Home
Chibi the teacup Chihuahua
Chibi is our 2-pound teacup Chihuahua and this is her story. A little over 3 years ago my husband, Carroll, and I volunteered for the Humane Society. During that summer, about 60 dogs of various breeds were rescued from a puppy mill. The Humane Society was able to send some to foster homes and some to rescue groups, but there were a few that had serious medical needs that stayed at the Humane Society to be treated by volunteer veterinarians.
A few weeks after they were brought in and triaged, Carroll and I were there to walk and play with the dogs. I went into the recovery room to see if there were any that needed to be exercised. Looking into one of the cages I saw these two big old brown eyes peeking out from under a blanket. I picked up the blanket and there was this tiny, skinny and shaking creature – no bigger than a mouse. It seemed to take forever to get her to come to me. I found Carroll and told him, “You have got to see this.” Neither of us could believe how tiny she was.
I learned from one of the staff that she had been fostered for several weeks by one of the veterinarians because she was near death from infection. Surprisingly, she recovered. The day I discovered her was her first day back and she was going up for adoption. The staff member told me she would be considered “special needs” because she would likely have to take medication for the rest of her life. They had named her Lisa, after one of the staff members.
The next day Carroll and I had to go out of town for the day. I could not get that little precious Lisa out of my head. I finally told Carroll that little Lisa was meant to be ours and that we could give her a good home. He agreed after telling me the Boys would have to agree (our 2 Chihuahua mixes at home). So I quickly got on the cell phone and left a message for the staff to please hold onto Lisa, that I would be there the next day to adopt her.
Three years later Chibi (a.k.a. Lisa) is a happy, healthy and very confident Chihuahua. She still only weighs 2 pounds, but eats like a horse, and no longer needs her medication. Her favorite place is in a chair in the living room. She doesn’t get down on the floor too much – it’s too big a territory for her after having spent the first 6 years of her life in a cramped cage.
~Sara Axton