Electric Blue Impulse

Once I got Hero, I decided to eventually get a second Aussie (they say Aussies are like potato chips; you can't have just one). I was firmly convinced Hero was the greatest dog ever, so I wanted another dog closely related to him, perhaps a full brother if his breeder bred his parents again. However, when Hero was only about eight months old, his breeder had a new batch of puppies on her website. They were by Hero's father, and the dam was a full sister to Hero's dam.

"That's pretty close," I thought. "But it's a little too early. I don't need another dog until Hero's at least a year old."

So, after mature and thoughtful consideration, I decided not to buy one. But I kept an eye on the site, and this little guy caught my eye, because his coloring was very striking and his face was so pretty (picture courtesy of Rocky Top Farm):
They don't get much cuter than that. Even so, I dawdled and dithered, and eventually, to my shock, this particular puppy was the last one left available. I don't know why on earth a blue-eyed merle (usually a very popular color with buyers) with such a striking pattern of color would be the last one bought from a litter, but the website said he was still available.

I looked at the picture again, sighed, and emailed the breeder. She confirmed he was still available, and I made an appointment to go up and look at him. That Friday, I found myself driving home with a second puppy.

I wanted to name him Steel (a comic book name), but the kids overruled me, and he was named Impulse (also a comic book name, but also appropriate given the somewhat impulsive way in which I'd bought him). He has a more relaxed and laid-back attitude than Hero-- where Hero tends to bound off walls, Impulse lies down and chills out. But he's also very smart and very trainable, and very sweet.

Here are some pictures of him at around two to three months. He's growing leggier all the time, and his adult fur has grown in on top-- I need to get some new pictures taken! His eyes have remained blue (surprisingly, as neither of his parents have blue eyes) and at his last checkup he weighed 33.5 pounds.