Breeders

Advice about pets can be confusing because many people have different ideas about what is the best practice. When looking for a breeder, first you need to consider what you're looking for in a pet. Different breeders can produce different kinds of dogs, even within the same breed. Some breed for physical traits in order to enter conformation shows or because they like the look. Some breed for temperament so their dogs will be better at companionship or obedience.

- Practices

There are different ways that a breeder can predict the health of the puppies, but there is no 100% guarantee that a dog will never get sick.

Some use genetic screening to see which conditions their dogs may be susceptible to. Even a healthy dog can potentially produce unhealthy offspring due to genetics. This is especially likely when inbreeding is in practice due to the lack of genetic diversity.

Some interpret the health of the bloodline, meaning their dogs had healthy parents and grandparents and so on. This probably means the dogs were bred within a community of breeders who knew each others' dogs to be healthy.

Some keep in touch with the puppies they've bred, or keep one themselves. This allows them to see if the parents are producing poor offspring so they can make adjustments to their program.

- Puppy Plan

Once you've chosen a breeder, you need to present your puppy plan to them so they will be confident in you as a good and prepared home for the puppy.

Consider the following in your plan:

  • Why do you want a dog? Why this breed?
  • How many children are in the house? How old are they? Other pets?
  • Who will walk the dog in the morning? In the evening?
  • Who will train, feed, and groom the dog?
  • Which vet will be seeing the dog?
  • Will you be breeding the dog? Some may charge extra for this but they need to know so they can alert you about any hereditary issues they discover.

Comments