We first contacted Laura in Spring of 2017 when in search of our first GSP pup.
As we told her this was our first GSP, she wanted to give us the opportunity to meet the “grown up” version of a GSP so that we fully understood the type of dog our cute little puppy would grow into before we committed, and Laura was the only breeder who I spoke to that offered us the opportunity to come and meet her dogs, long before the puppies arrived. We took her up on her invitation and spent the day with Laura and her dogs including Tilly, our pup’s mother. It gave us a chance to appreciate not only the beauty and friendliness of the breed but also to see them off lead in full flight and let us understand the sheer strength and power of them too!
What we saw that day only spurred us on as we knew they were the right fit for us and from Tilly’s first litter, we took Skye home to Scotland in June that year. Laura kept us updated on Tilly’s progress throughout the pregnancy, sent us regular pics of the puppies from the moment they were born and guided us through the pup selection process on both occasions, making sure we got the right fit for our lifestyle.
In her first year, Skye proved to be a loving, lively, smart and hilarious puppy with a great capability for mischief and she completely transformed our life, so much so that just after Skye’s first birthday, we decided we wanted another one! As we had such a great experience with our first one, we wanted to ensure that our second pup was equally as healthy and happy therefore we took the decision to return to Sparkenhoe for a sibling and in October 2018, her brother Travis joined us.
Laura helped us to choose the right pup to balance Skye’s personality and right from their first meeting, they have been best buddies! Both pups have been quick to house train (started off by Laura), great with people, healthy, good tempered and very trainable. We holiday all over Scotland and the dogs come with us and they adapt so well to car travel, ferry travel, staying in new places. Wherever we go we are always complimented on our dogs.
Laura continues to support us, answering any questions we have and will always be a part of our extended family. Sparkenhoe GSPs are really “can do” dogs that can go anywhere, do anything and are always up for more adventures, I cannot recommend Sparkenhoe pups highly enough!
Tara and Derek Roft
Aberdeenshire