The Barbet Revealed: Getting under the curls of the ancient French water dog

Front Cover
Dog Eared Pages, Oct 24, 2014 - Pets - 308 pages

Up until the 21st century, the barbet, or French water dog, was a relatively unknown breed outside of France. Water dogs are nowadays gaining popularity in part due to the increasing  demand for so-called hypoallergenic dogs. The barbet is now being discovered throughout Europe as well as in the United States and Canada.

While reading this book, you’ll be getting under the curls of this age-old breed, to meet the fantastic dog beneath that unique coat. A dog which stands out for its combination of laid back friendliness and endless energy.

The barbet is a versatile dog, whose gentle and amiable nature makes him the ideal family companion. He is also suitable for use as a working dog in many different fields. The barbet was originally used for hunting waterfowl but is nowadays also a popular choice as a therapy and assistance dog.

This book provides excellent advice for anyone who is considering buying a barbet, in order to determine whether this breed is indeed the right choice. For barbet owners, it offers a practical guide to raising and training. If you continue to stimulate your barbet with fun and challenging activities – and you will find plenty of tips in this book – you and your barbet will be best friends for life!

Come along  on a fascinating voyage of discovery under the curls of the ancient French water dog – the barbet!

 

Contents

Introduction
6
Chapter 1 The history of the barbet
9
Chapter 2 Characteristics
23
Chapter 3 Daily life with a barbet
53
Chapter 4 Communication
77
Chapter 5 Caring for your barbet
101
Chapter 6 Your barbet puppy
133
Chapter 7 Upbringing
157
Chapter 8 Training the basis
191
Chapter 9 Training the first year
223
Chapter 10 Training your adult barbet
263
Chapter 11 Questions Answers
295
Photo credits
304
Back cover
311

Common terms and phrases

About the author (2014)

The authors Elisabeth Roest Kempemo and Brigitte Waller-Rengelink, both avid dog lovers, got to know each other through their barbets. They were both smitten with the breed on their very first encounter, and soon had their own barbets at home. For both of them this was coincidentally in 2007. Elisabeth was living in Sweden at that time, and Brigitte in the Netherlands. When Elisabeth moved to the Netherlands, the two women met via the breed association.

They became friends, and soon enjoyed long walks together with their dogs, the main subject of discussion being ‘barbets’, their passionate hobby. 

Elisabeth and Brigitte both train their dogs on the basis of positive reward techniques, and have experience with various dog sports, such as obedience, agility, tracking and hunting training. They are both breeders, and Brigitte is also president of the barbet breed association in the Netherlands.

Elisabeth has been involved in the communications branch all her professional life, and runs her own communications agency. As a professional copy writer and designer she also took on the task of designing the book. Elisabeth has been a member of the editorial team of Canis, the leading Scandinavian clicker training magazine, since 2008.

Brigitte has 25 years’ experience in the copy writing and translation branch, and manages her own translation and copy writing agency. In 2012, she turned her hobby into her work, on setting up a company dedicated to the coat care of water dogs and doodles.

Bibliographic information