Light, Love, Hope

Once upon a time, a tiny teacup Yorkie entered my life and became the center of my world.

It was October 2011, to be exact, when we ventured to another town to see the little puppy that would become my Baby.  I’ll never forget visiting with her and her brother, because the two were complete opposites.  My youngest daughter was with us that day, at seven years old, and she was drawn to a rambunctious little boy.  This little guy was running all over the living room keeping her entertained.  Meanwhile, the little girl was shying away from all of the activities and hiding behind the leg of the chair.  Pretty soon she made her way behind the couch, and I went to retrieve her.  She was so timid and wanted to hide away from everyone and everything, it seemed, at that moment.  My daughter continued chasing the little boy around the room, while I picked up this little darling and held her close to me.  She had stolen my heart in that short amount of time, and she has had my heart ever since.

On the ride home that day, Baby decided it would be fun to climb on me, and before too long, she was perched on my shoulder almost like a parrot!  She was too funny when she would do this.  This soon became her favorite place to be, it seemed.

I held Baby close to my heart the rest of the way home, and I think that sealed the bond between us.  From that moment on, I was her mama, and she was my sweet little baby girl.  While my youngest daughter was sad that we didn’t take the wild one home with us, she soon realized that this shy baby girl could get wound up all on her own when the notion struck her.

My oldest daughter was thrilled by this little baby from the moment she returned home and set eyes on her.  Baby was such a fitting name for her.  We carried her around like a little baby, and we played dress up with her.

Because Baby was so tiny, we had to watch her closely so that her blood sugar levels didn’t drop.  I remember running home on my lunch break to give her some special medicine to help her.

Baby slept next to a Big Ben clock, as the ticking reminder her of her mother’s heartbeat.  We had little stuffed animals with her, but she was so tiny in comparison to them.

Pretty soon, Baby was entertaining the entire household with how she would turn into the Tasmanian Devil when the notion would strike her.  She would twirl around and bark, turn back around the opposite direction and bark some more.  She had a white and red little puppy dog stuffed animal that she would take in her mouth and shake.  Then she would jump around some more while making the cutest growling sound.

Everyone loved Baby!  Except the groomers … ha!  There was this one time that Baby bit one of the groomers when they attempted to touch her feet.  From then on, the groomer decided to let someone else handle Baby when she would come in for a spa day.   It was amazing to me how a huge adult could be so afraid of this little two pound dog.  What was even funnier was that Baby never did this to me.  I would purposely hold her little paw in my hand and rub it with my fingers.  Although she would get this look on her face and draw her head back, she never bit me!

The vet loved to see her coming, as she was just a little tiny thing, and all of the ladies in the office were ohhing and ahhing over her.  Baby didn’t like anyone else messing with her, and it was obvious when the vet tech would take her to administer shots and check her weight.  She would often bark and pitch such a fit until she was back in my arms again.  They laughed and said she certainly wanted her mama!

I was so crazy about this little girl that I took her for a photo shoot also.  I liked her hair longer, although I could never let it completely grow out where it would touch the ground.  She would take her little paw and rub her eyes with it, and I knew she didn’t like much being in her face so I kept her cut short after her “glamour” shots were taken.

While Baby didn’t like to be messed with, except for on her terms, she would bark to let us know when she was ready for attention.  It could be quiet in the entire house, then all of a sudden, we would hear the sweetest little bark from the other room.  We would run to get her, and she would snuggle down in the blanket.  She didn’t like being held, but she was happy being close and snuggled up between my knees in her blankie.

Baby had a keen sense of smell, too.  We would sit down to eat supper, and shortly thereafter, we would hear a bark from the other room.  She knew it was supper time, and she wanted some of what we were having.  Without fail, I would save a portion of my meal to share with Baby and her sister (Trixie) and brother (Shadow).  I would not feel right if I didn’t share with them.

