# Starting the Puppy Search - Questions



## creegh (Sep 12, 2014)

Hello,

So little bit of a novel.

My fiance and I are hoping to be adding a puppy to our family either late this year/early next year (so roughly one year out from getting a puppy). We currently have a 3 year old GSD that my fiance bought from a 'guy who breeds' (aka byb). Since dealing with some of her issues we've done our best to educate ourselves as to what to look for in a good reputable breeder. We won't compromise on health tests being done and would really prefer the parents to have titles. 

I grew up on a farm - my parents ran a boarding barn - and I've been heavily involved in my breed of horse. My family has been breeding them since the 1960s in Europe and the US and I've been on breeding committees and served in several positions in my society. My family imported, trained, bred, showed, and sold horses growing up and I'm in the process of transitioning from horses to dogs if that makes any sense (time/money commitments/being in the military making having horses hard so dogs being a logical transition). 

I'm really interested in pursuing agility and obedience and rally and nosework and possibly Schutzhund. First and foremost the puppy would be an active family pet but I'd really like to dabble in different arenas and see where we have fun and what we're good at. My breed of pony was known for 'doing it all' so I like that german shepherds can do a bit of everything. We want a working line puppy instead of one from showlines.

We'll be moving to PA in a year-ish (timeline is vague because military) and have been looking at a few breeders (not talked to any yet) but a few things have my fiance concerned/puzzled/alarmed. Some of the contracts we've read seem unnecessarily intrusive on the part of the breeder if that makes sense. 

Like veterinary records must be made available to the breeder, if the breeder feels the dog isn't being taken care of properly they can take it back at any moment, the breeder can dictate what food/standard of care must be maintained and if that isn't met the dog must be returned.

We both understand 'first right of refusal' (I've used it with horses I've bred and always done my best to assist my buyers who may be selling a horse I bred and marketing them and helping them being sold to new homes) and appreciate that there are safety nets put in place for the dogs to keep them from ending up in shelters or rescues. 

But are we being too sensitive? Some of the 'puppy buying questionnaires' I've come across all but ask for your social security number. 

My fiance is just hesitant because in his mind he's paying 2K for a puppy and has to jump through so many hoops. It'll be our first 'well bred/reputable breeder dog' and I want to do things right this time around but some of this does feel very intrusive. 

Coming from horses it just seems excessive. I would have never sold a single horse with some of the contracts I've seen for dogs - horse people would have backed away in an instant.


----------



## Mary Beth (Apr 17, 2010)

Good luck in your puppy search. Yes, as you are finding out, the dog breeders can be very different from the horse breeders. The breeders want to make as sure as they can that their puppies will be placed in a good home. It may help if you can visit some of the breeders that you are interested in.


----------



## creegh (Sep 12, 2014)

Mary Beth said:


> Good luck in your puppy search. Yes, as you are finding out, the dog breeders can be very different from the horse breeders. The breeders want to make as sure as they can that their puppies will be placed in a good home. It may help if you can visit some of the breeders that you are interested in.


Yes we're definitely finding that out. 

Is it considered a faux paus to address the parts of the contract that give me concern when talking to a breeder? I did speak with a friend of mine who breeds and shows Dobermans and she advised me to look elsewhere if I was feeling uncomfortable. 

So do I still approach these breeders but be upfront with what concerns me in their contracts or do I just shrug and move on? I have a list of about 5 I'm eyeballing and this would cross of 3 or so.


----------



## gsdsar (May 21, 2002)

You have to be comfortable with the contract you are signing. Period. 

There are plenty if breeders that reputable to go to. 

With my most recent pup. There are some things in the contract that are restrictive. I.e. No RAW or the warranty is void. For some, that's a deal breaker. I don't feed RAW, so it was fine with me. Also no spay/neuter before 2 or warranty for hips is void. Again, it did not affect me. 

You need to look at your life and philosophy and go from there. If the contract is so prohibitive to not allow you to raise your dog in the manner YOU see fit, then pass.


----------



## creegh (Sep 12, 2014)

gsdsar said:


> You have to be comfortable with the contract you are signing. Period.
> 
> There are plenty if breeders that reputable to go to.
> 
> ...


Thank you and I agree.

I think some of my hesitation is this would be our first 'reputable' breeder bred dog and we've really tried to do our homework. 

My fiance's POV though is 'I'm going to be paying 2K for a puppy (which we are both more than ok with doing) and some of these contracts have so many strings that I don't feel the dog would be mine.'

I think that coming from horses where contracts are the norm I'm a bit more comfortable than he is. And I know I've written some interesting contracts (getting a foal back agreements in mares or a stallion I've sold) but I want us both to be happy and feel comfortable. 

I'm just not sure if it'd be worth it to bring it up to the breeder - and part of me is hesitant because I feel like that would be an immediate dealbreaker on the breeders part so I think I'm leaning toward passing on those breeders.


----------

