Chihuahua

Say hello to our May cover girl, Tiki, whose heritage is spot on for celebrating Cinco de Mayo! Just a youngster at 1 yr. old, Tiki was initially abandoned on a construction site at 9 weeks old. Mom, Caroline Mattioli, a trainer at Believe in Dog, got a call from a client asking if she wanted a Chihuahua. She didn’t hesitate to make this little tidbit her sidekick. Caroline even admits to channeling the situation. She had actually been thinking of adopting a Chihuahua…now that’s a match made in heaven!

Tiki was a true super model for our photoshoot offering up different poses with her poncho and sombrero. She is expertly trained. Hmm..wonder how that happened? Oh yeah, mom is a dog trainer. So convenient! Other than learning tricks to impress two-leggers, Tiki loves to play with her squeaker filled Nacho Cheese toy. No surprise there! But what might surprise you is that this little super-dog gets groomed and kissed by the family cat, Jack. When asked why she allows the cat to groom and kiss her, Tiki replied, “I’m a lover not a hater. And, I like to be clean.” Sounds logical. Surely this dog cannot be perfect, right? We asked mom Caroline if Tiki has any habits that drive her crazy? “Yes! She buries her bones in my laundry.” Ok, so she isn’t totally perfect, just very close.

Imagining Tiki as a human is kind of fun so we asked her who she would channel if she could be a two-legger and she told us, “Mistress Isabelle Brooks - always stirring the pot and sipping the tea.” So, as it turns out, Tiki really is a true Chihuahua with Mexican roots… she likes things a bit spicy!

Chihuahuas stand among the oldest breeds of the Americas, with a lineage going back to the ancient kingdoms of pre-Columbian times. Later, these hardy little dogs lived on in remote villages and, in the mid-1800s, when Americans began to take an interest in the breed, they found many specimens in the State of Chihuahua. The first AKC-registered Chihuahua, a little guy named Beppie, was recorded in 1908.