The Spaniel Annals

I had no plans for another dog.  And not a Gordon Setter.  For months after I lost Vita, I daydreamed of a Gordon puppy, but as my grief eased, my daydreams stopped and life moved on.  Then I caught a phone call from Susan DeSilver, the accomplished and well-respected breeder of Gordon Hill Gordon Setters. Susan breeds and competes with some of the top Dual Champion Gordon Setters in the country.   (“Dual” meaning that the dogs earn championships in both field and the show ring, an accomplishment rare in any breed today.)  A few years ago, I had told Susan that if and when she bred her bitch “Scout” (Dual Champion Indian Sky Gordon Hill Scout), she should give me a call. 

And this was the call.  It took me a little while to ponder how my life would change  with a Gordon puppy in the household, but in the end I couldn’t turn down a puppy from this bitch or this pedigree.  Scout has everything I’ve ever wanted in a Gordon: drive, intensity, work ethic, and athleticism.  Susan keeps telling me she also has a “wicked” streak, but to me that signals a dog with intelligence and curiosity. 

Some odd “signs” that added to the mythos of this litter: they were born 20 days to the year that I lost Vita; and while they were in utero, a powerful spring storm passed through Scotland down from the Orkney Islands, cutting off power and closing down roads and businesses for several days. 

And so my Gordon girl is named “Spring Storm,” using the Scottish Gaelic word for storm: “Seideadh.”  Her call name is Gael, and her full name is Gordon Hill Spring Seideadh.  Please welcome her: