# confirmation of a 8 wk old Spoo??



## RoyalFields (Dec 20, 2010)

What should one look for when judging the confirmation of an eight week old Spoo?


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## cbrand (Aug 9, 2009)

That is a huge question. The first thing I would do would be to view Pat Hasting's Puppy Puzzle. I think it is a good starting place for developing an eye for structure.

Next, is your breeder having a "puppy party"? Many breeders invite other experienced breeders over to evaluate the litter. Puppies are stacked and gone over, they are moved and at the last puppy party I attended I did retrieve work with each puppy to evaluate drive. It is very helpful to listen to the different opinions of different *experienced show* breeders.

Next, it is all a balancing game. There is NO perfect puppy. What are your goals? Are you looking just to finish a dog or are you looking for a foundation bitch? Based on this, you may choose to keep a different puppy. Many people will tell you that what you see at 8 weeks will be accurately reflected in an adult dog. That is not always true, but it is a starting point. If a puppy has an ugly head at 8 weeks, chances are that you are going to have that head as an adult.


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## RoyalFields (Dec 20, 2010)

That is very helpful. 

I'm looking for a foundation bitch. If I can't show the foundation bitch I absolutely want to produce show pups that I can finish. 

The pup that I'm looking at has a tail set that is too curved for my taste but not so curved that it is laying on her back. She has an excellent pedigree (but I only put so much weight into that).

I've picked apart every photo that I've seen of this pup. In a photo of a litter mate I noticed what I felt was a round eye. The pup I'm looking at (from photos mostly) has expectable eye shape. 

I've wanted to show and breed for many years and this will be my third poodle. My first spoo was gorgeous but needed to be altered due to an undescended testicle. My second boy started off nice (@12 weeks in puppy matches) but HATED the show ring and it showed. I'm looking into agility (or some other form of "work") for him as he is by far the most intelligent dog I've ever known. 

I'm going to be able to put my hands on this pup, on Sunday and I'm looking for pointers from wise show people that I may have otherwise not thought of. 

I'm going to google the "puppy puzzle" right now. 
Thanks


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