I was looking for Bella and she was always looking for me and this I know today! Poor tiny Bella was raised in a puppy mill. The kind of puppy mills you read about in the paper or see on the news. Not by loving breeders who love each and every dog & puppy whose path they cross.

Bella spent anywhere from 8-10 yrs in a mill and was rescued with 86 other dogs. It is estimated that she may have had up to 20 litters if that's possible. She was kept in a chicken coup under a lean to with chicken wire for a floor. She was kept outside in extreme Midwest conditions whether it was 100 degrees or below 0. Oh yeah, I was told there were a couple of heat lamps hanging from the ceiling to keep 86 dogs warm. I don't think so! Not the cozy bed she gets to sleep in today. Bella would be bred every time she came into heat, other than that life was spent in the coup surrounded by injured and dead dogs. She was fed once or twice a week, only to keep her alert enough to "do her job". She mostly fed on her own feces and it's a miracle that she survived. I am told that after she would deliver the puppies she was allowed to feed them and nurture them for a week or two and then they were taken from her. She had to do this over and over and over.

When I got Bella she had all but 4 teeth pulled and two of those had to be filed down halfway. Her teeth where rotten due to lack of nutrition. She was immediately spayed as I never wanted her to relive the experience of puppy birth again and she was estimated at 8-10 yo.

When Bella came to live with me I set up a luxury crate (it was Foster's so it was really big) complete with stuffed animals, a cozy bed, a comfy fleece blanket and her own food/water bowls. For the first week she would only stay crouched behind the crate in the corner trembling. One day I came home from work and there she was snuggled in her bed snoring. The tears started pouring from my eyes and I knew that she was meant to be here.

She has been here since August 2001 and will climb up the ramp to the bed, sit on the other end of the couch, take treats from my hand and walk on a leash (she doesn't really like it), and allow me to pet her gently! She still has the puppy mill glaze over her eyes but I always see the twinkle that she wants so badly to show.

Update 2006: Bella did a 360. She is always by my side snuggling for my gentle hand to rub her tiny little chihuahua head or rolling over for her Bella belly rubs. (only 100 or so a day). She kisses me gently and sleeps above my head on my pillow. I have never been seperated from Bella since she came to live with me. She goes with me on my vacations or I don't go.

Bella has found a piece of my heart that I never knew was there and it is only for her. I love her dearly and she has been such a brave little girl!

She knows that she has a home with me here and will never be treated in humane again.

Today is now 3/5/07 and Bella passed away at home on 3/2/07. She left this earth knowing that she was loved. I miss her horribly.