A little dog’s BIG tale

July 20, 2012

Abigail DonJuan, 10, with her dog, Chiquis, Friday. Chiquis was reunited with Abigail on Thursday after a Facebook post asking for a family to take her in. Chiquis, also known as Macy, needed a new home after her adopted family moved away. Staff photo/Shawn Yorks

When 10 year-old Abigail DonJuan was younger, her best friend was her Chihuahua mix named Chiquis. But Chiquis was more than just a beloved family pet.

Abigail has juvenile diabetes which is so serious, she often lands in the hospital and her mother Rebekah Acuña is forced to home-school the child. And when Abigail’s blood sugar would get dangerously high, Chiquis would know.

“Abigail has gone into diabetic shock many, many times,” Acuña said. “She’s very isolated, she’s very delicate.

“When she would go into diabetic shock, Chiquis sensed it, and she would lay by Abigail. She could always tell, she wouldn’t leave her.”

But a year-and-a-half ago, Chiquis was picked up by Guymon Animal Control, and because of medical expenses and bills, Acuña couldn’t afford to get Chiquis — who was pregnant — out of the pound.

“Abigail cried, she said ‘I want Chiquis,’” Acuña said. “She was really heart-broken. We just prayed that they wouldn’t put her down.”

But like Abigail, Chiquis is a survivor.

Christie Kennelly, former ad sales representative at The Guymon Daily Herald, heard from a friend that there was a pregnant Chihuahua at the pound. Kennelly took her kids to the pound, found Chiquis, and brought her to their Ellison Street home.

Kennelly’s kids — Madison (10), Lakyn (9), Emma (5) and Luke (13) — renamed the dog “Macy,” and made her a part of their family, which included older sister Sarah Miller, three dogs and several cats.

But on Thursday, Chiquis/Macy’s future was once again uncertain.
The Kennellys began a new chapter in their lives, and moved away to another state. They couldn’t take the dog with them, but didn’t want her to go back to the pound.

So a search began to find a loving home for the dog — a search that included a photo posted on the newspaper’s Facebook page.

“(Thursday) I got on Facebook and the first thing I said was ‘Oh my gosh that’s Chiquis,’” Acuña said.

By Friday, Chiquis was back home, cuddled in Abigail’s arms, wearing a new pink bow that Abigail made.

When Abigail saw Chiquis, she was ecstatic. And so was Chiquis.

“I couldn’t believe it was her,” Abigail said. “(Chiquis) got real happy, she rolled on her back.”

Now, Chiquis has a new place to live — with a fenced yard — where she can run around and play with the family’s other dogs, and a comfortable home where she can fall asleep in one happy little girl’s arms.