I showed Cricket for several years and although she was a nice Yorkie, she was too small for the show ring. Due to her size, she was destined to never be bred, so I had her spayed and she became one of my faithful house dogs. Cricket was known as one of my sweetest Yorkies. She had a loving temperament and never met a stranger. When friends stayed over at my house, Cricket would often go and sleep with them.

Cricket's small size made her somewhat of a target for the other females and she was once jumped by two of my larger females. I arrived on the scene just in time to prevent any injuries. While she didn't always get along with the girls, Cricket was the devoted companion of Luna (Luna Star Van't Huttenest). Luna developed cataracts and was going blind at the time of Cricket's passing.

The two were constant companions and I always thought I would lose Luna first. He had been seriously ill several months before Cricket's death and I had isolated him to avoid infecting any of the other dogs. Cricket paced and cried the entire time he was away from her, obviously missing him a great deal.

I believed that Cricket had heart problems, but nothing too serious and while I didn't think she would live to her upper teens, I did not expect her to die so suddenly. I came home from work one day and found her dead in her excercise pen. I could only guess that her heart had failed. Her loss was totally unexpected and came at an already stressful time in my life. I was also quite concerned about how Luna would adjust to her absence. Luckily, Luna continues to thrive and now spends most of his days with another of my males, Floyd.

Even now, months after her death, I find myself still calling her name at supper time and thinking a dog is missing when I count noses after the door has been opened. Cricket may be gone, but her memory lives on in my heart.