All of our puppies are sold

Laffee Taffee and ClarkeBar gave us five of the best little pups we have seen so far. But the litter was unplanned, unscheduled, and a bit inconvenient since we are still living in a tiny home while beginning to build a new Farmhouse. We will miss them all (especially little Bazooka Joe, who I would have kept had I been able). Their new parents will undoubtedly love them very much and we wish them a good life.

Our wait list is closed for the time being. 

Our plan was, and is now, to reopen the list on a fixed breeding schedule. We have four females, each will enter their season and be allowed breed according to our simple ethics: We wait until the female is an adult (this did not happen with Taffee). we do not allow a female to breed more than three times, spay her, and then find a good forever home for her to live out her retirement with a loving family. We love our girls, but this is a farm and so we must do the right thing; rationally, legally, and economically.

The first and only instance of our plan in action was with Carmel Corn SanDiego, who was with us for four years, had two litters of very good pups, and is now living on a farm in Ferndale, California. She did not have the psychological fortitude to have the third litter and so she was retired early.  We miss her still and think of her often.

Taffee had her first litter too early, despite all of our well laid plans. She, and Clarke, never showed any interest in each other at all, and then there we puppies on the way. . .  She is young, but we will not allow her to breed again for at least a year. Her health does not appear to have been negatively effected by this litter, she was a good mother, and she was happy the whole time. So she will stay in the planned schedule unless something changes.

The Cinnamon Bear is next up on the schedule, but the timing still needs worked out. She gives us plenty of warning about her cycle and we will wait until the new kennel is put together. Clarke is a happy boy and does his job well. So we will offer another large litter at some point in the future.

The two "Littles", Abba Zabba and Bit O'honey, will not be put into the schedule until they are at least two years old, and then only if they are suited for it. We expect good things from them already. Beatrix O'honey has been a good helper for Taffee and loved the babies since they first met.

So for now, Rocketdog Bassets is on hold for a new kennel.

Laffee Taffee and ClarkBar's litter: Six Week Evaluations

At six weeks it can safely be said that this is the best litter we have seen so far. These wonderful puppies will be available for delivery to their forever homes beginning December fifth, and extending up to Christmas eve by special arrangement.  Click on the image above this for more information on reserving a Christmas puppy. Click on the images below this for our six week evaluations of each puppy.

Click here for a Bubba-licious Evaluation

Click here for Bazzoka Joe's Evaluation

Click here for Tutti-Fruity's evaluation

Click here for Chicklet's evaluation

Click here for Wriggly's Evaluation

Bubba-licious Six Week Evaluation

Bubba is a beautiful boy

Of the five pups that ClarkeBar and Laffee Taffe gave us, Bubba is the biggest, happiest, puppy in an exceptionally good litter. Our Rocketdog Kennel has produced six litters to date, using three females and only one male. Our goal is to produce a slightly smaller form of Basset Hound and we may have done it. But with Bubba it will be hard to tell.

Bubba-licious was misidentified as female at birth (in the heat of whelping), but this is definitely a male pup in every respect. He has a large and blocky head shape supports a high dome and well placed ears. His stance is very strong and his frame is robust. This will be a strong but confident puppy which should  do well in a large family with small children.

Bubba's coloring is wonderful with tremendous ermine spotting everywhere you might look. His ears will slowly transition to red over time, as might his hind quarters (but this is not certain). His head blaze is slightly asymmetrical, this often indicates a less than show quality adult, but this seem unfair since he is otherwise as good as any other.

Stance, perhaps the best way to tell if the hips will be healthy throughout life, is exceptionally strong. We would not recommend using a harness leash since he will be very strong and low centered. It is not at all certain that he will remain smaller than other Basset Hounds, but he should not achieve more than a fifty pounds of total weight at four years old.

No better natural stance than this.

Bubba gets all five AKC derived points in our six point system, and the one point for beauty as well. Be is a very good example of the Basset Hound dog at six weeks and might eventually be bred providing that care is taken in choosing partners. His parents both come from the same kennel, but neither share any parentage, so inbreeding ought to easily be avoided.

