A New Move For Gemma

Some happy news here at Northrock.  Our wonderful pup Gemma (Northrock Diamond In The Ruff) has gone to live with another family.  We will certainly miss our happy-go-lucky girl but David and Nicola and their children do not live far from us and we will get to see Gemma regularly.  Not only will Gemma have two great kids to play with but she will also have another Barbet!  David and Nicola are the owners of Alfie, a Northrock puppy from the Mona and Obie litter.  We couldn’t be more pleased. 

Gemma is going to have a great life with her new family and we are delighted that they have opened their home and their hearts to our special girl.

Gemma and Alfie with humans Isobel, David and Nicola (Duncan had gone out before we remembered to get a photo).

Boomer x Charlie puppies have arrived at BleuZorange in Quebec

On April 15th nine Barbet puppies were delivered at BleuZorange in Quebec. Congratulations to breeder Denyse Rousseau of BleuZorange Barbet along with Charlie's co-owners Marcelle and Denise.  The puppies are out of CKC/FCC CH Bleuzorange Xil dite Charlie by Northrock's All Night Boogie "Boomer". There are 5 males (3 brown, 2 black) and 4 females (1 brown, 3 black).  Momma Charlie and her puppies are all doing well. 

Many thanks to Boomer's wonderful co-owner Robert Souchereau and Sylvie Marleau who's cooperation helped to produce this lovely litter.  We are all looking forward to watching these sweet puppies develop.

Upcoming Litter at BleuZorange

LITTER PLANS - SPRING 2015

FCC / CKC CH BleuZorange Xil dite Charlie

will be bred to our co-owned male, 

Northrock’s All Night Boogie (Boomer) 

in early 2015.  

Both dogs have passed all of their health clearances.  Charlie is a sweet 4 year old Barbet, in excellent health, and this will be her second litter.  Boomer is a happy and healthy 2 year old male. More information about Boomer can be found on his page .  If you are interested in learning more about this exciting breeding please contact Denyse Rousseau at BleuZorange Barbets and she would be happy to answer any questions that you might have 418-827-5888.

Nous présentons les futurs parents de la portée 2015. Il s'agit de FCC CCC CH BLEUZORANGE XIL DITE Charlie et NORTHROCK'S ALL NIGHT BOOGIE (Boomer). Ces deux barbets sont matures, les examens de santé sont très bons, quel plaisir! N'hésitez pas à nous contacter, il nous fera plaisir de répondre à vos questions.  418-827-5888.

Winston x Sophie Pups Leave the Nest

It has been a busy last couple of weeks with the "E" litter.  The puppies have grown into inquisitive, happy, active, playful and friendly Barbet puppies and we couldn't be more pleased.

Eating lunch on the patio

We've been fortunate to have had a mild winter so far which lasted up until the pup's 9th week.  As a result the pups were able to spend lots of time playing outside.

Duke and Minx

Rogue

Duchess

Lady - helping with the laundry

Minx

Duke

Lady and Marie

We temperament tested the puppies last week and as always it was a great experience that gave us more information as to how the pups behaved in new situations.  It's also a great opportunity for the puppies to meet new people and try new things.

Structural Evaluations for the puppies also occurred last week.  It's a lovely consistent litter. They are nicely put together puppies and I'm pleased with what Winston and Sophie have produced together.  I look forward to seeing how these puppies mature. 

The litter was introduced to whole birds in the form of pigeons.  It's always nice to see them as babies doing what the breed had been developed to do.  The Barbet is a very old, and versatile French breed of water dog. One of it's functions was used to locate, flush and retrieve birds shot by his master, primarily waterfowl.

The puppies have all left the nest and have started the next chapter in their lives with their new families.  Here they are in order of departure with their new families;

Rogue now lives with Robyn and Craig. 

His registered name is Northrock's Evian and they call him Beau.

Duchess went to live with Delia and Matthew and their two boys.  

She's called Lexi - Northrock's Eureka

Duke now makes his home with Leonardo and Michael.  

He is Northrock's El Magnifico Theo and goes by Théodore.

Minx now lives with Lise and Les.  

Her new name is Ellie and her registered name is Northrock's Eau de Joy.

Lady is now Northrock's Elouisa Belle and her new family calls her Lulu. She lives with humans Sheila, David and Ethan and has a canine buddy Lincoln.

