,
becoming very painful it wasn’t healing because of the steroid
and without it she could rupture the eyeball if she became nauseated.
She was now seeing an eye specialist on antibiotics two different eye drops
an ointment we were to continue this for 2 weeks if this didn’t
work surgery might be needed to repair the ulcer on her eye.
It was late on Sunday Mother’s Day Chrissy started throwing up
much worse than the other times first thing Monday morning Debbie
and I took her to see Dr. Ladd he gave her a shot for nausea and
sent another home for us to give her Debbie took the day off in
case Chrissy needed her. If she wasn’t better the next morning we
were to bring her back at 8:00 o’clock for more tests.
Chrissy had chosen to sleep with Pam since the move so I was in
and out of her room checking on them Tuesday morning Chrissy
seemed so tired and weak. Pam had gotten almost no sleep for
two nights but as she left for work about 4:30 A.M. she leaned over
and gently kissed Chrissy’s little apple head I thought to myself
how much love they had for each other Chrissy always wanted
Pam and how many sleepless nights Pam had the past few months
but never got upset with Chrissy. Glen came in to check on her before
he left for work she raised her head as he talked to her he later told me
he knew by the way she looked at him she seemed to know it was
going to be her last time to say good-by Daddy.
Debbie and I took turns staying with Chrissy while the other got
ready to go to the vet. While I laid on Pam’s bed stroking Chrissy’s
little body I told her “Mama wants you to fight but if you can’t I’ll
understand my love.” I thought she was finally getting some rest
I didn’t realize just how bad her condition was until I picked her up,
her little body was so limp I decided to call Pam and have her meet
us at the vets Chrissy died in my arms just three blocks from her vet
I guess she just didn’t have the strength to fight anymore or her little
heart had given out. They tried to revive her but couldn’t.
Glen soon joined us and “her family” took her home.
We had her cremated that afternoon so she could always be close
to the family she loved so much. Thank God for every day we had
this little life she taught us a lot about loving sharing and caring.
She might not have been a Chihuahua of show quality but she was
beautiful and she was a wonderful loving Child.
Two days later as we arrived home from work to an empty house
Glen said “we’re a dog in the house family let’s get another one.”
He had already talked to the girls they didn’t know how I would take
to the idea of getting a new puppy so soon. That weekend there was
a National Chihuahua Competition in Nashville it was just like Chrissy
to see that “her family” would have this opportunity.
That Sunday night we bought a little female longhair
white and fawn with oversized droopy ears and
named her Buffy.
Buffy you have some pretty big shoes to fill…………..
| Chrissy |