Club Barbet Canada Versatility Award

Club Barbet Canada held their Annual General Meeting on Saturday August 24th.  I'm pleased to share that our special girl Summer received the François Ménard Versatility Award and trophy in recognition of her performance titles and championship.  

URO1 UKC/CKC CH Nuphar's Soak Up The Sun RN PCD CGN

I really can't thank Summer's breeders, Anne Plomp and Miska Aksular enough for this terrific Barbet who means the world to us.  

My thanks to CBC for recognizing the talents of our versatile breed in offering this award.  The late François Ménard earned several titles on his dog Bosch (Neigenuveaux's Gambit) as they participated in CKC, AKC and UKC events positively promoting the breed wherever they went. It is in recognition of their participation in multiple venues that this perpetual trophy, donated to the club by longtime breeder Michel Raymond of Barbugaulois, bears his name. It was a wonderful weekend and a great opportunity to see so many nice Barbet and to visit with their owners.   

Pascal x Summer Puppies: Eight and Nine Weeks Old

The ball pool is always fun for the puppies

The last couple of weeks with the puppies are always a busy time filled with visitors and appointments, temperament testing and lots of play time.

Bert chews on a Gorilla Chew

Lunch al fresco

The weather improved and finally the ice melted away from the patio and we were able to set up the outdoor pen.  The puppies had a ball heading outside for several recesses.

       

The pups had a great drive to and from the vets.  They have adjusted well to car travel and received a good vet checkup.

    

It's always amazing to me how quickly my time with a litter of puppies goes by. At nine weeks of age,  Ernie left to join his new family. His new name will be Milou and I wish him and his people all the happiness in the world as they embark on this new adventure together. Thank you Vilma for welcoming this special pup into your home. 

Milou's registered name will be Northrock's Just 2 C U Smile 

The day after Ernie left, my daughter and I drove to Quebec to bring Bert to his new family. He travelled so well during the long journey and I was so proud of him.  Bert is now a part of a big Barbet family at Patronum Barbets. He has adjusted beautifully.  His new name will be Northrock's Jedi At Patronum and he is now called Indiana. My daughter and I wish to thank Anne-Marie and David for their hospitality and friendship. We know that Indy will be much loved and well cared for by everyone in their delightful family. We wish them all much happiness together 

There is an album of photos and videos of the Pascal and Summer puppies which are posted on our Northrock Barbets Facebook Page 

You don't need to have a Facebook account to view them.

Pascal x Summer Puppies: Seven Weeks Old

This has been another fun week with Bert and Ernie.  They have been spending a lot of time outside of their puppy pen, visiting different rooms in the house and have had two car trips and visits away from our house.

Their teeth are really coming in and their biting is getting harder!  Lots of appropriate chew toys and bones are provided for them and they are learning bite inhibition when they play with one another and the older dogs.






Providing a little "bridge" to climb on in their pen helps them to learn about edges and they enjoy the novelty of the new item.  They are also having fun playing with the slide.   And the hot dog scent trail was a big hit!

First Bath for Ernie

The puppies had their first baths this week and handled the experience very well.  

Although the weather outside has been cold and windy, we've taken advantage of breaks in the weather and sunny skies to get outside for brief recesses with the puppies. 

Puppies in our litters are usually identified with small puppy collars.  Those weren't needed for Bert and Ernie so this week we began habituating them to the collar.  These aren't break away collars so we only put them on the puppies when they are being supervised.  We wouldn't want them to accidentally get caught up on anything with the collars. 

Our time with these precious puppies is soon coming to a close and we are treasuring these last few weeks with them.

Frequent updates and photos are posted on our Northrock Barbets Facebook Page if you would like to follow the litter's progress.  

You don't need to have a facebook account to view them.

Pascal x Summer Puppies: Six Weeks Old

We are so in love with these curious and playful puppies.  They had a wonderful week and seem so very much like little dogs now.  They are far more co-ordinated than they were even just a week ago and enjoy climbing over and under things.  The adventure box is still a source of great fun for them and the tunnel is another favourite.

They are little chewing machines now that their teeth have really broken through their gums and making sure that they have appropriate chew toys as well as bones to help ease their desire to gnaw and chew goes a long way.

Amazingly we've had a break in the cold weather and heavy snow and managed to get outside for some fresh air this week.  It was a very positive experience for the puppies and we are so happy with how well they handled the new experience.  

        

We rotate the items in the puppy pen on a regular basis so that the puppies get to experience novel stimuli.  We're also having them out and exploring other rooms in the house, listening to sound recordings, eating out of different containers, and visiting with the other dogs in the house.

  

Frequent updates and photos are posted on our Northrock Barbets Facebook Page if you would like to follow the litter's progress.  You don't need to have a facebook account to view them.

Pascal x Summer Puppies: Five Weeks Old

It's been a great week for Bert and Ernie.  Their puppy pen continues to have new things added to it and they've had trips to visit other rooms in the house.  Visitors have come over to help socialize the puppies and the Pascal and Summer pups have taken it all in stride.

Bert poses for his 5 week old puppy portrait.

Ernie sitting nicely for his 5 week old portrait.

 Summer continues to be a great mother.  She is still nursing them, even though they have now started on solid foods, she really enjoys spending time with her two boys and is often in the pen with them; playing or sleeping with them or nursing them and cleaning up after them.

The puppy pen during their fifth week.  The floating balloon as well as hanging toys offers some visual stimulation for the puppies, they are regularly using their potty boxes and enjoy running through and playing in their tunnel.

Soft dog beds and big stuffed animals give them a cozy place to curl up for a nap.

Frequent updates and photos are posted on our Northrock Barbets Facebook Page if you would like to follow the litter's progress.

Pascal x Summer Puppies: Four Weeks Old

The fourth week, also known as the Awareness or Identification Period (21 - 28 days) was an exciting time for the puppies as they made the big move from the guest bedroom to the main floor of the house.  

Now their pen is set up in the room which would normally be our dining room (right next to the kitchen and living room) and they are exposed to the sounds, smells and sights of household life. 

Potty training continues to go well with the addition of potty boxes and pellets. 

We also let them gnaw and chew on some bones in preparation for the introduction of solid food next week.

The puppies are more mobile and quite good at getting around their space.  They engage with their dam and with one another in the form of play fighting and wrestling, mouthing and batting each other.  They are also making more vocalization and sounding and acting more like little dogs.

Our family is enjoying them immensely and they get lots of cuddles and handling throughout the day.

Summer continues her excellent mothering and nurses the puppies regularly though she is increasingly spending less time inside the pen, she can come and go to her puppies as she wishes.  

Frequent updates and photos are posted on our Northrock Barbets Facebook Page if you would like to follow the litter's progress.

Pascal x Summer Puppies: Three Weeks Old

Well another great week with the puppies is in the books.  Bert and Ernie have continued to develop on track.  Their eyes and ears are on board now and they are much better at moving about the whelping box.  It's been great fun watching them interact more and more with one another and with their dam as well as with the toys that have been added to their space.

 At the beginning of the week we introduced a designated potty area for the puppies in the form of pee pads.  By the end of the week they were using it very consistently and toddling over to the pads to pee when needed.  Soon we will move downstairs and will begin to add pellets to the pee pads, eventually replacing them with potty boxes filled with recycled newspaper pellets.

Here is a video of the puppies at 19 days old. 

We are enjoying these puppies enormously and are excited about getting to know their developing personalities in the weeks ahead.

 

Frequent updates and photos are posted on our Northrock Barbets Facebook Page if you would like to follow the litter's progress.