Lori and I haggled a bit over the price. She dropped down to $380. Looking back it seems so ridiculous to have haggled for a $20 discount on a dog like Chase. But the deal was struck and although he was still only 6 weeks old, she let me take him. Logistically, it was going to be much easier than having to make another trip down in a few days just to make the usual 7 week minimum with the litter.
We walked back to the pen and I picked him up. He was soft and a little bit of a butter ball. His skin under his coat rolled as I massaged his neck while I held him. His eyes were a deep blue, still not the color they would be, and he had that new puppy smell. Licking my face and nipping my nose, the love affair had begun.
He road home on my lap and I talked to Adam, my human companion who road down with me, about a name. It didn’t take that long. We threw a couple names out there but they didn’t seem to fit. I’ve never named a child and can only imagine how difficult that might be. It seems like such an important decision; one that will live with them for the rest of their lives.
I thought briefly about the method Indians used in naming their children. It seems so perfect to name them after some event or something seen at birth but it was dark out and we were rolling down the highway and yellow strip or median didn’t really seem fitting. Jumping Deer? Whoa, that was close.
He was from hunting lines and I knew that we were going to spend many days in the field getting after birds. I also had a very good friend in high school named Chasen so in a few miles the pieces of the puzzle came together—Chase.
I said the name out loud and it just seemed right. “Chase… Chase.” Adam approved and I was kind of proud of the name. It wasn’t your typical name and it was fitting…even more so the older Chase became. But I was also going to register him so I would need more that just Chase.
“Hey! Chasen Tail!”
We laughed and Adam looked at me like, “You’re not serious…”
Oh yeah, I was. Chasen Tail was it. That’s what Chase’s registered name would be and again, later in life, it became so much more fitting than one might imagine.