Bazooka Joe Six Week Evaluation

A beautiful little boy

Every litter brings a favorite. Bazooka Joe is the one puppy I would keep if I could.

Our little pet Basset kennel has given us some good litters, but we feel that the five pups of this litter is perhaps the best we have seen so far. Though all of a particular tri-colored style, all of the pups in this litter are unique in their own way. Our kennel's goal is to breed a smaller form of Basset Hound, Bazooka Joe looks to be of the type we are trying to achieve.

At six pounds, nine ounces, "Joe" is a bit smaller than most. But he is a stout and happy fellow, prone to extroverted play and he is never less than adventurous. He is the first to explore, the quickest to pick a fight, and the hardest charger at dinner time. He is a wonderful puppy and might do well in a large family with children.

Joe's coloring is very good, with a whole lot of slightly tight black fur. His ears will likely change to red with time, but are well placed back from his low domed head.

Unlike his sibling brother, Joe shows a slightly tight coat and less of a square jawed appearance, but this only makes him cuter (I am biased).

Not the best stance, but quite good

His stance is something of a mystery. In person he has a solid aggressive stance, but one which does not photograph well. Since stance is perhaps the best indicator of future hip health, and since he is not one to be lazy, and if allowed to grow up in a high exercise environment, he should have good bone health into old age.

Bazooka Joe gets six of six points using our evaluation system, there is simply nothing wrong about him at this point in time. He will make a good pet, perhaps a show quality pet as well. Since he is of good stock he might be bred, but care ought to be taken in choosing his partners since both parents come from the same kennel (neither sharing parents).

Tutti-Fruity Six Week Evaluation

Lovely head shape.

Rocketdog Bassets has produced six good litters, this being the sixth. Our kennel goal is to produce a smaller Basset Hound pet which does well in a close urban environment. We hope for a smaller form of the breed in every litter and work toward this by putting smaller dogs in the same space and then letting nature do its job. This litter is perhaps the best we have seen so far.

Tutti-Fruity (her kennel name) has a quietly clownish personality. Not exceptionally brave or outgoing, she is often near the center of play with the girl pups, while a bit shy with the males. But this isn't because she is somehow smaller. At seven pounds, six and a half ounces, she is a strong and powerful puppy.

Tutti-fruity has wonderfully long ears which hang perfectly from her domed head. Her coloring is wonderful, but she carries very little of the white blaze most often seen in tri-colored Bassets, It is likely that her ears will turn red over time, but there isn't much to tell us that her coloring will change much other than this. She has very little ermine (spotting) in her skin and coat.

Tutti-Fruity has a good natural stance, perhaps a good indicator of hip health, but she will need exercise as she grows. Her disposition is very quiet for the most part.  She ought to do well with a family with small children since she seems to love grooming her siblings.

Tutti-Fruity receives all six points of our six point evaluations and will make a great pet, perhaps something better. She might be bred, but care must be taken to avoid certain blood lines. Both parents come from the same kennel, but don't share an parentage, so breeding can happen with some care taken as to lineage.

Chicklet Six Week Evaluation

What a face!

ClarkeBar and Laffee Taffee have paired to produce a really wonderful litter of five pups. Each is unique, but together we believe these are the best our Kennel has produced so far. Since our kennel's breeding goal is a smaller Basset Hound, by putting our two smaller Bassets in the same space, and then let nature do her thing, it is possible that we achieved our goal in the six pound, seven ounce, puppy kennel named Chicklet.

Chicklet is always happy, always very easy going, rarely bark-y or chewy, but always cuddly. Chicklet might be a good choice for an older single person or older couple, since she is relatively quiet, but I am sure she is stout enough for a much larger family.

Her coloring is very good, with a very narrow white blaze on her well domed head. Her long black ears are wonderfully set back on her head and will likely turn red with time, as will her hind quarters.

Chicklet's stance is quite strong, perhaps a good indicator of longer termed hip health. She is a nearly perfect example of the Basset Hound standard. Though perhaps a bit light in the skin folds at this time, she shows little of the European Bassets's style. She is very heavy boned, but small in frame, and gets all five of the AKC points in our six point system, plus the point for beauty. She has the traits of a show quality dog early on, patience being an important factor, but until her coloring and personality resolves itself it will be hard to tell if Chicklet would do well at show.

