Now it's official ...

As you know, we had to say goodbye to our beautiful Shayna not long before we left for Europe.

Just before we got on the ship, I sent my pal Kathy from the Australian Cattle Dog Club of America an email letting her know about Shayna and asking if she knew any reputable breeders who were expecting a litter around the end of the year or spring next year (a little background, Kathy is the premier breeder of champion Cattle Dogs in the U.S. [Katwala Australian Cattle Dogs] and has her finger on the pulse). She wrote back immediately that one of hers just had a litter in July. The opportunity to get one of her pups was a pleasantly surprising twist of fate.

I asked if she had a blue girl and she replied that the puppies were all red (more background, Cattle Dogs generally come in two colors, blue and red). Okay, can't fool with Mother Nature, so I wrote back asking if she had two sisters in the litter (when Shayna was alive, we always said it would have been nice for Shayna to have someone to play with so getting two together was in the back of our minds).

Kathy then replied that she had an adolescent blue girl from a February 2009 litter whose purchase deal fell through. She was a half-sister to this current crop of puppies (same dad) and was great with the little ones. I couldn't say no.

So ... On Saturday, September 18th, we'll drive to Erie, Pennsylvania to meet Kathy and her husband to pick up Choo-Choo:

Katwala's Pardon Me Boys - "Choo-Choo"(r) with anonymous puppy.

And one of the female pups on this page.

I just received an email from Kathy yesterday confirming the date and we're ecstatic. The house has been too quiet. We are also a little nervous. One Cattle Dog pup can be a Tasmanian Devil, two will most likely make our lives ... interesting to say the least. Heh ...

And just a note: I never thought I'd have a dog with the name of "Choo-Choo". I won't change it, but I will "New York-ize" it to "Da Chooch". The name we chose for the pup is "Ziva".

And another note: We did cosider a rescue or two, but after 12 years with Shayna and all her health problems (Cattle Dogs are prone to hip, eye, and other congenital problems and rescues generally aren't tested for them), we wanted sound dogs. The only way to assure that was to buy from a reputable breeder. While I wouldn't trade the time and expense for anything, the sleepless nights, administering medications several times a day, and the emotional drain were wearying. It'll be tiring enough chasing after two young ones without the added dimension.