# 4 weeks old



## PJay (Sep 18, 2017)

Here is our new pup. Pictures provided by the breeder. She will be coming home with us at the end of the month and honestly i just needed to tell someone 
how utterly excited i am. I cant wait. Iv waited years for a dog and it's been about 2 years since i started researching this breed specifically. She is going to be so loved. The breeder says she looks like she may have a long coat but i haven't gotten confirmation yet. Mom is a long coat, dad is not. However dads sister is a long coat. Im fine with either coat. What's your guess? Yes i know she is still young and it's hard to tell from a picture but entertain me wont you? Iv talked everyone elses ears off already lol.


----------



## kimbale (Mar 7, 2017)

You, my friend, have a longcoat. 

You can tell because at around 4 weeks they get a mohawk between their ears (the fur stands up really straight and longer than a stock coat). Sometimes it's hard to tell, but sometimes it's not and I'd bet money she's a longcoat. 

Very cute and congratulations! How did the breeder choose this one pup for you? Usually, pups are chosen at around 6 weeks or so.


----------



## PJay (Sep 18, 2017)

We originally were hoping for a male but this little one ended up being a litter of one. After discussing our family, lifestyle ect she said she was ours if we wanted her BUT she did let me know that she wouldn't send a high drive pup with us. So in the next couple of weeks we will get to see if we truly mesh. Iv got a feeling she is meant for us but im just a sentimental dork like that though. As excited as i am i have acknowledged that there is a chance she may not be for us. Fingers crossed! And thankyou im happy with a long or stock coat but i was anxious to know ?


----------



## Hellish (Jul 29, 2017)

yay, puppy fever! so sweet when so little.


----------



## kimbale (Mar 7, 2017)

PJay said:


> We originally were hoping for a male but this little one ended up being a litter of one. After discussing our family, lifestyle ect she said she was ours if we wanted her BUT she did let me know that she wouldn't send a high drive pup with us. So in the next couple of weeks we will get to see if we truly mesh. Iv got a feeling she is meant for us but im just a sentimental dork like that though. As excited as i am i have acknowledged that there is a chance she may not be for us. Fingers crossed! And thankyou im happy with a long or stock coat but i was anxious to know ?


Ah, okay, makes sense! She is very cute, and puppy fever is the best!


----------



## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

It would be a good idea to research the 'one puppy issue' as these pups miss out on the needed interactions and lessons from their litter mates. I have had several in my classes over the years and they were not easy for their owners.
I personally will not take in a single pup.Just wanted to give this heads up.


----------



## selzer (May 7, 2005)

wolfy dog said:


> It would be a good idea to research the 'one puppy issue' as these pups miss out on the needed interactions and lessons from their litter mates. I have had several in my classes over the years and they were not easy for their owners.
> I personally will not take in a single pup.Just wanted to give this heads up.


Wow, wolfy dog, what should breeders do? Cull a litter of one? We sure do have a knack of bursting people's bubble. Here you have a beautiful German Show Line puppy who is going to come home at the proper time, whose coat is not "dull." And we find some reason for the buyer to question their choice of puppy/breeder. 

Not every litter has exactly 7 puppies. Occasionally, you do end up with a singleton. And yes, the puppy might lack the intertaction of puppies that are their size that help them learn group dynamics. Of course, lots of GSDs grow up to not be group-dogs at all, however many puppies were in their litter. How many people say they aren't dog-park-dogs. All of them are not singletons. 

Sometimes a breeder has two litters and will give a small litter/singleton some time in with the other puppies. And some dams will teach the youngster what he needs to know. As long as this pup spends the 8 weeks with its dam, and the new owners start him in classes as a puppy (not when they are already having problems), it should be just fine.


----------



## PJay (Sep 18, 2017)

Wolfy thanks for the heads up. The breeder explained the possible socialization issues that a litter of one could have. She had a litter of 9 born a day before this pup came. She moved 2 from that litter to lighten the load and put them with my pups mom so she would have littermates to socialize with. She said that my pups mom took to them immediately so they are being raised with my pup.

Selzer thankyou as well. I think she looks great and thankfully our breeder is on top of making sure she is socialized by moving those other 2 pups. I was worried a litter of 3 would still be too small but i was reassured it was fine.


----------



## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

selzer said:


> Wow, wolfy dog, what should breeders do? Cull a litter of one? We sure do have a knack of bursting people's bubble.


No need to go overboard. These are your words. This headsup was to give information as I have seen the problems with singleton pups in my classes and how hard it was for their owners to have demanding dogs that would not take no for an answer. That was all.


