After many years of sharing our Barbet news and writing about the growth and development of our Barbet puppies we retired the blog at the end of 2020. All of the past entries remain posted so feel free to take a look around and scroll through previous posts to get a feel for the breed, our dogs and how we raise our litters. More information about the Barbet (French Water Dog) can be found on our website: www.northrockbarbets.com
Sophie is doing great throughout this pregnancy. She’s such a sweetheart, always wanting pets and cuddles. It’s not too much longer until her puppies with Winston are due and she is definitely looking pregnant.
Here is a photo of her taken on our walk today.
We are able to feel the puppies moving and if you look close enough you can even see little ripples in her abdomen as they move about in the womb. We are able listen to the rapid tic, tic, tic of their little heartbeats with the stethoscope. The miracle of new life growing never ceases to amaze me. We are very much looking forward to meeting these special pups.
We anticipate that these pups will have many of the wonderful qualities their parents possess. If you are interested in a puppy for show, performance or as a loving companion contact Stephanieat northrockbarbets@gmail.com
Josie and the CBC booth. Josie is Northrock's Black Seal from the Chmurnik x Sophie litter.
I am back home again after spending the weekend in London, Ontario attending the 2014 Purina National™ dog show which was hosted by the Elgin County Kennel Club. Club Barbet Canada (The National Club for the Barbet) had a breed booth in the Breeders’ Village all weekend long and that’s where I was stationed. The Purina National is a large, prestigious dog show that attracts many exhibitors and offers over $40,000.00 in prize money. This show took place in conjunction with the 2nd Annual London Pet Show and attracted a lot of visitors.
Josie with Brian and JoAnne who stopped by to visit the booth on Saturday and help meet with the public and hand out brochures.
I like to keep my dogs at home when one of them is pregnant or if there are puppies on the ground. With Sophie’s puppies due at the beginning of November, Brian and JoAnne were kind enough to let me borrow their Barbet Josie for the weekend. I had a great time hanging out with “Josie the Wonder-Dog” as her family affectionately calls her. Josie is such a sweet Barbet and she did a great job all weekend long meeting and greeting with the public. She was a wonderful ambassador for the breed.
Derek Duguay who travelled all the way from Quebec with his family and his two Barbets, Pearl and Winston as well as Myself and Josie.
Throughout the entire weekend a large number of visitors who had never heard of the Barbet before stopped by to say hello and to get to know the breed. Myself along with the other club members who volunteered in the booth handed out close to 150 brochures during the weekend long event. It was a great weekend of breed promotion and education and I look forward to doing it again in the future.
Sophie has been bred to Winston and puppies are expected at the beginning of November 2014!
At the beginning of September my daughter Olivia and I drove to Quebec to breed Sophie to Winston. We had a wonderful time and enjoyed visiting with Isabelle Auger, Derek Duguay and their boys and Denyse Rousseau. Winston is a lovely Barbet and we are very excited about this litter. More information can be found on our website.
CH BleuZorange Xed dit Winston, the sire of our upcoming litter posing with Isabelle
Isabelle and Derek live near Old Quebec City. Olivia, Sophie and I were able to take some time to explore the city while we were there. Here are some photos from our visit.
UCD CH Neigenuveaux Fleur D'Northrock WC CGN "Sophie" and Olivia - View from the Citadelle de Quebec.
Taking a little break beside the St. Lawerence River.
On the promenade de Samuel de Champlain.
Sophie is doing very well. Her pregnancy was confirmed by palpation towards the end of September. She getting a little bigger now and her svelte little tuck up has disappeared. Sophie is in great shape and we are enjoying the beautiful fall weather we have been having by going on lots of walks together. We are so looking forward to the Winston x Sophie litter and we are very grateful to Isabelle, Derek and Denyse for letting us use their beautiful boy.
We anticipate that these pups will have many of the wonderful qualities their parents possess, especially their outstanding temperaments. If you are interested in a puppy for show, performance or as a loving companion contact Stephanie atnorthrockbarbets@gmail.com
With the warm summer weather come several trips up north to the family cottage on Georgian Bay. The dogs enjoy getting out of the city just as much as the humans. Here are some photos from our trips to the bay this summer. Enjoy!
We just got back from our annual camping trip with friends to Bon Echo Provincial Park. This year we took Gemma (Northrock Diamond in the Ruff) along with us.
There are lots of great hiking trails to explore.
Bon Echo is very dog friendly. They have an off leash dog beach with a great water entry. Gemma had a wonderful time playing with the other dogs and swimming in the lake. Among the many trail options there is also an off leash exercise trail for the dogs to enjoy.
We rented canoes at the lagoon on Mazinaw Lake. From the canoe you can see the Aboriginal pictographs on the rock face that rises 100 meters above the lake.
Picnic lunch on the big rock.
Hanging out with the girls at the campsite. Gemma was so well behaved that it was easy to forget she is only 5 months old!
Roasting marshmallows and making smores around the campfire are a tradition. Four families with a total of 8 kids ages 10 and under made for long fun filled days. By the time campfire time rolled around Gemma was one tired puppy.
Kelly with her handler Peter Scott and judge Manuel Queijeiro
In June, Kelly (Ch Northrock's Anchors Aweigh WC) attended the Ontario County Kennel Club dog shows with Peter Scott on the end of her lead. Kelly went Best of Breed all three days. Friday's judge was Joanne Fernall and on Saturday and Sunday she was awarded two Group 2nds under judges Manuel Queijeiro and Ole Nielsen. We are absolutely delighted that Kelly, our little Miss. Purple is now a CKC Grand Champion. Thank you to all of the judges who have recognized her quality and awarded Kelly in the show ring.
This blog post celebrates one of the puppies from the Northrock "A" litter. Born on August 4, 2012 to FCC/Can CH Barbugaulois Daragon x CH Bayport Coco Chanel.
Pascal was our Mr. Blue. He was the firstborn puppy in the litter a litter of 11 with 5 more males and 5 females to follow.
In October of that year Pascal went to live in Providence, Rhode Island with Maria and Josh. They have given him a wonderful life and we are so thankful to them! Pascal is a happy and social dog who gets lots of walks in their busy town. He is a favourite among the shopkeepers and they often keep cookies to give to him when he comes in their stores to say hello. Josh and Maria are often stopped while out on their walks and Pascal enjoys all of the attention he receives. Josh often takes Pascal to work with him and everyone in the office enjoys when he comes to visit.
I put together this little video with a collection of photos and videos that Maria and Josh have been sending me in their update emails. I hope you enjoy watching it. For those of you that have Barbets of your own I'm sure you will identify. His owners taught Pascal lots of tricks. The Barbet is very intelligent and they love to learn new things! Try teaching something new to your Barbet. You will be surprised at how quickly he or she picks up the new behaviour. For those of you that do not have a Barbet but are curious as to what the breed is like I hope this small glimpse into Pascal's world will help to give you an idea.
Many thanks to Josh and Maria for all of the love and care they give to Pascal. Cheers to many more adventures with this wonderful Barbet!!!
