I've wanted a puppy since the day Jason and I married.  But he was very firm with his "no's".  Then last July just as we were about to take a vacation to his parents house, he out of the blue, said that maybe we could start searching for the "right one" when we got back.    Ha!  We started the search that night.  We began studying various breeds.  The one thing that we knew for sure, was that it would have to be a smaller dog and preferably one that didn't shed.     One of the sites we went to was the Arizona Rescue Page.  There we found the Silky's, and liked what we learned while studying them.  They're beautiful, playful, and small, don't shed and wouldn't cause havoc with my allergies.  I've heard the quote that a Silky is a "big dog in a little dog's body" That is the truth! So I went to work and during a break I told my friend Kara about what we were considering.  I got the "look"   "Charlene," she says, " you never listen to anything I tell you!  Don't you remember me telling you about the dog staying with me?  He's a Silky and he needs a home!"  Duh - I guess I had just forgotten, but that weekend I went to visit her to meet this little fellow and took the camera along.  Jason loved the pictures.  You could just see the personality blooming in this little puppy.  And so the next weekend, Jason went to meet the little Chewey.  The two of them played until each was too tired to go any further.  Fate played a hand in this ending, as when we were leaving, Chewey jumped into the drivers seat of our car as if to say - "Take Me Home Right Now."      But we couldn't - the trip was coming up and we couldn't see leaving him behind for two weeks.  And Jason wanted to think about it a little more over the course of the weekend.  But come Monday, he called me at work and said I had a surprise waiting at home.  He had taken Chewey's picture and made a screen saver out of it.  I knew then that when we returned home from Kentucky, my baby would be waiting. But Chewey comes with what could be a sad story.  One that I pray every person who reads this page takes into their heart and NEVER, NEVER falls prey to the horrible conditions that puppy mills cause. When we received Chewey's papers I had some very good and reliable friends check out his lineage.  While he does have a Great Grandfather who has ties to one of the best Silky's ever, Chewey is most likely the result of a puppy mill.   He was originally purchased from a Mall Pet Store, was an impulse buy whose original owners could no longer keep him.  (By 10 months he had already been in 5 homes)  While he is a very healthy and happy dog, the chances of that happening again are very slim!  Puppy Mills, just like Bird Mills, have no regards to the health of the babies that are produced there.  The people who do this are in it for the love of money, not for the love of the breed.  These animals are often times underfed, overbred, handicapped in various ways, and the breeders have no regards as to who they sell these puppies to.  With everything that is in me, I beg of you, and I cannot stress this enough ? know your breeders!!!!  If you suspect that they are running a Puppy Mill, turn them into your nearest SPCA, and have them shut down. It seems like everyday we read stories about the conditions these animals are found in.  Don't pad the pockets of these fools, finding the pet who is right for you can be easy if you just know where to look.  BUT please make sure the breeder is one who has carefully thought out the lineage of the breed you're looking for. Just look at those expressive eyes and tell me that you don't love him!   AND DON'T FORGET TO SPAY AND NEUTER YOUR PETS ?