At Six Weeks of age we evaluate our litters using a six point set of criteria. Five of these points are derived from the American Kennel Club Standard for the breed. One point is given that is subjective and purely based on what we like to see for coloring and aesthetic qualities. It is difficult to look into a puppy's future and see what they will truly become, but at six weeks there is enough of the traits emerging in appearance and personality to give it a good guess.
Our breeding program has been aimed toward breeding a smaller form of Basset Hound, something that won't exceed forty pounds when fully adult and perhaps less than fourteen inches at the shoulder. In this litter we only see two pups of this smaller form developing, four which will be of the more normal American Basset size (perhaps fifty pound fully grown and fifteen inches at the shoulder) and one standard sized little boy who will likely top out at sixty pounds. All of the Candies show very good traits, but as is the usual, the sire (Rocky) brought into the mix all that we expect in an American Basset Hound. The very long ears, head shape, boxy nose shape, and heavy foreleg size are all of Rocky's very good features. Lilly, the Dame, is a good example of the smaller form Basset and has very good features as well.
Pearl is a wonderful little girl. Not the best in any category, but overall in the top three of the seven just for attittude. She is really quite a girl. Pearl goes to her new home with Ruby and between the two of them their new family will be in for quite the ride. She is ferrocious, very active, and loves to tag team attack her brothers with her sister Ruby. Growly, snarly, and fun. But not very adventurous.
Sturcturally Pearl is a good example of the breed, Her head is well domes and she is of the smaller form that we are trying to breed. Expect she will eventually become a thirty-five pound Basset, but those numbers could creap higher is she likes the food. Her neck is strongly built, her foreleg bone size is nice and heavy. She has something of a minor flanging of one rib, but she is not a show quality dog and nobody would notice. Her wasit is narrow, her hips quite stocky. Pearl has a wonderful stance which makes her look fast even when she is at rest.
Pearl's head coloring is in flux. I expect her to eventually have a head covered in brown fur before too lang. She may develope brown pants as well, but expect quite a bit more brown to emerge before she is fully adult. She lack symmetry in her fur coloring and this likely won't get any better with time. She's lovely, but not advertising picture pretty.
Of the five AKC derived points Peral gets all five. There is nothing about her structurally that is anything but good. She lacks the pretty thing, loses a half of the point for coloring. Five and a half points of six is quite a high grade. We don't recommend breeding her simply because she is not the best example of the breed, but there's nothing wrong with her at all. She's a great little dog.
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