A nearly perfect stance.

This beautiful puppy might develop into a dog with good breeding potential, but care must be exercised prior to any breeding decision due to her blood lines running a bit close. Both parents come from the same kennel, but neither shares any direct parental links, so problematic inbreeding would be easily avoided.

At six of six points, our happy little "Chicklet" is a very good puppy and this should continue into adulthood.

Wriggly Six Week Evaluation

Wriggly is a talky little girl.

Rating the five pups of this litter is difficult, they are all very good. But citing differences is important because there are some very distinct characteristics about each one which might make deciding which is the best fit for new homes. As a litter I must say these pups are a step up from previous litters. The next closest was the 2017 CarmelCorn and ClarkeBar's litter, who were fairly exceptional. But Laffee Taffee and ClarkBar put together a really wonderful first litter, both are quite pretty parents and we expect their offspring will be vary pretty as well.

Wriggly (her kennel name) came into the world talking constantly. Since then she has remained very conversant with her siblings and our other hounds, but is not very talky around the humans. Wriggly has been very adventurous and brave, with a large appetite. At seven pounds, nine ounces, she is only behind the big boy Bubba for size. She has wonderfully symmetrical coloring with a slim white blaze. Wriggly has adequate skin folds and lovely ear length set well back from her nearly perfectly domed head. She stands well, which we feel is an important indicator of good future hip development. (It must be said that sufficient exercise also adds to giving a Basset Hound a long happy life without the pain associated with hip problems, so get her out running as often as you can.)

Wriggly's Stance is not optimal, but is strong
and looks as healthy as can be.

Though much of Wriggly is black in color today, her ears show definite signs of changing to red, and the ermine (spotted) coat shows both black and red spots.  Her bloodlines are somewhat close, both parents of the same kennel (but not in any problematic way), so care must be exercised prior to breeding decisions. She will become a wonderful pet quality little girl which perhaps might be bred, but only with a higher quality male of a radically different blood line.

Wriggly is a wonderful example of the Basset Hound, according to our six point system. She earns five of the five points available, which align with the AKC standard, but only gains a half point for aesthetics since there is a slightly botched dewclaw removal on her right fore paw and her coloration really is not special in any significant way. Still, at five and a half points, with a personality which looks really good for being around a family, she is a great little girl.

November 3, 2019 Puppy Update on Taffee's Gummies

The past couple of weeks' time has been busy, mostly for beginning of our Farmhouse build. There hasn't been a whole lot of time for taking pictures of these wonderful pups. We finally got a sunny and warm fall day and so the puppies got their first taste of sunshine.

Laffee Taffee gave us a very nice little litter of Christmas Bassets. Every one of them are as good as we have ever seen in every respect. If you take a look around this page you will find the six point system we use in evaluating our puppies at the six week point, but with this litter it will be hard to find anyone of the babies lacking points. All are nearly perfect for this stage of their lives. So a bit better than others is all.

The babies have all grown so much, far too large to rely on Taffee for all the feeding they need. So we began weening them this past week, giving them only warm whole organic cow's milk, but  we occasionally throw a few kibble bits into their pen for them to find. Living in a tiny home makes having a litter of puppies a bit more difficult, but Taffee has proven to be a very good mom and cleaning up after them is much easier with their bed right next to the washing machine.

We will do the six week evaluations next week. Following this we will be reserving individual pups for their forever homes. We can give them over to their new families as soon as eight weeks, but would prefer something closer to ten weeks. This puts delivery at two weeks before Christmas, but we will hold them longer if needed to keep things surprising for the new families. Click on the Christmas Puppy picture at the upper left hand of this page for more information on how to get a one of these beautiful Rocketdog pups for Christmas.

 Bubba-licious at five weeks is the most people friendly male. His natural stance,
fore-leg size, ear position, jaw set, and skin elasticity are all very good. 

 Bubba is a relatively large male for this litter and
this is somewhat strange since both parents
are a bit smaller than most Basset Hounds. 

