Chapter 9: My Dressing Gown (A True Story)

It was now 5am, realizing that I hadn’t input my day’s orders, and today I must meet TNT to collect my orders; I continued to input the orders. I can tell you now, goodness knows how but everyone’s orders got there, and I didn’t mess up my business. Next, I messaged Claudia to ask for help with supplies, “Claudia, could you please get me some headache tablets, some vitamins, and some dog food? Oh, and please, could you make some golden paste for the dogs as I am running low?”

(Golden paste is a mixture of black pepper, coconut oil, and turmeric), Claudia knows the recipe, as we have been adding it to our dog’s food ever since my little baby Steve became ill with Cancer.

Steve is a very small chihuahua. He is grey, yet in the dog world, the colour is actually called blue, no idea as to why as seriously he is grey; he most certainly isn’t blue. Please never buy a blue chihuahua as the majority of the time, they are interbred, and the problems that then occur are terrible.

I have experienced this with my little Steve. Little Steve has 3 hernias 2 missing vertebrae in the spine, plus, he is bald as a coot, yet his skin is grey; he actually looks like a seal. He also suffers from backward sneezing as he is allergic to practically everything, and he also suffers from arthritis. He also stinks, but seriously, I love him. My daughter actually loves him too.

Steve has always loved his food; if he had the opportunity, I am quietly confident that he could actually eat himself to death. Steve has never missed a meal, so I knew something was very wrong when one year ago I shouted “Din-dins,” and Steve never appeared. I went outside to look, and the poor little man was cocking his leg against a rock.

I often wonder how long the poor sod was there for. I went and picked him up and put him near his food bowl, and he scoffed it up. So, at this point, I wasn’t overly worried, however, a few moments later, he went back to the rock, and he cocked his leg, yet no wee came out.

Gordon was actually at my house at the time, and we discussed it and hoped it was just a wee infection, so we decided that tomorrow I wouldn’t feed him his breakfast and take him straight to the vets.

The News No One Wants

As I sat with Steve on my lap at the vets, I just knew that this was more than a wee infection; I can’t explain as to why yet I just knew. Then I was called in, and they gave Steve a scan and an X-ray. They then sat me down and explained how Steve had such bad prostate cancer and that his bladder could explode at any moment, and that the best thing to do would be to take him for one last supper and put him to sleep.

I looked at Steve, and Steve looked at me; you see, the vets said that basically 99.9%, Steve would not survive the operation. I said, how quickly can you make the opp? They said if he has any chance, it needs to be done now. So, I gave my Steve the biggest kiss and told him I loved him, and that tomorrow he could have a burger, plus a sausage, a few chips, and obviously some gravy.

I was told to go home and that they would call me when the operation was over, so off I went home, yet after one hour of pacing up and down I drove back to the vets.

As I walked in, I knew he had made it, and yes, he had; the vet passed him over to me; Steve was all wrapped up in a towel they explained how if I took care of him, he had a better chance. Gosh, I must love Steve so very much as for the next week Steve needed a wee every 10 minutes, this was 24/7.

After Steve was given another scan, I was told that there was still part of cancer there and to hope for 3 months of life. It was then that Sue told me about golden paste. Steve now has no cancer. This was after 6 months of golden paste. Steve also isn’t as allergic to things, his arthritis has gone, and some of his hair has started to grow back.

So, you can see what with me running out of the golden paste was an issue, and Claudia being a true friend, made many pots for me and arrived with my supplies.

It was shortly after 7am that my brother phoned. I will always remember that call, why you might ask……. Well, it was because I was on the toilet. Not a trickle to be heard, just a plop. I mean, how can one take a pooh after 4 days of not eating?????? So, this was our conversation to start with, as it baffled me. Then I remember asking him how many days can you live with no sleep? I am not sure; however, I think he googled it.

Once again, I had the reassurance that I needed, no I wasn’t going mad; it was totally acceptable of me to think the things that I was thinking. My brother is actually 2 years younger than me, yet for me, he is my older brother. If he had told me I was a nutter or out of control, I would have listened.

The Pink Trail Plan

Right, so now I needed a plan for today, so sitting with a cup of tea and reading message after message, my mind kept going back to what I first felt was the most bizarre message it said: “Hi, what you need to do is wee in a bottle and put dribbles of your wee all-around tracks leading to your house.” Rather an odd message, and at this point, it was something that I didn’t feel was the right thing to do, yet she had a point. My fluffy pink dressing gown, I need to cut it up and leave a trail of it along the tracks.

I also needed desperately to look inside the house of the chihuahua breeders, uuuuffff I needed to do that. The urge to do this was so great, my urge needed to become a reality. So, I messaged Gordon and Carol. First of all, Gordon. “Please could you drive me and Carol to the chihuahua breeder’s house and then all around the tracks as I need to leave bits of my dressing gown everywhere in case George has lost his way,” I said. “What time?” he asked. “As soon as TNT has been,” I replied.

Next was to message Carol. “Hi, could you come to mine as soon as TNT has been and come with me to raid the chihuahua breeder’s house?” “Yes, of course,” she said.

...course,” she said. (Carol is one hell of a true friend as I couldn’t believe that she said yes).

So, my plan was made; I sorted the dogs and then sat outside trying to think of a good enough reason to enter someone’s house. My mind was in knots trying to think of a good enough reason; if they had George, surely, there was no way that they would let me inside.

Thankfully, David from TNT messaged to say he would be arriving in 10 minutes to collect my orders. So, this gave me no time whatsoever to come up with a plan of how to let these people let me enter their house. All I could think was: wing it. As I left to meet TNT, I messaged Gordon and Carol, “Please meet me at mine in 20 mins.”

The Mission Begins

Yes, they were there at mine on my return, Gordon and Kermit in their car and Carol in hers. I parked up and said: “Give me ten seconds, please.” I ran into my house and grabbed a bottle of fabric softener, my fluffy pink dressing gown, and a pair of scissors.

Off we all went in Gordon’s car; we needed to use his car as, basically, they all knew how I needed to get into the house of the chihuahua breeders, so basically, at this point, we were all discussing as to how we would do this without being arrested.

I could tell that all 3 of them were there to 100% support me, yet none of them knew how the hell we were going to manage this. Yet then Carol just said: “Gordon, just park up, and Christine and I will knock on the door.” Simple.

Knocking on the Wrong Door

This is what we did; however, no one came to the door. There was also a bell, so we rang and rang the bell. This is not strictly true as it was a bell, not a doorbell, so we were basically yanking the rope from side to side. Nothing. So, we decided to knock on the neighbour’s door (no clue as to why but we did).

Oh, how strange, the lady that opened the door was actually someone that I knew, it was my friend Trudy’s friend; I had known Trudy for 8 years. The relief….. so now began the questions.

“They Still Have His Balls”

“Hi Lisa, I think your neighbours have taken my George, they breed chihuahuas, and my George still has his balls.” “They don’t breed chihuahuas,” she said.

Right, then I turned and looked at Carole; the confusion on my face was rather cartoon-like. Poor Carol knew I was going nowhere until I entered the so-called not chihuahua breeder’s house. So, briskly, Carol walked next door again and started yanking on that rope.

I immediately thanked Lisa and followed Carol and then…. Yes, a lady appeared, the same lady that I had seen on the balcony only wearing a dressing gown. As she opened her gate, Carol went into total Oscar moment; what an actress, she was totally amazing. “So sorry to bother you, Christine’s...

“...chihuahua has gone missing, and she only lives there,” she said. Then she pointed to my house in the distance. “Could we please come in and check your garden as Christine is so worried for her little George?” she said.

“Oh, oh well, I suppose so; first, I have to shut in the 2 German shepherds as they are not very friendly; they killed one of our chihuahuas a few months ago,” she said.

It was the way she said it, no sadness, no nothing; I have seen more sadness in someone's eyes when a dog has eaten a sausage from their dinner plate, her dog bloody killed her chihuahua. Carol and I picked up on this immediately. The German shepherds now locked away in a side alley to the house, I proceeded to the kitchen; shit, it was like chihuahua city, lots of little chihuahuas.

Too Many Chihuahuas

My heart sank; oh my god, they must have my baby locked in a cage somewhere. I left Carol to do all the talking as I knew if I started talking, I might lose control. My head was hurting as I knew George; even if George could hear my voice, he would never bark. I was looking at all these chihuahuas; bloody hell, she had every colour; she had short-haired, long-haired it was like being in Tescos; she had every type imaginable.

Carol then showed the lady a photo of George; the lady then called her husband/boyfriend (sorry, I still have no clue who he was or is). She asked him to fetch Sally, a little black chihuahua that looked very similar to George.

The Doppelgänger

He had to go into another room to fetch her.

Wow, yes, she looked so similar to George, every white hair marking the same. So, all black yet with age, white appearing in the ears, around the eyes, on the feet. Just like George. This was the moment that not only me, my daughter, Claudia, Carol, Gordon, my brother my everyone got to find out that there is more than one dog that looks like George. Seriously we all believed that George was the only black chihuahua. Ok, not literally black but non-chihuahua looking, more cat-like in appearance.

Cold Encounters

This lady that is a so-called non-chihuahua breeder yet had at least 30 chihuahuas in her house, was so cold towards me. Ok, so I was in her house, and I was looking a tad like a lunatic. Yet the no compassion, she gave nothing but stern looks to me. The man also was odd; he was also very cold and uncompassionate.

Suddenly I just blurted out, “please could I put a cage with a water bowl in it outside the front of your house, just in case George makes his way here?” It then went silent, they both looked at each other and finally the lady said, “I don’t see the point, yet you can if you wish.”

I knew that we had to leave, Carol thanked them, and I left in a flood of tears. I had to be realistic and think that George isn’t being held in a cage for breeding purposes in their house. I had to get back out there looking. This isn’t a film,

The Long Way Home

After all. So, back in the car with Gordon driving and Carol and Kermit in the back, we headed along the tracks.

I often wonder what Carol, Kermit, and Gordon were thinking as we drove back to mine via all different tracks. You see, all the way back to mine via all different tracks, I had my arm out of the window, and I was tipping drops of fabric softener, and then every 100 yards, I was shouting “Stop,” and then I would jump out of the car and place a piece of my fluffy pink dressing gown in the grass.

Coming Home to Love

We were now back at my house; I knew I had to thank them and let them go. As I watched them drive off, I walked into my house, and all my babies were so pleased to see me. I was desperately trying to hold back the tears and the love that they gave me; well, I don’t think any man could have given that to me. No judgment, no words, just sheer joy that I was there. I do actually think that if I had had a boyfriend at this time in my life, it would have ended very quickly as there was no way I was going to give up looking for George.

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