# Finding a Companion/Pet-Quality Dog



## DeeMcB (Nov 28, 2010)

I'm thinking forward to adding another dog to our family when Ezra is 2 (summer, 2012). Ezra came from the Humane Society, so I have no experience at all with breeders save for what I've learned here. I would be interested in getting a "pet quality" pup from a reputable breeder but how does one go about finding that? I'm assuming that not every litter turns out pups that are "pet quality", so how do you know when they're available?

I'm completely aware that I may have a gross misunderstanding about how this works, so feel free to "school" me


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## Xeph (Jun 19, 2005)

> I'm assuming that not every litter turns out pups that are "pet quality", so how do you know when they're available?


That's incorrect, actually. Every litter turns out pet quality puppies, but not every litter will turn out show quality puppies or high caliber working dogs.


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## SchDDR (Dec 29, 2010)

What Xeph said.
You just communicate with the breeder and let them know exactly what *you* mean by pet quality, and they can help you select the pup that fits the bill.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

If I were looking for a pup that I wasn't going to compete with in sport, I would still look at breeders who I was interested in to possibly do sport/competition. Then talk with the breeder about my goals(or lack of)...I would still go with a good line regardless, many times the dogs that are well bred have better health, nerves and an off switch than a breeder who breeds for "pet" homes. 
That and you may change your mind and want to do agility, conformation showing, SchH, etc with your pup! 
So research which lines you'd like to have, then look at _responsible_ breeders who have those lines and support their great program. 
Or go with a rescue that has already evaluated a dog that would fit your lifestyle.


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## SchDDR (Dec 29, 2010)

I wouldn't go a breeder who breeds for pet homes.

To quote the master himself:



> _"German Shepherd Dog breeding is working dog breeding or it is not German Shepherd Dog breeding."_


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## DeeMcB (Nov 28, 2010)

Thanks, everyone.

Help me understand "goals". Does that mean only whether or not I plan to compete with the dog, or are there other components to it? I'm assuming that the breeder will screen me to ensure I have the time, energy and willingness to provide attention & appropriate training for a GSD pup. What else specifically would a breeder ask me to determine a good fit? There are probably some clues in that information that I need to be thinking about myself.


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## Xeph (Jun 19, 2005)

> Does that mean only whether or not I plan to compete with the dog, or are there other components to it?


Do you want to do sports with it? If so, what? If you do not want to do sports, are you an active person? Would you like a hiking partner, or are you more the type that takes a leisurely stroll around the neighborhood?


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## Emoore (Oct 9, 2002)

Xeph said:


> Do you want to do sports with it? If so, what? If you do not want to do sports, are you an active person? Would you like a hiking partner, or are you more the type that takes a leisurely stroll around the neighborhood?


Is your dog going to be expected to spend a lot of time putting up with or playing with children or grandchildren? Will your dog be expected to not eat your cats? How much time can you realistically commit to your dog each day?A good breeder should try to get a solid feel for your lifestyle and what you need in a dog. RUN away from a breeder that doesn't ask you a bunch of questions or have you fill out some sort of interview form.


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## Whiteshepherds (Aug 21, 2010)

Emoore said:


> Will your dog be expected to not eat your cats?


As opposed to the dogs that we want to eat our cats??  (sorry, couldn't resist)


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## SchDDR (Dec 29, 2010)

Frankly, if a breeder doesn't grill you about your lifestyle, living arrangements and expectations for a dog... you should probably walk away. Clearly, they aren't concerned about their dog's welfare, and that's liable to reflect itself in their breeding practices as well.

Information a breeder should ask you about would be the size of your yard.

Your level of experience training dogs, what breeds of dogs you have owned, how many dogs you have owned, and whether or not you currently own any dogs [or other pets.]

How physically active and mobile are you? 

What is your work schedule like? How much time do you have to spend training and exercising the dog?

Do you have kids? How old?

Do you own your home, or rent? [Yes, that's a legit question that a breeder *should* be asking.]

Why do you want to own a GSD? Why do you want a pet quality GSD?

I'm sure there are many more questions, but these give your breeder an idea of what you're looking for in a dog, so they can help you find it.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

I'm sure you've seen this, but putting it here for others who may be reading/learning:http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/choosing-breeder/137533-things-look-responsible-breeder.html


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## Holmeshx2 (Apr 25, 2010)

SchDDR said:


> Frankly, if a breeder *doesn't grill you* about your lifestyle, living arrangements and expectations for a dog... you should probably walk away. Clearly, they aren't concerned about their dog's welfare, and that's liable to reflect itself in their breeding practices as well.
> 
> Information a breeder should ask you about would be the size of your yard.
> 
> ...


While I basically agree with most everything said this specific statement I have to just point something out. While most breeders if they don't ask questions you want to run some reputable breeders might not exactly GRILL you. My breeder asked me very few if any questions and she is extremely reputable but we spent like 2-3 HOURS on the phone just talking about anything and everything and through our conversation I basically answered anything she might have asked before she asked it however if you just call they say pup is X amount and you can come pick one out today yeah definitely run.


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## PaddyD (Jul 22, 2010)

My 2 cents. Find out all you can about the pup's parents and lineage on both sides. Also, if you can 'interview' the pup in its home setting on more than one occasion you will get some idea of his/her temperament.
You are looking more for temperament than anything if you are looking for a pet (but you knew that). Don't let the looks of the pup take precedence because looks and coloring can change a lot.