----------



## selzer (May 7, 2005)

wolfy dog said:


> No need to go overboard. These are your words. This headsup was to give information as I have seen the problems with singleton pups in my classes and how hard it was for their owners to have demanding dogs that would not take no for an answer. That was all.


That was not all you said. You also said that you were a trainer, you knew people with problems with singletons, and that you would not purchase a singleton. 

Thankfully the breeder and buyer are both aware of possible issues and there is a plan to improve the puppy's upbringing to avoid them. But every breeder is not so fortunate to have more than one litter at the same time. They raise singletons, and do not cull them. And then they still need to go to homes. They do not all have the personality that you have seen. As a trainer, you probably know that many people never bother to do any training at all until there are problems. So you only see the ones that are having problems. And I know a pup that is exactly that, a demanding dog that will not take no for an answer. Dog was not a singleton, just a WGSL pup out of Schutzhund-competitive sire and dam, and the owners of the pup are a couple that were not expecting such a butt-head. 

Lots of folks on this site have had troubles with their puppies and young adult shepherds, and most of them are not singletons.


----------



## selzer (May 7, 2005)

PJay said:


> Wolfy thanks for the heads up. The breeder explained the possible socialization issues that a litter of one could have. She had a litter of 9 born a day before this pup came. She moved 2 from that litter to lighten the load and put them with my pups mom so she would have littermates to socialize with. She said that my pups mom took to them immediately so they are being raised with my pup.
> 
> Selzer thankyou as well. I think she looks great and thankfully our breeder is on top of making sure she is socialized by moving those other 2 pups. I was worried a litter of 3 would still be too small but i was reassured it was fine.


Yes, it will be fine. It is fortunate she had more than one litter at the same time. And that should help. The pup is adorable.


----------



## Dainerra (Nov 14, 2003)

selzer said:


> That was not all you said. You also said that you were a trainer, you knew people with problems with singletons, and that you would not purchase a singleton.
> 
> .


I took her comment as she wouldn't purchase a puppy that was raised as a singleton. This pup wasn't. Most breeders, if they have a singleton, will move heaven and earth to make sure that the pup is given the correct environment to NOT have the issues of being a single pup. They do as this breeder did. Or bring in other pups in some other way once the pup is up and around to insure that the dog is properly socialized.

Yes, a breeder who didn't do (or didn't know to do) these things would be one to be avoided. Your argument is like saying "I know someone who had all the health tests and still ended up with issues. So no reason to worry about the breeder doing hips/elbows" It's about stacking the odds in your favor


----------



## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Dainerra said:


> I took her comment as she wouldn't purchase a puppy that was raised as a singleton. This pup wasn't. Most breeders, if they have a singleton, will move heaven and earth to make sure that the pup is given the correct environment to NOT have the issues of being a single pup. They do as this breeder did. Or bring in other pups in some other way once the pup is up and around to insure that the dog is properly socialized.
> 
> Yes, a breeder who didn't do (or didn't know to do) these things would be one to be avoided. Your argument is like saying "I know someone who had all the health tests and still ended up with issues. So no reason to worry about the breeder doing hips/elbows" It's about stacking the odds in your favor


When Wolfy-dog made her comment, she did not know that the pup would not be raised as a singleton. It is like we immediately try to figure out reasons why someone should not buy the pup they picked out. It really is bursting one's bubble, considering the work in finding a breeder, then waiting for your pup to be born and out of the woods, and be being so excited to get a picture of the puppy. And then we say, "oh it's a singleton" or whatever other thing comes to mind to make someone question whether their choice is a good one. 

The problem with what you are saying about most breeders is that it is simply not true. Most breeders do not have multiple litters on the ground of precisely the same age, and hopefully the same breed. For example, you would not raise a shepherd puppy with Yorkie puppies. They would have to be the same age and the same breed or at lest one of similar size and strength. Even a week's difference will make the older pup or puppies so much stronger and tougher that the younger puppies might be injured by bullying. So a breeder would have to have two bitches come into season on practically the same day, whelp two litters within a week of each other to have puppies that could be put together like you say. 

As for moving Heaven and Earth to bring in other puppies of those ages to properly socialize a puppy, sorry but no. Most breeders are not going to upset their dam and litter to socialize another breeder's litter of one, and possibly introduce diseases. And no, there aren't vaccines for all the diseases that can kill baby-puppies. So until they are about 4 weeks old at least, there will be no interaction. And even then, I know there is no parvo on my place, but do I trust the breeder down the road? No. No, I am not going to lend a couple of 4 week old puppies out to some other breeder to help socialize their singleton. And I would say most breeders would feel that way. 

