How was Hey Hey selected to be Lassie?

In the late 1990's the Lassie series being shot in Canada had replaced Lassie 8 after 26 episodes. They began shooting the next 13 episodes with collies they had purchased from a breeder in the midwest. It was the first time in history the part had not been played by a genetic line dog. A successful worldwide campaign was waged by http://www.lassie.net/ to restore the genetic line dog to the series.

At that time Bob Weatherwax asked longtime assistant Carol Riggins to take her genetic line dog to Canada to finish the series. This was the first time the 9th generation direct descendant was seen on screen, and HeyHey continues today as the Official Lassie. Although there are rumors floating on the net that HeyHey was not the dog Bob selected, the credits of the show clearly show the facts. Dogs were supplied by Weatherwax Trained Dogs. The Script Consultant was Robert Weatherwax and Owner/Trainer was Carol Riggins.