A nightly bedtime ritual, which my husband hated, was for me to say, “Everyone’s getting in the bed!”  Baby and Trixie would scurry to my room as fast as their little feet would take them.  They wanted to lay with me for just a little while before being taken to their very own bed where they would sleep at night.  I loved cupping my hand, and Baby snuggling right into it.  That is when she didn’t mind being close, and she would let me draw her near to my chest.

Baby liked her little “hidey hole” and it was a wonder she could even breathe tucked down inside her blanket or curled up on the very edge of her bed.  She was always cold, and so we would buy her little outfits to keep her warm.  Even the extra small was too big for her at times.  Oh how we loved dressing this little girl up!

When Baby was three years old, we gave her a sister, Trixie.  Baby did NOT appreciate this one bit, as Trixie was now her roommate.  Baby barely tolerated humans at this point, and yet we placed her with a very active sibling.  Ha!  She would growl at Trixie to let her know to stay on her side, but pretty soon, Trixie won Baby over.  You’d find them snuggled together in her older years.

The year 2021 brought Baby fame, as my oldest daughter created a Tic Tok channel for her.  My daughter would make videos of Baby, and we would laugh at her antics.

Yorkies are known for their eye problems, and unfortunately, the newest vet said that Yorkies also are predisposed to gum disease.  Her entire jaw disintegrated.  My oldest daughter thought it was due to Baby mistaking a fidget spinner for a snack, which made her lose a tooth.  But it wasn’t my daughter’s fault at all.  Unfortunately, it was just something that happens with this breed.  Sadly, Baby lost several teeth, and the remaining ones had to be pulled by the vet to ensure she did not get an infection.  Although my husband didn’t always act like he was a big fan, we knew he loved her, too, as he made sure that Baby had lubricating eye drops or ointment daily, even though she lost her vision anyway over time.  Baby would still get around good in her surroundings despite the loss of vision, as she relied heavily on her sense of smell as well as her hearing, which was still in good shape!  We could call her, and she would use her nose to find her way to us, if we didn’t get to her first.  Baby ate good, too, even without teeth, as we made sure to break apart tiny pieces for Baby to eat.  She loved chicken, ham, and bacon, especially.  My husband gave her breakfast every morning like this, and we gave her dinner in the evenings.  Baby did just fine and adapted to her health conditions, although it sounds horrible when you read these words.

Baby has given us a lot of joy, happiness, and love!  We have made wonderful memories with her through the years.  We joked that she only tolerated humans in her older years especially, but oh how she loved her mama!

The lifespan of a teacup Yorkie is only seven to nine years due to their tiny organs, but honestly, the first vet we took Baby to didn’t give her that long.  He kept stressing to us on every visit that she had tiny organs, and he said she wouldn’t live but just a few years.   Thankfully, he was wrong!  Baby has been entertaining and loving us for almost ten years.  Sadly, though, she will not see her 10th birthday on July 31st, as Baby’s health has declined recently.  This breaks our hearts!

Yesterday the entire family was there taking turns holding and loving on Baby.  She means so much to us all, and it is just so sad that dogs cannot live forever!  While I know that her memory and love will live on in our hearts, it is sad to think of a world without our Baby.   Please pray that if the end is near that she will go quickly and will not linger nor be in any pain.  And please pray for our hearts, as they have been shattered as we watch our little Baby fade away.  Tears seem to never end and fall from our eyes as our hearts break.  Holding her frail body and cuddling with Baby yesterday felt just like I was losing a piece of my soul with each ragged breath she took …

Forever in our hearts … until we meet again … We love you so much, and you have been the best little girl ever!  We are so thankful that you held on as long as you did for us, and thank you for letting us love on you and cuddle with you.  There will never ever be anyone that could ever take your place, and please know that you are taking a huge part of your mama’s heart with you.

While only weighing in at two pounds, you sure gave a ton of pure love that we will carry with us throughout life.  We love you, Teeta (which started off as Sweetest Little Girl In The Whole World and got shortened with us playing around and joking), Teeta Weez, Dah-den, La-weez, Beba-beba-beba, Weezy girl, Deenie, Rodent-Elizabe … Teeta-little-weez … forever our Baby girl!

If love alone could have saved you …