As for putting in puppies that are say a week or a couple of weeks different to get that socialization that we are all fired up worried about, if the puppy is younger, it will learn all the wrong things from the other puppies. I did have a singleton once besides cupcake who had no issues that Wolfy-dog was talking about, but our concern with her was keeping her alive and getting her up to weight. The other single pup was born 3 weeks after a litter of 9 puppies. Having all 10 nozzles he grew at an enormous rate, and by the time he was walking with his eyes open, and good control of both -- 3 weeks, the other pups were 6 weeks old. And he was about as big as they were. 

I put him in with them, just when I could supervise, and Bear was not thrilled with him being there but she tolerated him. The other pups were older, but not bigger, still the advantage was with the older puppies. I let them play together and carefully supervised. 

Frankly, to have an outside breeder do this, you would have to be best of friends, and really, even if two best friends had litters days apart, a best friend would probably not ask a best friend to put her pups in jeopardy. 

And, of course, having multiple litters at the same time, is probably something that most of knowledgeable folks here would frown on and try to make you question your breeder about. Not that there is anything wrong with having a couple of litters on the ground at the same time. But that is what the folks on this site do.

Dainnera, have you had a litter with a singleton puppy, and did you find a neighboring breeder that was willing to let you swap puppies or integrate into their litter?


----------



## SitkatheGSD (Aug 24, 2017)

selzer said:


> When Wolfy-dog made her comment, she did not know that the pup would not be raised as a singleton. It is like we immediately try to figure out reasons why someone should not buy the pup they picked out. It really is bursting one's bubble, considering the work in finding a breeder, then waiting for your pup to be born and out of the woods, and be being so excited to get a picture of the puppy. And then we say, "oh it's a singleton" or whatever other thing comes to mind to make someone question whether their choice is a good one.



I don't have input on the singleton issue, but I will say that I appreciate Selzer's positive input. Although I have found a ton of really great information and support on this forum, I often find it feels like commentators are l looking to find criticism for either a) the choice of dog, b) the choice of breeder c) the choice of training. Yes, this is a public forum and we post here to get opinions both positive and negative, but too often it seems to turn into a search for ways to criticize or point out imperfection. 

It's great to get expert advice, but its also nice to share a puppy picture and be a part of that excitement.

Beautiful puppy @PJay -- Share lots of pictures of her as her coat comes in!


----------



## sebrench (Dec 2, 2014)

Oh my goodness, that is an adorable puppy! I had to wait years before I was in a position to get my GSDs, so I know how excited you must be be. Keep us updated.


----------



## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

PJay said:


> Wolfy thanks for the heads up. The breeder explained the possible socialization issues that a litter of one could have. She had a litter of 9 born a day before this pup came. She moved 2 from that litter to lighten the load and put them with my pups mom so she would have littermates to socialize with. She said that my pups mom took to them immediately so they are being raised with my pup.
> 
> Selzer thankyou as well. I think she looks great and thankfully our breeder is on top of making sure she is socialized by moving those other 2 pups. I was worried a litter of 3 would still be too small but i was reassured it was fine.


No worries then


----------



## zeb1138 (Nov 7, 2017)

wolfy dog said:


> It would be a good idea to research the 'one puppy issue' as these pups miss out on the needed interactions and lessons from their litter mates. I have had several in my classes over the years and they were not easy for their owners.
> I personally will not take in a single pup.Just wanted to give this heads up.


It really depends. 

When my folks were looking into getting a Jack Russell Terrier mom (retired show) and son (surprise litter of one), the breeder made sure to socialize the son with older puppies from a previous litter. It may not be the same interaction that you'd see from littermates, but a good breeder can definitely socialize the dog before the new owners get it. I think they had to wait 8-10 weeks to get the pair. We were originally planning on getting just the mom, but then she gave birth so we ended up getting both.


----------



## PJay (Sep 18, 2017)

kimbale said:


> You, my friend, have a longcoat.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


You were absolutely right! She is a long coat and im absolutely excited. She is adorable! She comes home in 10 days.


----------



## kimbale (Mar 7, 2017)

What a cutie! Congrats!


----------



## RuthArt (Oct 25, 2017)

oh my gosh, what a sweetheart, I am so happy for you. I hope you flood the boards with pictures!! lol


----------



## PJay (Sep 18, 2017)

kimbale said:


> What a cutie! Congrats!





RuthArt said:


> oh my gosh, what a sweetheart, I am so happy for you. I hope you flood the boards with pictures!! lol


Thank you both! Pick up day is moving slower than molasses hahaha.


----------



## ksotto333 (Aug 3, 2011)

She is beautiful, it is so hard to wait.


----------