Bazooka Joe at five weeks is a wonderfully cuddly little boy. He seems quite the aggressive
sort, very playful and curious. Joe's a pretty boy, though a bit smaller than his siblings. 

Joe's ears, jaw set , stance, and head shape is very good.
His fur is about ninety percent black with excellent symmetry.

Tutti-Fruity at five weeks is everything we look for in a small framed female.
She has no white facial blaze and this makes her stand out from most others. 

Her stance and other aesthetics are very good. She is a bit shy and quiet, but this isn't likely to last.

Chicklet is a wonderfully inquisitive little girl, the most likely to get in a scrap with her brothers. 

Love the ears and coloring most, but all of Chicklet's other parts are all very good.

Wriggly came out talky and is still a bit of a show off.
The most adventurous little pup in this litter and the heaviest. 

Her looks are stunning with all of her traits near perfection. Perhaps the best we have in this litter.

Puppy Update October 14th, 2019

We are very pleased with Laffee Taffee and ClarkeBar's babies. In the past two weeks they all doubled in weight and many have open eyes. A few are up the their feet. All are getting very proficient eaters. They are a wonderful bunch.

As is turned out, Bubblicious (pronounce Bubba-Licious) is a male, something that got misidentified in the heat of delivering them. Not a major problem, but we probably would have changed his kennel name to something more traditional. However, at two weeks old Bubba is a large and healthy little boy who weighs in at 2.34 pounds. He has found his legs and is bear scooting around looking for another meal. He is quiet and stout.

Wriggly is a nice little girl who seems to like cuddling up. We handle the pups as often as Taffee will let us, which is not all too often, and Wriggly seems to like us. But she is an insistent and vocal pup, having begun talking since her emergence, and not being very quiet since. Her weight is a  2.8 pounds and she is healthy as can be. Early on I see that her ear placement is optimal and the head shape is very nice. There's not much to go on when they are this small, but all the pups look wonderfully formed at this point.

Chicklet is some wonderful markings and will likely develop into an especially pretty little girl. Her color is remarkably symmetrical and will of her parts are in the right place and the right shape for this early on in the game. She weighs 2.34 pounds and is very strong for her size.

Tutti-Fruity has the cutest little face. Her narrow face blaze is very mild and almost grey since it mixes in with the black hairs. Her coloring is amazing. Mostly black and white with banding, rather than spots. At 2.37 pounds, she is a healthy little thing.

Bazooka Joe is stout little tub at 2.34 pounds. He is strong and looks to become something of a hunter but there is no way of telling at these early weeks.

Some new pictures

A few new photos

Laffee Taffee and babies are doing very well.
As of today we have five, three are bear walking.
All are nice and fat.

Taffee is inside with the babies most of the day,
and the others spend their days exploring and
staying out of trouble (for the most part).

Abba Zabba has gained so much size and weight since coming to the Farm.
She is not the type who likes her picture taken.
Too bad for us, she is a beautiful girl.

The puppies are learning the ways of farm dogs.
Run around, then greet everyone as they pass by or come home.

Bit-o-Honey may never be the show dog type.
But she is looking to be a wonderful addition to the Farm.
She is a lover and a cuddler.

Abba Zabba, it seems, is a hunter.
She has her nose down every hole
and is usually covered in dirt.

She's Back!

Laffee Taffee Is back in full effect. She had been a bit depressed and tired after giving us the five beautiful babies and then feeding them until they were fat. And she wasn't eating much, a few hard boiled duck eggs and some water. But yesterday she ate five full meals of kibble, whole milk, canned food, and duck eggs, but her waggy tail still sagged.

Last night she ate two midnight meals of pasta, eggs, kibble, and canned food. This morning she is our happy little girl once more, the tail wagging the whole dog. . . .

Not only this, but she wanted me to watch the puppies (for the first time) while she went outside with Ann Smith. On the way she ate half of Clarke's breakfast (and he had no objections).

She's Back!!!

But she's still a bit underweight.

I'll try to get new pictures today. It's rainy out and there will be plenty of time.

