Definitely not a gun dog, but perhaps of interest to folks here.
A few weeks back we lost one of our dogs when we were away on the road. My son came home late and let our two little terriers out back to use the facilities, the dogs then squeezing out through a hole in the gate I had forgotten to block.
It was the female who disappeared, being of a sweet and trusting disposition. Twenty minutes later the male was at the front door all agitated, no stranger could pick HIM up without asbestos gloves or something.
Likely they ran off to the next block where a guy commonly throws scraps over his back fence and ran afoul of someone. At best some kids who wanted a dog, at worst some punks with a pit bull (common around here). A coyote is possible but seems unlikely.
Search of the area, questions to the locals, trips to the pound, no luck. The dog is prob'ly gone.
So, wanting a medium-sized dog with the wherewithal to deter folks from just coming into the house and big enough so as not to be instant pit-bull, coyote or theft fodder, we got ourselves a female heeler puppy, 8 weeks old, from working ranch parents.
The coat is still darkening but we expect the classic Blue Heeler color, should run about 40 lbs, the only drawback being the tail is docked short, a common practice on Texas ranches (reportedly to keep it from being stood on by cattle).
Hopefully the presence of our 3 year old heeler mix will provide an outlet for that already-apparent manic energy.
Birdwatcher
