The Puppy Page

Entlebuchers are a rare and wonderful breed. We encourage others to take on the task of breeding these amazing dogs and helping us to preserve the breed for the future.

Our Story

At Bar TT Entlebuchers, we breed periodically, for the preservation of this wonderful breed. Unfortunately, at the moment we do not have a breeding female and therefore will not have any litters before 2028. But we are searching for a lovely female pup to continue our breeding. Read on to learn about our preparations.

If you are hoping to find a puppy sooner, please check the webpage for the recommended breeders (BCOE group) of the National Entlebucher Mountain Dog Association (NEMDA). These breeders adhere to health testing requirements that will assure you a healthier dog.

Everyone has their COVID stories. Ours began while in Arizona with a litter of 7 puppies. They were growing and soon ready to head home when the borders were threatened to close and we needed to return to Canada. We had 2 puppies picked up early in Arizona, 2 more were collected by owners at the Salt Lake City private airport, headed to New York and Connecticut. The remaining 5 travelled with us, spending the days with Nakita in the back seat and nights sleeping under the little table in our trailer. We stopped at many church parking lots to exercise and feed the puppies along the way. It’s a trip we’ll never forget!

Why Preservation?

Unfortunately, Entlebuchers are quite rare. In fact, they are one of the AKC’s “Low Entry” breeds. Only a few litters are whelped each year and total population numbers are declining. In all of North America, in 2025, there were just 14 litters and 74 pups. In 2026 to date, we’ve had 10 litters and 58 puppies. Hopefully there will be a few more before the end of the year.

The Entlebucher population, in North America in 2024, was just over 1,700 dogs, of which approximately 675 are now of reproductive age. Why are there only 14 litters? I believe it is largely a cultural problem.

Spay or Neuter All Pets – Over the past decades, the public has been convinced to neuter their pets as soon as practical to prevent over-population. Early spay and neuter avoid some cancers, because we removed the hormones. Unfortunately, the hormonal loss sets the pups up for unnatural growth patterns,higher risk of painful arthritis and some of the deadliest cancers like sarcoma and hemangio. We effectively send these young animals into menopause at just a few months old.

Adopt Don’t Shop – We are told that it is better to rescue a dog from the shelter than purchase one from a breeder. But the reality is that the rescues are full of imported dogs of questionable health status and feral breeding. Good hearted tourists bring half a dozen starved chihuahuas back from Mexico with them, along with their native disease load. It’s not well bred, pure-bred dogs that keep the shelters full to overflowing! Conscientious breeders take their pups back at any time to rehome.

It is rare to find pure bred dogs at a rescue. Any responsible breeder will take their pups back and find them a good home. NEMDA has a Rehome Committee, just for this purpose. (Even the best homes sometimes suffer abrupt changes that require a change for the dog.) The numbers of Entlebuchers that must be rehomed is quite low – usually under 3 a year.

Keep Rabies Out – Rabies is no longer endemic in most of the developed world, but the disease has regained status with governments mainly because of imported, diseased animals. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is now so worried about rabies and other nasty animal diseases that it has become illegal to import well bred, healthy puppies into the country under 6 months of age. And it’s not just North America! The rules to import in Europe and to carry pups on airlines are very similar.

This rule effectively isolates populations of Entlebuchers in the USA as well as Europe and the UK. Puppies born in these locations cannot head to homes beyond their borders until they are 6 months old – well beyond the cute puppy stage and the important puppy socialization period. Prospective buyers must travel long distances by car, dodge German and/or US Border agents in order to bring a puppy home, with genes from outside their local population.

If the Entlebucher is to survive as a breed, it will require dedication and hard work to enlist new breeders and responsible homes that will breed, at least once, to preserve the genetics we have.

You can be part of the solution! and
part of the future of Entlebuchers!

Contact Us

I am interested in the breed but I have more questions.

I want to help preserve the breed.
I will commit to breeding, once, if my puppy passes the breed health tests. But I have questions and will need help.

I’m ready to register for a puppy from the next litter
(expected mid 2028). I’ll health test and breed!

Mama Nakita and her first litter of puppies, January 2021.
The ‘A’ litter: the Tractor Litter
Caterpillar, Farmall, New Holland, John Deere, Mahinsha, Field Marshall, Ford

Please check back regularly as new educational materials will be added.