When we lived in Aberdeen, Scotland our neighbors across the hall had a Jack Russell Terrier (JRT). Since we had a shared back yard I was able to observe the dog when he was let out. I observed that he was smart, full of energy, tenacious, and always investigating things. The thought occurred to me that a JRT would make a good detective.

The Jack Russell Terrier takes its name from the Reverend John Russell who bred one of the finest strains of terriers for working fox in Devonshire, England in the mid-to-late 1800’s. Being a fan of Agatha Christie and other crime writers of that period I thought perhaps that type of story set in modern Devonshire with the Parson getting the credit for solving the mysteries but the JRT doing the detective work might be fun to write. Then my mind took off with titles and storylines:

Parson Jack Russell and:
The Story of Canine and Able
Flea for Your Life
Paws to Think
The Dog-Eared Page
The Flea-Brained Idea
Barking Up the Wrong Tree
Raining Cats and Dogs
The Soles of Men
Many Paws
The Cat Burglar
A Bone of Contention
Paws in the Action
A Tail of Two Cities
Going to the Dogs
Melon Collie Caper
Etc., Etc., Etc.

You get the idea. This will happen when I don’t have anything else to do.