Most good breeders of purebred dogs breed dogs for one reason … they absolutely love their breed. Their goals are the constant improvement of the breed from litter to litter. When you purchase from a concerned breeder, you can be sure that everything that can be done to ensure correct and typical temperament, good health and conformation has been done. Many good breeders will be actively involved in showing, training, and competing with their dogs. The breeder will be aware of the genetic problems associated with their breed and will have done appropriate testing with documentation to support this testing . Breeders who care about the breed and their puppies don’t lose interest in you and your puppy once the check has been cashed. They remain available to help and guide you with any questions, problems, or concerns you may have.
When you arrive at the kennel facility notice the conditions … are they clean, organized and well kept? Where are the puppies kept, do they have opportunity to experience a variety of different people and life situations. To be well adjusted, puppies need to be socialized and handled consistently and gently from birth. They need to see different kinds of people, adults, children and men. You should be able to see the parents, although it isn’t uncommon for the sire to live elsewhere. Many breeders will use the services of an outside male for their females; one that is the most correct for that particular female. The dam should be clean, outgoing and friendly. If she has a large litter, she could be a bit on the thin side and her coat won’t be in top condition. This is related to the demands of the puppies, and the changing hormone levels caused by pregnancy, whelping and nursing the litter.
The individual puppies in the litter should be quite uniform in size, body structure and temperament. The puppies should be happy, outgoing, social, eager to meet new people, and interact readily, while showing no signs of fear or apprehension. They should be clean and healthy, with no evidence of discharge from eyes, nostrils or ears. The puppies should be wormed on a regular schedule starting at 2 weeks, and immunized against the canine diseases starting at 6 weeks and kept current on all vaccinations.
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