Are you looking for a Lagotto Romagnolo puppy? Do you have some special goals for your new Lagotto Puppy? Is it scent work in the Pacific Northwest truffle fields? Is it for rally, agility or other dog sports? Perhaps you are looking to show your beautiful dog and compete in conformation. Regardless of your goal, how do you go about looking for and finding that perfect puppy? Are you looking for qualities in genetic selection or is it more important that the right dog has been raised and taught from birth in the right manner? At Northwest Lagotto, we believe that it is both - nature and nurture.
The process of choosing top quality proven dogs for breeding stock is what you are entrusting your breeder to do. They should be able to tell you what went into their selection of stud with their female. They should breed for genetic qualities that fall within the standard of the Lagotto Breed as set out by the Lagotto Romagnolo Club of America. They should breed for sound temperament in both parents, but particularly so for the mother. A clam, resilient, and sound mother will, in how she rears her young in the first weeks, pass on a calm confidence to her pups. A breeder should then look for specific desirable qualities in choosing their breeding stock - be it for excellent, proven scent work, for agility and rally, particular physical features or for other specific traits. These decisions should not overshadow the need to increase or at very least maintain a level of genetic diversity within the mating so that the pups, remain sound, strong and healthy.
This is not the end of the road for the breeder however. In fact, this is the easier task when it comes to providing you with your new future puppy. Nurturing cannot be understated. While this is largely the mothers responsibility in the early weeks of a puppies life, research and study has shown that as a puppy goes through its early development there are specific windows during which a puppy is best exposed to new activities, stimulus, experiences, challenges and obstacles. It is by nurturing each puppy through these new discoveries, at the right time, that a puppy learns to overcome fears and to accept new challenges with an open heart that best prepares your puppy for success in life regardless of what activities you hope to participate in.
Nature gives you the sound genetic basis on which to proceed with a particular mating and nurture is what provides the puppies with the tools they need to take with them as they go to new homes, make new discoveries and enter the world. At Northwest Lagotto, we breed proven dogs from champion lines, with sound temperaments and an eagerness to work. We then raise our puppies using early neurological stimulation and puppy culture techniques so that our puppies are balanced, eager to explore, and ready for their new home with you.
If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to look us up at https://www.northwestlagotto.com or www.facebook.com/northwestlagotto or write at nwlagottoguy@gmail.com
Mark Nelson