Call Name: Bryn Full Name: BC Bryn Breed: Border Collie Pedigree: Peg (ABC477037) x Zap (ABC404837) Date of Birth: October 4th, 2020 (Libra) Color: Brindle black tri Weight: 27 lbs Height: 17.25 inches Registration: ABC504300, DN68235501 OFA: CHIC (Hips: Good, Shoulders: Normal, Elbows: Normal, Eyes: Normal) DNA: CEA/EOAD Carrier
Itty bitty Bryn! I have never had a puppy so cute in my life as this little girl, she can get away with murder with those big bambie eyes and giant ears - she's like a stuffed toy, not a real dog. Bryn has a little bit of Bright in her name, as she was helped to get here by our missing Brightness, I really think she helped steer me in her direction.
The boys were really lost when we lost Bright, you never realize how much a border collie girl takes charge of a household, even a relatively chill bitch like Brightness. But while everyone loved Bright, it turned out that none of the boys particularly liked each other without a girl to balance things out. For the first time ever, we had tension in the household. Things slowly improved, but after having some visiting girls it became clear that we needed another girl to help balance out the household again.
Finding that girl turned out to be way more difficult than I thought it would be. While there were plenty of litters that I was interested in, every single option turned up empty - either the breeding didn't happen, there were no girls (OMG, SO MANY BOY PUPPIES!), the stud dog passed away unexpectedly - the universe was being very clear that we should be looking in another direction. I was originally looking at more agility litters, seeing myself a tiny little whippety smooth coated girl maybe. Ha, well I ended up going the total opposite direction!
I asked Bonnie to keep an eye out for any potential herding litters out her way, which is harder because I don't know the dogs, I don't know the lines, they usually don't health test and I'd really have no basis to make a good decision whether a puppy is right for me. Besides, all the dogs out in Idaho are very heavy on the cattle bred lines, which tend to be extra large, sharp and hard headed, definitely not what I was looking for. Then enters ... Bryn.
Bonnie lives down the road from Robin Brown (Broken Circle Border Collies), and Robin had picked up a couple puppies from a guy out in Blackfoot, who go back to some of her dogs on one side. Both pups were now about 3 months old and Robin was willing to sell the girl pup - a tiny little thing with big ears, big eyes and just such a great attitude about life. Thoughtful but not at all freaky, friendly and people focused, and not at all sharp or bitchy - she would get run over by her big goober brother repeatedly and just pop back up, happy as can be. What did her parents look like? No idea. No idea about health issues in the lines, no health testing, no idea what she was even going to look like. Robin had seen the parents, nice working dogs, that's all I knew.
So I was definitely not going to do it, that was way too many unknowns - like getting a complete mystery dog from a shelter! But I kept going back to look at the videos, and I really just ... liked her. Not because I thought she would be good at herding, or agility, or have good structure or a solid temperament - I just liked her. And maybe the universe had been guiding me in this direction all along, as this was an adorable little girl that I liked and maybe I should be willing to be open to possibilities. So Bonnie agreed to take her for a week, and she did great at Bonnie's. Sweet, cuddly, got along with everyone, took all the new things in stride ... so it was official, little Bryn came home to Oregon.
Bryn is a SOLID little dog, in more ways than one. Temperament-wise there is very little that even phases her. You can take her anywhere with anyone and she is just rock solid, I think the most stable puppy I've ever had - especially for a girl puppy! She's also solid body-wise, this is no lithe whippety smooth coat border collie - this girl is a TANK. She may be short, but she makes up for it in girth. Who knew I was getting a 16 inch jumper - she ended up so wee!
Bryn has fit in wonderfully, the boys ADORE her (even Haku!) and she can take on the big goober boys with no issue. Even if she did nothing else, she is JUST the bitch we needed for our household. She walked in and took over, the boys worship the ground she walks on.
On sheep Bryn has such wonderful natural feel, and while she may be tiny, she has no problem standing up to stock and moves anything that needs moving. She's been a super fun dog to train on sheep and I'm excited to see what she can do. As usual, I wish we had more access to stock, but she is doing great with the amount of time we've had to practice.
In agility Bryn is also awesome, picks new concepts super quickly and generalizes them without an issue. She's fast, a nice jumper and can collect (which is novel, it's been a while since I've had a dog that could collect!), but she is, uh, very flanky in agility. So we definitely have to work against that, which is what makes her so wonderful on sheep, and a bit harder in agility!
So much fun in such an adorable, tiny little package - I simply adore this girl and can't wait to see what she can do!