Run, Spot, Run

ABOUT "MY DOG, CAT"

Yorkshire Terriers might just be the cutest dogs in the world. Usually not weighing more than seven pounds, they are definitely lap dogs. Through a long history of careful breeding for diminutive size, they always seem to look like puppies, no matter how big they get. It's not unusual to go out for a walk with an elderly Yorkie and have some passer-by stop to ooh and aah over your "puppy" and wonder how big it will be when it "grows up."

In the photos above: (l) my son, Josh, hangs with Molly, (l), Fozzie, (r), and Jessie, (on couch). But when it comes to kissing (center photo), it's only Jessie, just as Cat does with Abbie in the illustration (l) by True Kelley.

Yorkies are thought to be a cross between a Skye and a Black-and-Tan Terrier, with a little Maltese and Dandie Dinmont thrown in for good measure. The breed traces its roots back to the Middle Ages when English royalty wanted to keep commoners from hunting in their game forests. They did this by making sure peasants didn't own hunting dogs. A delegation would ride from village to village with a board that had a small hole cut in it: seven inches in diameter. Any dog too big to fit through that hole was either confiscated or killed.

My dog, Jessie, the inspiration for "My Dog, Cat," is seen (l) as an adult and (r) as a puppy. In the center is my favorite of True Kelley's wonderful illustrations for "Cat." It definitely reminds me of Jessie. She plays with socks whenever she gets the chance, liking them best when they've been worn for awhile and are smelly. She wrestles them, growling and shaking them until they know who's boss.

But the villagers were a lot smaller than the King gave them credit for being. They soon bred tiny terriers who would tackle badgers and foxes twice their size in a hunt -- and win! Thus the Yorkie, thought of today as the pampered pooch of the rich and famous, really began as a dog for the working class. Recognized today as a "toy" breed, Yorkshire Terriers were developed as a distinct breed over 100 years ago in the West Riding area of Yorkshire. They have long silky coats that hang down over their dark button eyes if not either pulled back or trimmed. They are fast and smart, and pack an amazing amount of pure dog into a very small package.

Yorkies meant for the show ring spend a lot of time in curlers, better known as "wraps" to protect their long silken tresses; "Gleno Playboy" (r) was a championship Yorkie whose perfect coat looked like this when combed out. In the  photo at left, Jessie investigates the Crisp family's alpha male, George Crisp.

"My Dog, Cat" was inspired by my own Yorkie, registered with the American Kennel Club as "Jessamyn the Jumper," but better know as Jessie. The first version of "My Dog, Cat" was titled "Munchkin." That was eventually changed to "A Dog Named Cat" which turned out to be a title too much like a terrific book by another Holiday House author (a book I highly recommend!) titled "A Dog Called Kitty.'' I toyed with the idea of changing the title to "C-A-T Spells Dog." But, in the end, "My Dog, Cat" seemed to best sum up the relationship between Abbie and Cat.  True Kelley (I already owned Lois Lowery's "Stay" with True's illustrations) became the illustrator, and voila, a book was born.

To learn more about some of the background ideas for "My Dog, Cat," click here.

THINK ABOUT IT: Besides Cat, what other good things can you think of that come in small packages? Have you ever been the new kid at school? How did the other kids act? Did you feel at home in your new school right away? Have you ever met a new kid at school? How did you treat him or her? Were you friendly? Did you do anything to help the new kid feel at home? Have you ever built a clubhouse, indoors or outdoors? Did it have a name? Did it have rules? What was the best thing about having your own clubhouse?

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