Thank you for the warm welcome. My Chi family started a few years ago when I became an empty nester and felt a Chi baby was just what I needed! So I welcomed in the house the sweetest little 1 pound fawn female I lovingly named Muchacha Marie. Then almost a year went by and I had a spoiled little momma's girl with an extensive frilly wardrobe!
Then my dearset friend passed away and her Bella Rose, a five year old Chi, came to live we us. Shortly after Bella I contacted a rescue that had a fine looking older Chi boy. I feel in love! So I applied to adopt him and when they did a home vist and brought him along they also brought another older female Chi. They had both been removed from a backyard breeder and needed some real love. We welcomed Chib- Man-Do, Chibbie and Mulauni Blue, A pretty blue merle. It was at this point my husband said this is enough. Four Chi's for four grown kids! Yeah, okay. One evening when I was leaving work my phone rang and it was the rescue. They had made another sweep at the backyard breeder and found a 5 week old Chi female believed to be Chibbie's daughter. Would I please take her. So I thought about it for 2 seconds and said yes. Now hubby wasn't so sure. I reminded him that when Jane was alive he and Jane said if there was an after life they wanted to return as my Chihuahua. Thus, my newest little girl came home and was named, Rebecca Jane Cooper, after Jane. We call her Cooper or Coop. The more you have the shorter the names. I was now satisfied I had fulfilled all my emptyness and even believe some of Jane was around me. So I was done. Well ... My father inlaw became ill last year and he passed away. My mother inlaw was so lonely and sad. She needed some responsibility in her life. So, I located a sancutary I never new exsisted in my own back yard and got her a little female (Amish puppy mill) girl name Ester. But while I was picking up Esther I seen this small little shy gal that could barely walk. Tanya, the sancutary owner, ask if I could take her. She had been bread for over eight years it seems. She said no fee, she just needs a good home. Well hubby said , NO, we only came for Esther. We were heading out the door and he said, okay but she is the last one. I was so happy we took her. She has bilateral lactating patellas and a hugh hernia. We had the hernia fixed, but after to specialists examines her they felt she had this from birth, a genitic defect, and surgery was not going to be the answer. She was able to walk and was not in pain. (Think of all those puppies she had in eight years. They all will have this disorder!) Well we took Esther to Florida for Hubby's mom and they love each other. That felt so good. My family was all complete. In March I began to volunteer weekends at the Sanctuary. I love it there. Cats, dogs, goats, rabbit, horses, you name it. Trouble is there are some animals that can't be adopted or so they said. I met Pablo a white and black chi with a zest for life. Trouble is he bit a young child who squeezed him to hard. The father took him to the pound and he was slated for a shot of sleepy drug. Tanya brought him to the sancuary several years ago and well I brought him home to have play dates with my girls and Chibbie. He loved it there and one weekend Tanya said he could stay as long as we kept him forever. Pablo wouldn't hurt a flea, unless it hurt him first! Working at the sanctuary can be hard. There are lots of dogs from the puppy mills in Ohio. Most have something wrong with them. Gracie was one of those little ones. A four pound chi that tried to pass a litter and nearly died. The farmer decided we could take her. She wasn't a money maker. She was so afraid of everyone. She had lost half her foot and her tail from the wire cage. She would bite if you got too close or tried to pick her up. Put she was so tiny and sad I just wanted her to know what love and kindness was. So I spent weekends sitting in the dog run with her. Soon would take food, but not let me touch her. One day I covered her with a blanket and held her, she was okay so I continued that until I felt safe with her. I took her home a few months ago and she sleeps under my chin. She now knows love! I found some friends with same interests and recently two older chi's 10-14 years old were dumped in a small town, word traveled and well I probably don't need to explain this one. I have Granny "Carmen Elizabeth" and Prissy "Priscilla Louise". They are not real healthy, have no teeth, and one is blind. They may not live too much longer, but they know love. I have decided that my ten Chi's are my world but I have a rather full house. I live in the country and have land for them, but they are lap lovers, not land lovers. So for now even I know my limits. We are a happy ten chi family, two cats and my hubby has his two chocolate labs, Ohyeah I forgot to mention Ricky and Lucy, Steven's babies. Thank goodness for heated kennels! Well this is our story and I really do hope that the next time you think about a new chi, think about the barely used rescues out there. They are everywhere!