The Morning After

Taffee spent the night trying to get everyone fed and bedded down. She did this by cleaning everyone thoroughly and then cleaning them again, so there really wasn't much rest for any of them, or for us either. But this morning, after going outside and getting a bit of breakfast in, Taffee finally got everyone settled down and now most of the babies are sleeping. But this is sure to change about as soon as I post this . . . A wonderfully long and tiring day is over. I think we'll all treat this as a Sunday and do some serious sitting around and napping.

This Rocket-puppy litter we named for chewing gum.

AKC Grizelda Laffee Taffee and AKC ClarkeBar Grizwold 

present the Chewy-gum Rocketpups.

Laffee Taffee is a naturally good mother and had an easy time of delivering her first litter. We had worried about this simply because this was a teen-aged pregnancy. Clarke and Taffee showed absolutely no interest in each other right up until we found them taking "the long walk in  the moonlight" together. 

Since there was no good alternative to letting the process unfold, we chose to worry instead. But it turned out this was all for nothing. 

Taffee insisted on taking care of each pup herself, but allowed Ann to clean them up, and me to weigh them and take a mug shot. Taffee spent the day laboring, but once she started the pups came out at a rapid fire (about fifteen minutes apart for the most part). Things slowed at the end, but the delivery did not take long at all and nobody yelped except Wriggly, who seems a loud little girl right from the start.

We still have wait list slots open (check out the wait list post at the top of the page). These babies will be ready about two weeks before Christmas. CreeksideFarmOregon@gmail.com

#5 was our only male. A 14.4 ounce tri color named Bazooka Joe.

#4 came at 9:40. A wonderful 11.3 ounce tri-colored female name Tutti-fruity

#3- A female tri-colored girl named Chicklet.
She is a keeper at 15.1 ounces

#2 - Wriggly - 10.4oz - tri-color - Female

The first one born was Bubblicious: a 15.5 ounce tri-colored female

Temperatures are dropping

The weather outside is sort of cold and dreary, the Fall temperatures arrived this week and with a vengeance. There never was much for Summer heat this year, which is bad for farming but good for most everything else. But this post isn't about farming, it is about puppies.

There are definite signs of a girl getting ready for delivery. Colostrum show up about ten days before, milk about five days, but it is body temperature dropping below the usual 101 degrees which signals impending labor. Today, Laffee Taffee's temp is around 99 degrees so the babies might come at any time.

Our Farm is not the optimal place to have puppies right now. We are homesteading and it took three years to get the permits (which happened last week). We built a tiny home to live in temporarily while we built the house and, while it is both spacious and comfortable, there's not a whole lot of extra room for extras. Puppies are an extra. So we have added a back porch to the house and moved things around to allow Taffee to deliver in the Laundry room where it is warm and safe. The back porch will serve as play area for the pups until at least six weeks so they will be safe.

Taffee and ClarkeBar have been sleeping together in the Laundry room for the past few nights. He is a comfort to her and doesn't mind being in the house. The two new girls are occupying the back porch until they get a bit bigger. We'll move Clarke out as soon as the babies come, the new girls out once the pups reach three weeks and need room to wander during the days.

Taffee's coming teen-aged litter is not a good thing and certainly wasn't expected or desired, but we're making the best we can of it and things ought to go quite normally (even in the reduced spaces available).

We still have openings on the wait list for those interested in a Christmas puppy. Our experience is that the slots are taken up very quickly as soon as the babies arrive. We expect five or six pups, though it might go higher, or lower. So consider taking the risk.

September 27th, 2019 A Lot of Puppy Stuff

The week has been very busy since the new girls (Abbz-Zabba and Bit-o-Honey) came. We installed them in the new back porch built to help raise Laffee Taffee's impending litter.  I won't bore anyone with the details because the pictures pretty well tell the story. The babies will come any day now, so if you are thinking about a Christmas puppy you should get on the list right away. There are still slots available and previous litters sell out in about three days once the pups arrive.

Taffee is very nervous as she enters into
her last week. The puppies are moving!

Abba Zabba is putting on some weight.
She is a natural beauty with awesome coloring.

Cinnamon has adopted the girls.

Most of the time Cinnamon Bear keeps her attention on the new girls.

Bit-o-Honey has a real adventurous streak in her.
She loves to hunt around and find new things.