History of Choose Your Pup Australia
In the 1860's, Geordy Robertson & his family, ( Alex Donald's great great grandmother's family ) were early breeders of kelpies on Worrock, later on Woodford, Ascot Heath, SandyWaterHoles, & other Robertson family pastoral properties adjoining the Glenelg River in Western Victoria. These families were helped by their kelpie type working dogs, and they were able to manage really huge numbers of sheep with minimal fencing.
In 1941, Len and Thelma Carter, mixed farmers, then located near Meadows SA, who later moved to between Echunga and Mylor, in the Adelaide Hills, South Australia, established Lenthel Working Dogs Kennels, breeding both kelpies and heelers.
In 1968, Alex took over all of Lenthel's kelpie section, with the name changed to HappyValley Kelpies, on a small farm near Happy Valley, then a rural area. In 1977, Alex moved to a larger farm property in the Bremer Valley, between Callington and Kanmantoo, where he continued to breed kelpies under HVK as a breeding prefix until 1985, when a change was made.
The February 1980 1st Ash Wednesday bushfire devastated Lenthel's Mylor property. Later that year, the surviving Lenthel heelers were moved to Callington. These heelers were traded for five years under the prefix Lenthel Cattledogs.
In 1985, with the combining both kennels, another trading name change was made. Alex traded as Callington Kelpies & Heelers, for the next 19 years, during which he focused as an independent breeder of both purebred kelpies and purebred heelers bred to be marvelous dogs as companions, for security and as all-round workers.
In December 2004 a further trading name change was made.
Into the 2000's computer era we trade as CHOOSE YOUR PUP AUSTRALIA : For convenience, sometimes we abbreviate this as CYPA .
And still with the original Lenthel motto :- " Bred for brains and type, send anywhere ".
*Alex has been gathering stories and information, to produce a large format book, also a DVD, about Aussie Dogs.We are continually seeking contributions of your stories and your pictures about interesting kelpies or heelers. To be published about 2017. To celebrate Alex's 50th year as a major breeder of kelpies & heelers, & his 80th birthday.
