“A hundred dollars a pound for a little, round, bald-headed, big eared and bright-eyed Cairn Terrier?” I exclaimed. And we certainly did not need another dog, especially one who had a mind of her own.
Barely six inches long she’d snatch whatever she wanted and make it her own. Strutting, dancing, back arched, tail straight in the air, she’d slip under the couch, holding her prize.
We called her Yoda after the Star Wars character who used her ancient powers to teach others to survive. Star Wars’ Yoda taught our Yoda to fly. One day in the back yard, sniffing, never satisfied with the first spot she found, our Yoda literally flew over a fence and scampered across the neighbor’s lawn. No sweet calling would bring her back, but little bits of cheese placed carefully across the lawn finally won her over. Her marvelous sense of smell drew her. This time she slipped under the fence and ate her way right back into the house.
Our Yoda always looked like a puppy until last fall when she developed pancreatitis. Her little stomach grew very big and hard and her personality changed. She lay in a small cage at the vets, not even curious when other dogs or children came into view. It was time to “put her down.” She must have heard that because the next day she demanded water and she began to talk, “Yoda-da-lay-lee. Lay-lee”. She wanted to go out!
After the vet expressed her amazement, Yoda returned home. She was on a mature-dog diet, but her appetite was excellent and her hearing and her barking were better than they had ever been.
Now Yoda has hit old age. She turned thirteen years old last month and is languishing again. Another trip to the vet confirms bad news. Yoda has diabetes and needs an insulin shot every morning. But it doesn’t bother her! All of a sudden her youth has returned. She dashes up and down the steps, backs up for a chase whenever a hand is reached toward her and tosses her toys around in gay abandon. Her little body wiggles whenever a child walks through the neighborhood or comes for a visit. Her joy is infectious; she has earned her keep and for a good long time to come.