Frequently Asked Questions


What is your breeding philosophy? What do you look for in your dogs to make a superior breeding program? Why do you title your dogs? What does the dog’s title stand for? Do you guarantee your dogs to point? What guarantees do you offer? Because there are field trial champions in the bloodlines, will the dogs be high strung? Do you hunt your dogs? Do you have any special programs that you put the puppies through? Do you ship puppies? Can we hunt over the dogs before we purchase a puppy?

What is your breeding philosophy? We strive to breed for a dog that is healthy, athletic, has a good disposition, is well behaved, intelligent, has good marking, good nose in the field, a great retrieve, and a natural tendency to point in the field. Top What do you look for in your dogs to make a superior breeding program? The first thing we look at before any dog is breed is the health of the parents and their pedigree. Both dogs have to have a current Eye Cerf and a hip rating of good or excellent. The next thing we look at is the pedigree of both parents. We make sure there is a good blend of AKC titles along with APLA pointing titles. We then look at what the combination of the two dogs can bring together to help improve the breed as a whole. Top Why do you title your dogs? This is what differentiates us from other kennels. It costs much money, time and energy to title our dogs to the level that we do. In our view, titles help to back up the pedigrees of the dogs that we have produced. They show the intelligence and the ability of the dog’s performance to meet the standards of the associations that award the titles. As a purchaser, this is one of the few criteria that a discrimating buyer can rely on to know they are buying a quality dog. A quality dog is made of a quality pedigree and healthy parents. Top What does the dog’s title stand for? Our dogs have several different titles: CP (Certified Pointer) IPR (Intermediate Pointing Retriever) MPR (Master Pointing Retriever) GMPR (Grand Master Pointing Retriever) The American Pointing Labrador Association awards these titles. Each dog has to pass the required test before being awarded the title. JH (Junior Hunter) SH (Senior Hunter) MH (Master Hunter) These titles are awarded by running hunt tests in the AKC (American Kennel Club). Black Forest Kennels has also participated in the NHRA (National Hunting Retriever Association) and National Hunting Dog Association (NHDA). Top Do you guarantee your dogs to point? This is one of the most asked questions. Anytime genetics are involved, here are no guarantees. By looking at the pedigrees and the titles that have been achieved, Black Forest Kennels has produced and titled more pointing Labradors and Grand Master Pointing Retrievers than any other kennel in the United States. Our progeny is the best guarantee we can offer. In addition, a survey that we conducted with our buyers, 99% said they would not return the dog regardless of whether it pointed or not, so what good is the guarantee if it’s not going to be used? Top What guarantees do you offer? We guarantee our dogs to be free of hip and eye defects. Top Because there are field trial champions in the bloodlines, will the dogs be high strung? This is one of the biggest myths out there. We do like to have field trial bloodlines in our pedigree. Dogs that have a strong field trial background bring intelligence, marking and the ability to retrieve. All of these characteristics are important in the making of a solid lab that will help make a great all around dog to own. The dogs that have received their field trial championship titles are the top 1% of all the Labradors out there—they are the cream of the crop. Top Do you hunt your dogs? We try to hunt all of our dogs as much as we can. In addition to hunting, the dogs have been used as guide dogs on a 45,000-acre hunting preserve for waterfowl and upland birds. We also compete in hunting competitions, such as the NHDA (National Hunting Dog Association), state and local competitions. Top Do you have any special programs that you put the puppies through? We believe that puppies should be puppies for the short time that we have them. We make sure they are well fed and well cared for. They are handled and socialized every day. When they are old enough they are taken to a large fenced in area where they are allowed to explore the outside world. We try to give the new owner a puppy that has not been exposed to any negative environment such as loud noises or unwanted stress. The puppy’s dewclaws are removed between the 3rd and 5th day of the puppy’s life. They are wormed with Strongid starting at 2 weeks of age and continuing every other week until they leave the kennel. At 6 weeks of age, the puppies are given their first series of shots, a Vanguard 5-way vaccination. In addition to the shots, all the puppies are microchiped before they leave the kennel. Top Do you ship puppies? Yes, we have shipped puppies through out the United States and Canada. We are a known shipper and have used all the major airlines to ship. The puppies are examined by a Veterinarian and issued a health certificate before they are shipped on an airplane. Top Can we hunt over the dogs before we purchase a puppy? Black Forest Kennels, with the cooperation of Russel of Valhalla Bijou 303 644-4300, www.valhallahuntclub.com can arrange guided hunts with Black Forest Kennel's dogs. In addition, call Shawn Hoover at 806-435-8663 for details about hunting with Black Forest Kennel of the High Plains.