Our New Addition - Josie the Digidog

Czarna Josefina Częstochowska

Yesterday the Digidaughter and I braved the storm that walloped California and drove from Santa Ana to Bakersfield to pick up my new Pembroke Welsh Corgi from the breeder, Kim Beachler of Poso Creek Puppies.

Well worth the wait, well worth the drive. Except for a little car sickness on the way home, once we arrived at my house, Czarna Josefina Częstochowska - "Josie" for short - strolled in the house and got that "Is this all mine?" look on her face. Within seconds, she was bounding about, excitedly sniffing each new spot, with her little bob tail twitching (if you don't know, a Corgi is a tailless dog). She fell into immediately playing - hard - with the kids. In fact, so much so that despite last night being her first away from her littermates and in a new place, she curled up in her crate and slept through - no whining, no crying.

And smart! Since she is only 2 months old and it is raining like the dickens, housebreaking her will be confined at the present moment to "wee-wee pads". I introduced her to them and whaddaya know, so far she has actually sought it out when the urge hit and has used them. The Digihusband was duly impressed.

Of course, no home with a puppy in it is without mishaps. Good thing we were planning to take down the Christmas tree this weekend, since Josie has already pulled off two strands of garland and jumped up on the lower branches. Meanwhile, Brother Louis - the Digicat - is in a serious sulk, feeling his home sullied by the presence of a dog. Earlier this week, he was DAMN PISSED that the Time Share Schnauzer - whom, I suspect, Lou fondly calls "that big, grey dips**t" - spent the New Year holiday in our home while the dog's owner was away on vacation (maybe if Dante hadn't taken the opportunity of their first encounter to chase Lou into the rafters of the garage, they'd be friends). As a precaution, we are keeping a close watch on the both Josie and Lou, so she learns to respect the older animal and he doesn't decide to treat her like a large rat.

An explanation on her name: I had originally thought to give her a Celtic name, but at the St. Joseph Christmas Classic, my friend and pastor, Fr. John, suggested off-the-cuff, "How about 'Josie' after our parish?" I dismissed it then, but after a couple of weeks the suggestion came back and I gave it more thought.

My old corgi was named Sidhe Brigit Claddagh ("Bridie") to honor my paternal Irish roots (Claddagh is the city in Ireland from whence the Martins came). I thought Josie would give me the opportunity to honor my maternal Polish roots, and since she is a tri-color Corgi, I gave her the name Czarna Josefina Częstochowska, which means "Black Josefina of Częstochowa". Since they hailed from the region around Częstochowa, my mother's family has long had a devotion to the Czarna Madonna Częstochowska, or the Black Madonna of Częstochowa.

And as an odd coincidence, when looking over her papers for registration with the AKC, I discovered that Josie's sire is named Walnut Creek's Josey Wales! I had not known that before.

If anyone out there is interested in obtaining a Corgi, I would recommend contacting Josie's breeder. In my conversations with Kim, and after visiting her home, it is apparent that she loves this breed and is dedicating to making sure good Corgi stock continues - no puppy mill here! She is fanatical about ensuring the health of the puppies and wants to also ensure that each goes to a good and well-matched home. She has a week-old litter (I got the chance to see them) and that will likely be the last one before summer - I don't know if the pups were already spoken for, but if you have an interest, I would call her (see the link above for Poso Creek).

More pictures to come as Josie hits milestones, such as when her ears go up (that comes with time with Corgi pups)!