Boomer and Shasta were both born in July 1998 but by 4 different parents. They were originally purchased at the age of 8 weeks by a family wanting to start raising Bichon Frise but they didn't realize that having a two year old child and building a new home would interfere so much and so after only two weeks they decided to postpone their new adventure and give the two puppies new homes. That is where Eddie and I come in. We had gotten a male Bichon (Norton) for the very first time in 1993 but he was killed in 1996 by a chow dog and we had not replaced him. Norton was very smart, slept in his petporter and loved to play with his rope..
After having a Bichon we both knew that they were the perfect breed and when we were ready we would own another one. In Sept. of 1998 Eddie decided that the time was right for a new member of the family and started looking. I was not so sure I was ready. We saw the ad in the local newspaper and drove to look at the pair with the intention of purchasing the female which I had already named Shasta. Yes.... Shasta is the name of a can cola drink in this area. I would spend hours thinking of names for a new dog never intending to get one for a very long time since it is so hard to lose them and I didn't want to go through it again.
I let Eddie take
me to look not really to excited. Both dogs were so cute at age 10 weeks and
we watched them for several minutes. Immediately we both took to the male but
we had decided to try a female this time. Apparently the owner understood he
had us and told my husband he did not want to separate them and he would give
him a good deal to take them both. Needless to say, Eddie said yes without
even consulting me because he knew I was ready to take them home. Shasta was
already named but we had not even considered a boy name and it took us a week
and help from our married daughter to come up with his name. Our daughter
Kerri was an UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA cheerleader in 1995 and the nickname of
the teams is SOONERS.
They have a chant that goes BOOMER SOONERS,BOOMER SOONERS, so there you have
BOOMER. Of course the name fit him perfectly.
Why then are they to go from SOUTHERN HEARTLAND DOGS to YANKEE DOGS ?? If you heard or read about the MAY 3, 1999 tornados in OKLAHOMA you know many homes were lost completely and 44 lives. Our home was one of the ones in the path of the most deadly tornados in history and our lives were severely disrupted. We lived in a 32 ft. travel trailer with Boomer and Shasta for 7 months and were finally able to move into a new home on Dec. 27, 1999.
This has been a very trying time for Eddie and I and we are trying to get our lives back to normal(?) as much as possible, whatever that is. Also we enjoying traveling alot and it is very hard with TWO dogs. Also during November Shasta had her first litter of puppies and this added to our time of disruption. We are not in the business of puppies because I cry every time one is taken and this is not for me.
Boomer is so smart even smarter than Norton and he is the real lap dog type. He will set-up on his rear and wait for his treats while Shasta is the busy-body. Shasta will get into the trash if it is left out and Boomer will go tell by jumping in your lap and not moving, until you notice her..
After talking with the Cousins family from Massachusetts and seeing their web
page we began to feel comfortable with the idea of Boomer and Shasta going so
far off. We believe they will have just as good a home and life with the
Cousins as they have with us and we can still keep up with them over the
internet. Cyber Dogs ????
Maybe some day Eddie and I will have (1) Bichon Frise that is the offspring of
Boomer and/or Shasta, another little Boomer or Shasta when the time is right.
They really are a pair and we were told by the Vet.they might not mate because we allowed them to be together 24 hours a day... That was not the case,in her 2nd season, Shasta had 4 pups her 1st litter and Eddie handled the delivery with her. 3 females and 1 male.
We have kept in contact with all the new puppy owners by phone or E-mail.. We will keep in contact by the web page and e-mail with the Deb and Dana.....
Thanks Linda
On a cold dark January night, Debbie sits quietly surfing the web when she see on an add for a pair of Bichons for sale. Waking me from a sound sleep; Hun I found a pair! A pair of bichons. O let me see them. When I read the add, I told Debbie," I want them". Something went off in my head and told me GET THEM!
So the next day, I sat down and started to bang out a e-mail and told them all about us and how we would love to get there pair of bichons, and how they would have a good home here. And ended the letter with our home page address and off it went.
Well, two days later we got an e-mail back and it was the home page that was the seller. Ed said it was the fact that they could keep in touch with the home page is why they would sell the pair to us. Something clicked with Ed and Linda, me and Deb. They ask us to do a contract, and we would get the ball rolling.
We had to wait for Mother Nature to cooperate; "Little Did We Know"!
We know that the temp had to be over 45degers before we could ship. We would watch the weather every night and then the week of March 13th the temps were going up and up and up to the sixties by Wednesday and so the day was set, they would ship on Friday. We were getting very excited as the week went on and then Wednesday night we get the bad news.
"ONLY IN New England"
It was 70 degrees plus, on Thursday the day before St Patrick's Day. The sun was shining like it was a summer day in June, everybody walking around in tee shirts and even shorts. But Friday the day we were to get our new pair was not to be. Mother Nature and Old Man Winter had to play one more time! In less then 12 hours it went from record set 70plus to below30 and snow and ice storm!
Here we are two months in to the deal, "we were" wound up like a two day clock, just wanting to get Boomer and Shasta here, but everything that could stop us was happening. But then it happened again on Monday the weathermen were saying it would get up into the sixties by Wednesday. So we would plan on shipping Friday the 24th.
We watch the news and everything looked like a go for Friday, so I took the day off of work and then the call came "THERE ON THE PLANE", so off to the airport we went.
"Thank You"
American Airlines, after a lot of headaches there they were safe and sound.
When I picked them up, I don't even think I looked at them, I just grab
the carriers and off to the car I went. I do not even remember looking
back at them once during the ride home. Get home and whisk them in
the house, the kids holding their breather when I open the carries and,
"they do not want to come out of the carries"!
So we back off and Boomer was the first to come out and then Shasta.
We were in shock when we first saw them, "They Were Beautiful",
Snowhite was the first to make a how do you do! And had them on our
bed in no time at all. Well it was late so off to bed we all went but
not before we looked over and there they were out like a light!
And the rest well come in time. Stay Tuned.
Thank You, Linda & Ed
