Afternoon Barbet boys, Eton and Rugby

The boys are good friends, even though Rugby is rather a wild child :) anyway, first groom for Rugby last week and it was rather exhausting as he was not really very impressed but I think he will be better next time. Eton is well behaved for grooming so hopefully Rugby will pay more attention next time as to what to do when up on a grooming table and he will remember to keep 4 paws still. Rugby is already showing his natural ability to flush, so these two boys could become quite a team :)

Hallie again

Hallie at 8 weeks

Eton at 8 weeks

Bonnie at 8 weeks

Its Daddy Eton

Lovely photo taken of Eton, he really is a handsome chap. Becoming a sire of 14 pups has not changed his outlook on life which is based around fun.Certainly one of the best things about breeding a litter, is  remaining in contact with the new owners of puppies. I have seen Eton shown in France, achieve his working test, I even witnessed his first marriage to Bonnie, and to beat all that I saw him being born.  Eton is a well loved dog and beautifully groomed if I say so myself. 

Bonnie (novaforesta Dora) ready to burst!

A lovely picture of Bonnie looking rather full of puppies.
We have only a few days left to wait. As soon as I hear, I will let you know the good news.
Betsy and Bepop are playing it cool over becoming Grandmas.
Should we take bets on how many pups are waiting to be born, as Bonnie was one of a litter of 13, It could be a large one.
I am keeping everything crossed it all goes well.
I know nothing, but I reckon at least 11 pups, 6 males and  5 females and colourwise 2 browns, 5 solid blacks, 4 black with white bits. How wrong will I be?......probably 100% as no one knows till they come out but I am having fun guessing.

A cold barbet

Not quite a cold barbet, just a very wet one who was having a silly moment in the house. My girls are used to being hosed in the garden after a walk regardless of temperature, in fact they form an orderly queue!. Eton was a little shocked but accepted his fate of a very cold shower like a good barbet should. Anyway the coat slowed him down, I think he liked it and with a dehumidifier going at max it didn't take too long to dry 4 wet dogs in the kitchen

A brown barbet flushing

Okay so you can see my shadow, but on the shoots I go to with Bepop I am very used to black dogs, not only Bepop but also black labs and black spaniels, its a common colour for a working dog.
Taking a brown dog put another dimension to my day as  he was easy to hear in the undergrowth, but not so easy to spot.
In true barbet style he found water. Although Bepop is by far the worse for finding the dirty disgusting bog/water/puddle/poo I can also say with 100% accuracy that the barbets that have attended shoots with me are driven to water, a break from flushing on a drive but hey these are supposed to be a breed working on water, so its a good break and I am chilled about their deviance most of the time. One of my fondest memories of this season was losing sight of Bepop, and then spotting four black legs waving in the air as she did a bit of breakdancing in a muddy puddle, she was reprimanded for this behavior as she should know better, but luckily on the same shoot she managed a fantastic retrieve on a runner and her deviance was soon forgotten.
The photo is Novaforesta Eton blending well with the forest background  

Beaters day with a new barbet

Well it was very very cold hence the fact I had so many layers I could hardly move, Eton as expected didn't notice the biting wing that I was experiencing..

Eton has not been on a shoot before, so I did wonder whether the trailer full of dogs and people may worry him.
Silly me, he loved it.

Love is in the air

An exciting day for me, not only is it my birthday but a day in history with a pup from Bepop and a pup from Betsy now old enough to get together with hopefully the patter of tiny paws at around Easter.
So well done Eton, you did us proud and well done Bonnie for allowing him to do so.

A barbet on holiday

Novaforesta Eton has arrived for a 9 day holiday.

Yesterday he met a beautiful young rottweiller called Roxy, Eton rather took a shine to Roxy, taught her a bit about the birds and bees!
They remained friends for the day.

Its been good  chaos at home with the addition of Eton, suddenly the dogs have rediscovered racing round the garden at 100 miles an hour, play time has arrived. He is a lovely boy, and has slotted straight in to our family life. Bepop loves him , Betsy protects him, Bobby has moments of sheer bliss that another dog wants to play, then he remembers that he is in charge of two girls and tries to look grown up. Its great watching them all together.

Novaforesta Eton

A beautiful dog on a beautiful day.

Novaforesta Eton and bees

This will make you smile, he really is a sweetie.

Novaforesta Eton

Beautiful weather and a lovely visitor.
Always a good day when Eton visits.