Choosing Venom

We are now just a couple of weeks away from bringing home our new puppy, whose name will be Venom.  As I have mentioned in this blog, this puppy is a great great grandson to my old dog Ivy who will turn 14 years old next month.  We are very excited about this puppy as it is the first standard smooth puppy we have had in about 8 years.

We have a lot in store for Venom.  The plan is that he is going to be Rick's new field trial dog which is why we are doing so much early scentwork with this litter.  But, we have other plans for him as well.  I am going to show him in the breed ring and plan to finish a championship on him.  I will also probably do K9 Nosework (scent detection dog sport) with him.  On top of all that, he will be living in our house with 9 other dogs.  So, there is a lot we need to look at here.

Temperament to me is the number one priority.  I want a pretty dog and I want a dog that can hunt, but most of all I want to live with a nice dog.  To be honest, I will take emotionally stable over "pretty" any day.  I feel strongly about this and frustrated because I feel that a lot of breeders put structural conformation over temperament a lot.  I see it all the time, dogs that are placed or kept as show dogs because they look nice but have unstable temperaments.  I am not saying that these dogs can't become great companions only that they shouldn't be put into the show ring and used in our breeding programs.

So, in a few weeks I will have to decide which puppy will be coming home with us.  I am pretty sure I have made up my mind, but I am staying open.  Generally, I would pick the best structured puppy for the show ring.  This time, I will choose the puppy that will make the best pet and field dog for us.  I am 100% willing to compromise on conformation in order to get the right temperament for what we plan to do with him.  Both of the males are very nice and I am sure both will finish easily, but they are slightly different in type and I may end up taking the one that is less the type I prefer in order to get the right companion for us and to ensure that both puppies end up in the best homes for them.  I think it important to keep in mind that both of these puppies have a right to go into the homes that are best matched for them and who they are and what they will be best at whether that is competing in the field with us or going to soccer games with some great family.  This piece is huge and it matters greatly to us and to Sue.

I am excited for the day to come when we bring Venom home and I can't believe it's only a couple of weeks away.