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## GSDElsa (Jul 22, 2009)

Xeph said:


> That's incorrect, actually. Every litter turns out pet quality puppies, but not every litter will turn out show quality puppies or high caliber working dogs.


That's not really quite right, either, I think. While not all the common probably I just talked to a breeder who had a whole litter full of drivey little land shark monsters. All pets home got the bix x-nay on that litter.


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## Emoore (Oct 9, 2002)

Holmeshx2 said:


> . While most breeders if they don't ask questions you want to run some reputable breeders might not exactly GRILL you.


That is true. I don't "grill" potential rescue adopters. We have long meandering conversations about all kinds of things, in which they sometimes let slip information that they might not have mentioned if they were on there guard and being interrogated.




Chris Wild said:


> If American lines are what you're looking for, I'd definitely say look into this breeder a bit further. .


Did I miss the breeder mentioned?


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## Xeph (Jun 19, 2005)

> While not all the common probably I just talked to a breeder who had a whole litter full of drivey little land shark monsters.


True, but honestly, I think that like .2% of breedings results in 0 pet puppies.

I've known of breeders who have had entire litters (6-8 puppies) finish their championships....that's not terribly common either.


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## Chris Wild (Dec 14, 2001)

Emoore said:


> Did I miss the breeder mentioned?


Uh no.. that post belonged in a different thread. Weird....


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## PaddyD (Jul 22, 2010)

Chris Wild said:


> Uh no.. that post belonged in a different thread. Weird....


No matter, like a lot of threads, this one is getting unraveled by tangential discussions.


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## BlackthornGSD (Feb 25, 2010)

Holmeshx2 said:


> While I basically agree with most everything said this specific statement I have to just point something out. While most breeders if they don't ask questions you want to run some reputable breeders might not exactly GRILL you. My breeder asked me very few if any questions and she is extremely reputable but we spent like 2-3 HOURS on the phone just talking about anything and everything and through our conversation I basically answered anything she might have asked before she asked it however if you just call they say pup is X amount and you can come pick one out today yeah definitely run.


Thanks for making this point. I was going to say something like this. I usually ask some pretty basic questions at first, but I like to leave it open to see what people offer up on their own. Then at some point before they get a puppy, I like to have a conversation that covers all of these sorts of things--in phone or in person. Not over email. 

Ideally, the prospective puppy buyer will come for a visit and we'll spend a couple of hours playing with puppies and talking about their plans, experience, what they're looking for, how big is their yard, how much and how do they plan to exercise the dog, what are their training plans/experience, etc. If not a visit here, then I'll often spend quite a bit of time on the phone with them.

I think it's too easy to "game" a list of written questions--I want to hear the rest of the story, the tone of voice, etc.


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## DeeMcB (Nov 28, 2010)

You guys are awesome. Lot's of great information here to think about. Sad that people would try to "game" the interview since it seems that in addition to the pup, the potential owners would suffer in the end by getting a pup that wasn't a good fit for them. It's not like breeders don't WANT to sell their pups and are purposely keeping great people from getting the dog of their dreams. 

Of course, I think I'm a great home for a puppy (work from home, take my existing dog with me everywhere I go save for client sites, spend several hours a week on enrichment activities (hiking, playdates, etc) in addition to training, feed raw, read & research the breed, trends in canine behavior, etc) but I'm sure most people think that what they are doing is right (or at least okay) or they wouldn't be doing it.

One more question: It seems like it would be a good idea to take Ezra to meet his potential new sister before making a choice. Do people ever do that? I know it's no guarantee on how they will interact once the pup starts to mature, but it seems like a good idea to get Ezra's "input" so to speak.


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## BlackthornGSD (Feb 25, 2010)

DeeMcB said:


> One more question: It seems like it would be a good idea to take Ezra to meet his potential new sister before making a choice. Do people ever do that? I know it's no guarantee on how they will interact once the pup starts to mature, but it seems like a good idea to get Ezra's "input" so to speak.


It partly depends on Ezra--how is he with new places and different dogs. Any strange dog who comes to my house is going to be surrounded by the sounds and scents of my guys. It can make strange dogs nervous--they know they are on someone else's territory.

Additionally, as a breeder, I would hesitate to welcome a dog to "meet" my puppies for several reasons, namely disease and safety. 

Your dog will be bringing new microbes/bacteria/etc around all the baby puppies, so I'm taking the risk that your dog is not only healthy but also doesn't have any viruses/bacteria that my guys aren't immune too. (For example, your dog may have been exposed to and have antibodies to a strain of kennel cough that my guys have never been exposed to--you come to visit, suddenly all my dogs and puppies have kennel cough.)

(When I say "you" I don't mean you and Ezra specifically, but rather any puppy buyer.) 

As far as safety, meeting a horde of puppies or even just one puppy can be overwhelming for a dog--I'd be taking the chance that your dog would try to correct a puppy and might not be sufficiently self restrained. An adult GSD can easily crack a puppy's skull or put a tooth through the sinus cavities.

The risk at your house once you get the puppy home is much lower. Yhen your dog is likely to be feeling more secure, less overwhelmed, and the whole situation should be fairly controlled for him and the puppy.

So, all in all, as a breeder, I'm far more inclined to ask you to leave your dog at home, and if not, then out in the driveway--not near my puppies.


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