Saying bon voyage to these puppies was bittersweet. I enjoyed them so very much and will miss their happy wagging tails.  They have such lovely personalities and are such delightful little Barbets.  I have come to know their new owners and I know these pups will be deeply loved and well cared for.  I'm thankful for the new opportunities their families will give them and I look forward to updates that share with me how the chapters of their lives are unfolding.  Huge thanks to Winston's owners Denyse Rousseau, Isabelle Auger and Derek Duguay for helping to make this litter possible.

The Winston and Sophie Puppies are 7 Weeks Old

We had a wonderful week with the puppies.  The weather cooperated and we had several trips outside where they were able to run around the yard, explore the shrubs and hedges and play with the big dogs.  They also enjoyed playing in the pen we have set up outside.

Having a quick snack

Their indoor space has lots of toys for them to play with, especially things to chew and gnaw on as they have been busy teething.  Here is a video of the pups playing. 

New experiences continued this past week for the litter.  They continued to have meals in different rooms in the house. 

Dinner in the laundry room while the dryer was going didn't faze these puppies.

There were more visitors and car rides, they were tattooed and the puppies also had their first baths this week. 

Their personalities are really emerging and it's been fun watching them interact with one another and their environment. They are curious and delightful little puppies and it is such a joy getting to know their individual temperaments.

The Winston and Sophie Puppies are 6 Weeks Old

This week just seemed to fly by!  The pups are growing by leaps and bounds.  Their teeth have erupted and they are busy chewing on anything they can get their mouths on.  Consequently they have been provided with some nice bones to gnaw on and a variety of appropriate chew toys.

Duchess

Rogue

The puppy pen continues to expand as new and interesting articles are added to it.  The puppies are very interested in climbing and exploring and despite a huge dumping of snow we received earlier at the end of the week we managed to regularly get outside with the puppies so that they could romp around the yard.

Minx

Interactions with the other dogs in the house are fun to watch.  The older Barbet girls just love the puppies and I enjoy seeing them play bowing to them or gently licking their little faces.  We are looking forward to the week ahead with Sophie and her pups.

Duke

Lady

The Winston and Sophie Puppies Are 5 Weeks Old

The ability to really influence a puppy's brain begins between four and five weeks of age.  We are now in what is often termed the "critical period" of development.  This period extends from three weeks to sixteen weeks of age.  Busy times ahead with lots of positive new experiences for the puppies.

Sophie continues to be an enormous influence on her pups.  She will snuggle with the puppies and gently play with them.  It is beautiful to watch them interact with one another. She is still nursing them even though they have begun to eat solid foods.  Nursing is a developmental opportunity for the puppies as they jostle for space at the milk bar and now that their teeth have begun to emerge...valuable lessons in bite inhibition have also begun.

Housebreaking training is well underway.  The puppies are regularly using the potty box.  Their pen has lots of toys for them to play with which are regularly exchanged for new and different ones.  A crate was added to their pen and they love crawling in it for naps.  

Here are a couple of videos taken of the pups playing in their pen.

The weather cooperated this week and short visit outside have begun.  There are many new sights and sounds in the yard for the puppies to explore.  

A quick snack "al fresco"

Rogue and Duke pose for the camera.

One of the things we do with the pups while they are in our care is follow the "Rules of Seven" developed by Pat Schaap, a longtime Sheltie breeder.  By the time the puppies are seven weeks old they should have:

• Been on 7 different types of surfaces:  carpet, concrete, wood, vinyl, grass, dirt, gravel, wood chips
• Played with 7 different types of objects:  big balls, small balls, soft fabric toys, fuzzy toys, squeaky toys, paper of cardboard items, metal items, sticks or hose pieces
• Been in 7 different locations:  front yard, back yard, basement, kitchen, car, garage, laundry room, bathroom
• Met and played with 7 new people:  include children and older adults, someone walking with a cane or stick, someone in a wheelchair or walker
• Been exposed to 7 challenges:  climb on a box, climb off a box, go  through a tunnel, climb steps, go down steps, climb over obstacles, play  hide and seek, in and out of a doorway with a step up or down, run around  a fence
• Eaten from 7 different containers;  metal, plastic, cardboard, paper,  china, pie plate, frying pan
• Eaten in 7 different locations:  crate, yard, kitchen, basement, laundry  room, living room, bathroom

Visitors are a regular occurrence now that the pups have moved downstairs.

I hope you enjoy our weekly blog posts about Northrock's "E" litter.  If you would like to see more photos and videos of the pups I invite you to like our Facebook page Northrock Barbets where I try to post photos of the little muppets on a daily basis.