# Getting an older puppy



## FJH (Nov 22, 2012)

Does anyone have any advice on whether to adopt a 15 week year old puppy vs. waiting for a subsequent litter? The breeder was planning on keeping the puppy and since we were looking specifically for a male after the recent passing of our beloved GSD...the breeder was open to us adopting him. I know that quite a bit of development happens between from the 8-15 weeks. Any opinions/thoughts would be greatly appreciated.


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

I got my first GSD at 16 weeks old and my second at 20 weeks old. Older puppies are fine if the breeder is doing something with them during that time. Do you know what, if any, kind of socialization the puppy has gotten? Is he housetrained, crate trained, or has he been living in a kennel outdoors? Has he had any basic OB training?

I prefer to do the training and socialization myself, but if it was a breeder I trusted, and I knew they were doing stuff with the puppy that would be okay too. We got Halo at 10 weeks old, just a couple of weeks past the usual 8, but the breeder had been taking her to training at her Schutzhund club, so she'd met tons of people, been passed around and doted on by kids, and was around lots of other dogs. If we had decided not to get her she was going to be sent home with someone else from the club for further socialization and a change of environment, which is not uncommon.


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## Kyleigh (Oct 16, 2012)

If the breeder has worked with puppy you might be a couple of steps ahead (crate trained, house broken - for the most part) ... which is not necessarily a bad thing. 

I got my last dog at 16 weeks of age, and it took 15 minutes to house break ... all she needed to know was where the front door was!


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

Kyleigh said:


> I got my last dog at 16 weeks of age, and it took 15 minutes to house break ... all she needed to know was where the front door was!


Good point! Cassidy, who we got at 20 weeks old, was a cinch to housebreak because her bowel and bladder control was so much greater than a tiny puppy. We got her on a Saturday, and Monday she used the dog door from the garage pen to let herself out to the dog run to potty while we were gone. She'd never seen a dog door before, but we called her back and forth through it a few times over the weekend. Later, I taught her to ring bells on the door to the garage when she needed to go out. That took a day and a half.


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## shepherdmom (Dec 24, 2011)

FJH said:


> Does anyone have any advice on whether to adopt a 15 week year old puppy vs. waiting for a subsequent litter? The breeder was planning on keeping the puppy and since we were looking specifically for a male after the recent passing of our beloved GSD...the breeder was open to us adopting him. I know that quite a bit of development happens between from the 8-15 weeks. Any opinions/thoughts would be greatly appreciated.


 
I prefer older puppies, just wonder why the breeder is now willing to let him go if she was planning on keeping?


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## Capone22 (Sep 16, 2012)

I prefer older pups as long as the breeder did socialization. I don't care about any training, just that the puppy was socialized to different people, animals, sounds, walking surfaces etc. 


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## FJH (Nov 22, 2012)

First of all, thanks for the responses so far. The puppy is currently being socialized, but I will definitely find out more. I'll be going to meet the breeder and the pup before making any decisions and this input has been helpful. I can still remember the sleepless weeks 9 years ago when we brought our GSD home since we wanted to make sure he was housebroken as soon as possible...so I can definitely see the benefits of having a puppy with a little more bladder control .


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## llombardo (Dec 11, 2011)

I think I'm the odd man out on this one. I got mine at 13 weeks and she was pretty much outside with no socialization for the month prior to me getting her. I put her in school immediately and really worked hard to socialize her. She was a little difficult to potty train, but once she got it she got it. She has been completely out of her crate for about 7.5 months..she is now 14 months. She excels in everything that she does and is very confident. She also has an outstanding temperament. I think I worked harder because I was so afraid she would turn out not like she should.


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## JustJim (Sep 6, 2010)

Z was around 14-16 weeks when she came here; her breeder did an excellent job of raising her. No problems due to the delay. On the other hand, if she had spent that time in a kennel, I suspect the short-term outcome might have been different. As Cassidy's mom wrote, older pups are fine if the breeder is doing something with them.


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## Elaine (Sep 10, 2006)

I got my little demon spawn at 4 months of age and he was a kennel dog. He was worked every day, but didn't leave the property. He was very difficult to potty train as he had learned that he could just potty any time he had to go and didn't understand that didn't apply any more in the house. It also took some time to get him socialized properly.

Potty training and socialization would be my only concerns with an older pup. Check with the breeder about this and it may not be an issue.


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## FJH (Nov 22, 2012)

I went to meet the pup, dam and siblings. The dam (Schh1, Kkl1) was very friendly but definitely had very high drive. The pup's temperament was wonderful and he was calmer than his siblings. I really like the pup but the breeder didn't really ask us any questions and says he recently changed their food so he couldn't remember the name. They were previously on Diamond brand food which I noticed is having a recall. Am a bit conflicted...the pup seems to have the right temperament, good pedigree (more concerned about hips etc...rather than tons of titles) but I expected a little more from the breeder. A new puppy is a long term commitment and I want to choose correctly. He does offer a 5 yr guarantee.


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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

any information on the breeder or the pedigree ? you could always ask if you could bring along someone to support or advice you on the pup OR you could ask the breeder to bring the dog to someone who would evaluate the pup , a professional.
Toronto is just around the corner .


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## Jo Ellen (Aug 30, 2011)

I got Spirit at 4 months. I think this worked really well for us, I was able to see more of his personality at that age and how he interacted with my other dog. I do wish I had him when he was younger, the floppy ears and the fluffy puppy coat, the puppy barks. But I had more information at 4 months than I would have had earlier ... which helped me feel more confident that I was making the right decision bringing him into my family.


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