How to choose a puppy

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Kaylum

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Parents are important look at them and you need to see their health check papers.

Read up on the breed before you buy and if they have a pedigree do some research on that line.


Never buy a puppy under 8 weeks old.

If the mother is in distress and looks unhappy don't buy.

If the puppy is unhealthy again don't buy.

Vaccinations done by the breeder get your own vet to vaccinate, this is a good trick done by some irresponsible breeders and they haven't vaccinated them but faked the papers.

Please add yours. I have written to help people not put them down, as it's the animal that suffers at the end of the day.
 
I picked mine because he had a perfect saddle shaped marking on his back... and he made me laugh by trying to drown his brothers and sisters in the bird bath.

(possibly not the sort of answer you are after? :))
 
2 years ago I went to look at a puppy. He was the sorriest little thing I have ever seen. It was being kept, with a sibling in a cold stable. It was frightened, cold and weak. The people were "rough types". I knew immediately that I would not buy the puppy but I felt REALLY horrible for walking away. The puppy we did buy, was bred locally by someone I know. During the day they were in a heated kennel/run and every night they all came in to sleep in the kitchen and play in the living room. They were taken for play/walks with their Mum across fields. They were full of health and vitality, all bright, bold, fat, healthy puppies. The mother was there, and so was the father. As a consequence of her good start, I now have a well adjusted, lovely little lurcher.

It grieves me to hear that people encourage breeding by buying puppies from shops and puppy farms. My puppy was an accidental breeding, but the lady would have kept them all if she hadn't found suitable homes.
 
Agree on pedigree/health test certificates, the breeders should be forcing this info on you.

If you are buying a dog on the strength of it's working prowess, while the mother is obviously looking after pups, she should still be able to chase a ball, show interest in a dummy or tug or dumbbell or pop a small fence. The father even more so :p
Also, it's 2012, there should be plenty of videos available of the parents strutting their stuff, if not plenty of pics.

The little cutesie one hiding at the back may look adorable, but may also be a nervous wreck by the time it is 12 months old.
The ballsy one hanging on to your ankles might be a bit too much for a sedentary pet home by the time it is 12 months.

OBSERVE the mother - if she is shy, aggressive, etc, more comes through from the mother than a lot of people give credit.

If the sellers have one bitch and one dog and breed them back every season or every year, tread carefully. If the sellers have a tonne of bitches and one or two studs, and have litters on the ground and litters on the way, tread carefully.

If you have any questions on a particular breed, ASK I bloody love researching GSD pedigrees :p
 
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I dont agree with the vaccination statement I'm afraid, a good breeder should have first vaccination done before the pups leave
 
BigRed said:
The puppy we did buy, was bred locally by someone I know. During the day they were in a heated kennel/run and every night they all came in to sleep in the kitchen and play in the living room. They were taken for play/walks with their Mum across fields. They were full of health and vitality, all bright, bold, fat, healthy puppies. The mother was there, and so was the father. As a consequence of her good start, I now have a well adjusted, lovely little lurcher.
Similar to myself a year ago. Saw both parents at breeders home with my terrier puppy. He loved playing with his sister and the lurcher they also had. Mum was delightful, confident and affectionate but not in your face. Went twice to see them and breeder kept puppy for an extra week so i could have the first week off work to settle him in. You just knew he had had a great start in life, at 10 weeks when I brought him home he knew "wee wee" and breeder had asked me preivously what i wanted to call him so he was pretty sure of his name.

This was a one off planned litter as they wanted to keep a puppy themselves and they said if there was any problems to go straight back to them, they would have him if i ever needed to go away instead of putting in kennels. We still keep in touch exchanging pics etc and updates, only last week breeder texted me as it was 1 year since i had brought Henry home.

The fact that so many people buy puppys without this just amazes me, this was my first puppy, and only puppy i went to see, but you just get a feeling of what is right and if its not. Perhaps people make a mistake by going to see puppies in bad conditions and then cant walk away?
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Vizslak said:
I dont agree with the vaccination statement I'm afraid, a good breeder should have first vaccination done before the pups leave
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Well a good breeder should I agree but there again there are many that fake them. Again its just a check really as Parvo is horrible.
 
Research the health of your chosen breed and make sure the parents are health tested for ALL of the recommended required things.

I know breeders who are saying that are health tested when actually they are only having the eyes tested as it is cheap and easy!
 
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