Chapter 2

Soon he was asleep. 4: A Jack by Any Other Name

Our new puppy remained dead to the world while another debate raged between my husband and me on the hour’s journey home.

“What’s his name going to be?” I asked.

“Jack, of course. A Jack Russell should be called ‘Jack,’ and we’ll call the Border Collie ‘Shep’.”

“That is sounoriginal!”

To me the serene black, brown, and white face looked rascally, even in sleep. “He looks like a regular scamp.”

After a bit more arguing, Scamp became his name. (Okay, it’s not wildly original either, but you have to admit it’s better than ‘Jack.’)

Two days later we went to our appointment with the Border Collie breeder, whose pups had been born a week after Scamp.

“To make sure they get on,” Glen said, “let’s take Scamp with us, and he can pick out his new brother.”

It had to be a boy because Lucy, my temperamental Great Dane, didn’t accept other canine females in the house—or anywhere else, for that matter.