Rocketdog Bassets: July 2, 2016 Six Week Evaluations

Though all of our puppies are spoken for by Critter Cabana, we still want to put them up against our Six Point Evaluation to help us remember and plan for future litters. The system uses five AKC Standard points, and one for purely aesthetic reasons (how we feel about the puppy's beauty when compared to the ideal).

The American Kennel Club doesn't separate Bassets into two distinct breeds; but the difference if quite obvious, especially in the stance (which is much lower in the hind quarters). The Cinnamon Bear has the narrow head and tight coat of the Norman Basset, Clarke Bar Griswald has the loose features and broad skull of the American Standard Basset. Aside from a personal preference for the American Standard, the two combined to make Basset puppies of very good quality, but none which might be considered show quality.

Our first puppy is Count Chocula who weighs in a healthy 5.88 pounds. He receives four and a half points for the AKC Standard and one half point for beauty (deduction for leg thickness and coat tightness). He is a lovely pet quality puppy. Five points.

Count Chocula at six weeks.

Count Chocula is a mix of Standard Basset and Norman Basset hounds. He exhibits the broad skull of his father, his ear are shaped well, quite long, and drape beautifully. His tri-color coat is symmetrical and a great deal of brown is beginning to show on his head.

The Count doesn't have much of a stance,
but does have good Basset features.

The Count has the ears and a very nice disposition.

The Second puppy is Sugar Pops, a Red and White female which weighed 5.2 pounds at six weeks. Her disposition is sweet and compliant. Her beauty is striking. Her domed skull is nearly perfect, though small for a Basset. Her legs thickness and paw size are very good, as are her ears. She receives five points for the AKC Standard, one half for beauty.

Though some might consider her to be sufficiently high quality to become show quality, her mother's genes will probably come through as she grows. She is a pet quality Basset, but might be bred. 5.5 points.

Sugar Pops at six weeks,

Sugar Pops is a very nice puppy to cuddle.

Sugar Pops doesn't have much of a stance.
But she is a ton of fun and loves to romp.

Number three is Cocoa Pebbles, a very small tri-color female weighing 4.2 pounds at six weeks.

What she lacks in physical size, she makes up for in assertiveness. Her small size makes her one of our favorites, but I would not expect her to stay small. She has good AKC features and a lovely personality, but only gets a combined four points due to her size, narrow features, wiry coat, and lightly built legs. She will likely become a great companion, but not a pagent winner. Four Points

Cocoa Pebbles is never shy, but is often sleepy.

Cocoa Pebbles is quite a bit of dog in such a small package.

Cocoa Pebbles doesn't have a stance.

Number four is a wonderful little girl. Lucky Charms who is a healthy 6.4 pounds, happy, and very intelligent. Neither are AKC Standard points. Her coat is a bit wiry, but tri-colored and symmetrical in the face. She favors her father in many respects and has a bit of a stance where the others don't for the most part.

Overall Lucky Charms is a good Basset Hound, but a bit light in the hind quarters. Her AKC Standard score is four points, but she also get a half point for beauty. She is pet quality. 4.5 points.

Lucky Charms gave us a fright a few weeks ago, but has fully recovered and is gaining weight.

Lucky Charms tries to stand up straight.

Lucky Charms has a lovey face and great ears.

Number five is a beautiful red and white male which comes in a heavy 7.3 pounds. At first we though Cinnamon's Toast Crunch would become a "lemon" Basset, which is mostly white with light tan markings. But as time has gone by he appears to be a red and white. His hind quarters are more Normal Basset, as is his stance. His features are strong, as is his personality. Expect a smart puppy.

He receives five points for the AKC Standard, and one half for beauty. He will be a good companion. 5.5 points.

Toast Crunch is a big boy. Barely fit on the scale.

He is a very easy dog to work with.

What a face! He has an easy smile.

Perhaps my favorite, Cocoas Crispies is a bit of a surprise. At first we thought he was a she.

Weighing 7.4 pounds Cocoa Crispies is a large and happy little boy. His coat is tri-colored and he has a happy disposition and a clever attitude. He avoids being picked up, but settles down right away. His coat is smooth and mostly black for the time being. Expect he will add brown to his fur as he ages, but for now there is little showing. His face is symmetrically colored and he receives five AKC Standard points, half a point for beauty. 5.5 points

Cocoa Cripsies at six weeks.

Cocoa Crispies refused to stand for pictures.
But he does take a nice picture.

Nearly a perfect image.

Alphabits, (AlphaBetty) is a wonderful little 5.8 pound tri-colored girl. Her tri-colored coat is a bit wiry and is expressing quite a bit of brown through the black. She has one bright blue eye, the other is grey, so she will not win any beauty contests. But I must say that she is a joyous little girl. She runs everywhere and terrorizes her siblings. She is a little dog with a personality two sizes too large.

AlphaBetty only gets four AKC Standard points, none for beauty, and she should not be bred. But she is as cute as a Basset gets. Four Points.

AlphaBetty is small but terrible.

This is a good stance for this type of Basset.

The blue eye is striking. The grey eye photographed red.

Number eight is a funny little tri-colored girl named BooBerry. Were is not for her obviously tight coat and lightly built legs, she would be a wonderful example of Basset Hound.

She is the smallest of the litter at 5.1 pounds, but as with her smaller siblings she makes up for her size with assertiveness. Her tri-colored coat is mostly white at six weeks, and this is likely to persist as she grows, though she will probably add some brown patches. Her coat is silky, paws large, and stance nearly correct. She gets four and a half AKC Standard points (losing one half for a tight coat), three quarters for beauty. A wonderful puppy, perhaps the best of the litter except for size. 5.25 points.

BooBerry is my pick for best of the litter.

Her belly is flawless white without a hint of pink showing through.

She is tiny, but wonderfully cuddly.
BooBerry loves to be handled and held.

Honey Comb is the last of the lot. She is a quiet, reserved, 5.5 pound tri-color. Her coat is a bit wiry, but mostly black at six weeks. She will most likely put on quite a bit of Brown as she grows. Honey Comb favors her father except for her head size and shape which will be narrow.

She receives only four points for tight coat and narrow features, she gains one quarter for beauty. She will become a lovely pet. 4.25 points.