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trusted her guidance immensely, as she had been in the breed for a very long time, and she was a very reputable breeder. The people I knew had only good things to say about her.” (After she committed to Chance, there were times, she admits, when she would get cold feet. “Kristin would say ‘listen to your heart, and do what is best for you.’”)
When she went to Cathy Bishop’s website, Nancy saw that she had a Chip/Deuce litter due soon. “I knew the sire was Chip, the Patches son I had seen at the Bakersfield Nationals... and the dam was Deuce, a female that was running agility and working stock. That was it, I wanted a pup from that litter. So I wrote Cathy and asked what I would have to do to be considered for a Deuce pup. The rest is history,” she says.
Nancy told Cathy up front that she was brand new to the show dog world, had never owned or showed before, and did not know how to groom. “I wanted a dog that had the potential to be as versatile as my friends’ dogs,” she says. “They were having so much fun with them, and I explained to her that I wanted a dog that I could show, do agility and work stock with. I also told her I wanted my dog to be my best friend. I knew she could not tell me for sure that the pup would want to do all of those things, but I wanted to get my feet wet, and I wanted to try it all.”
Cathy picked out Chance for Nancy. “I do not want to even tell the truth on this one,” says Nancy. “There were actually two blue merle boys in the litter, and when Cathy would send puppy photos, she would send pictures of both boys. I remember having dinner one night with Kristin, her husband Michael, and Maggie and Joyce [Cooke]. I showed them the photos and told them that Cathy Bishop wanted me to have this pup (Chance), but I thought the other boy was better, as his copper was more evenly marked on each side of his face. They all said that Chance looked nice in his puppy pictures, but if I really wanted the other boy to ask Cathy about him. So, bold me, I wrote and told Cathy Bishop my thoughts about the other blue boy. Cathy wrote back, ‘No,you want this one.’” End of conversa-
tion! Nancy says she figured she should just be grateful to be getting a puppy, especially since Cathy did not know her at all. Now, of course, she is more than thank- ful for Cathy’s informed choice. “Chance is everything and way more than I could ever have dreamed of,” she says.
Nancy flew to Washington state to pick up Chance, who flew from Edmonton, Canada, to Washington. “I will never forget the first time I saw him. He was the prettiest, fluffiest puppy I had ever seen, and he had the most beautiful eyes... then, as I picked him up, I noticed something green all over the side of his face. Sort of startled me at first, but then I remembered Cathy telling me what had happened. For Canadian customs, the dogs had to have a permanent ID before they could leave to enter the United States. I guess Chance would not stay still, or Cathy was in a hurry, as the green dye she used to tattoo the number in his ear ran all over the side of his face! She said, ‘Not to worry, it will wear off... eventually...’”
As a puppy, says Nancy, “Chance was a fearless little guy, full of fun and mischief and tons of energy. He loved to tease me and still does. I remember the first time I gave him a bath in the bathtub—he loved it, and for the next few months I had a constant shower companion.
“He never gave me a break, either. He was always stealing something and running, running, running. I remember one day the slider to the patio was open. I looked up from the computer, and he was dragging the hose inside as I would not come out to turn it on for him. I ran into his first puppy class instructor in Scottsdale last weekend. She remembers him as a big momma’s boy, full of energy, and never saying no to trying anything.”
Chance made his show debut at the ASCA 2000 Arizona Specialty. Kristin Rush showed him to Best of Breed Puppy two out of three days from the 2–4 month puppy class; she also took WD with him at a pre-show in Colorado. “Jeff Heim showed Chance in AKC a few times, and then referred me to Karen Bruneau, as he himself did not travel to Arizona,” says Nancy.
“I have never shown him myself, but I keep threaten- ing him that I will.”
Nancy says that Chance adores Karen. “He knows
14 The Australian Shepherd Journal May/June 2005