Advice wanted - going to see a puppy on Saturday

daisyduke87

Hello all

Our beloved labrador passed away a few months ago and we have finally decided we would like to start looking for a new dog.

My husband has always liked german shepherds and we have spent some time looking for one and we have just spotted an ad on donedeal advertising boxer/german shepherd pups. We have contacted the seller and have arranged to go to see the last remaining male on Saturday afternoon.

I have a few questions before we make the jump.

Is there anything to be particularly concerned about with this cross? I've never owned a crossed dog so I'm just wondering should crosses be avoided at all costs or is it possible that a crossed dog can be a perfectly healthy normal dog?

What are the questions that I should ask of the seller? These are the ones I have come up with so far:

Was it a planned litter or accidental? Have you bred from either dog before?

How old are mum and dad?

How old are the puppies?

What are mum and dad fed? What have you been feeding the puppies?

What vet do you bring mum and dad to?

Have the puppies had all their vaccinations?

Have either mum or dad ever shown any aggression, ever bit a human?

Any advice would be appreciated.

I have already contacted our local dog shelter and they do not have any dogs to suit us at the moment.

Zapperzy

I would add do you plan on getting at least one of them neutered after this. And do they actually own both mum and dad.

There will always be accidental litters, but some 'accidental litters' are planned in that they've a female who's just let mate with whatever because there's always someone who'l take the pups maybe even for a small fee. I wouldn't take a pup from someone unless it was a truely accidental litter and they planned on spaying the female afterwards.

Just research both breeds, just because it's a cross doesn't mean it will be any healthier than a purebred so research health issues that crop up in both breeds as the pups may inherit temperment or health issues from either breed.

**Vai**

I'd want to see the parents too, have a good look at how they walk and what their hips look like as I doubt they have the tests done.

Theres nothing wrong with crossed dogs, anecdotely you hear of mutts being healthier than purebreds but Zapperzy is dead right, it doesnt mean it will definitely have less health issues. Good luck with it.

barking1503

I would defo want to see the parents and see the scene they are coming from. Cross breeds often avoid a lot of the problems associated with overbreeding with pure breds, so no worries at all on that score.
Wonder what part of the country you are in? There are an abundance of dogs needing good homes in our shelters, lots of really good rescue centres who are bursting at the seams. Some absolutely fab dogs who deserve a break in life so please don't discount this option......
Wish you best of luck!

Spook_ie

I'd agree with last poster re getting a dog from a shelter. Our daughter has just completed a week's work experience in the DSPCA, she is well used to Lab's/Retrievers/GShepards, but after the week there, she really loved being with all the other sorts of dogs, and a good point to note is that all the animals going from there have a clean bill of health with vaccinations/microchipping etc.

daisyduke87

Thanks for all of the advice.

I have spoken to the seller and he has told me that seeing the parents is no problem, obviously we will see on Saturday whether that happens or not but I wouldn't consider the dog unless I see the parents. I would be concerned that if I can't see the parents that it may have been an accidental litter with a neighbour's dog/bitch and I don't want to reward that kind of carelessness.

I will research both breeds now.

As I said in my first post, we have gone to our local shelter.

FoxyVixen

I'd also add to make sure you get to view the pups on their "home turf". Should the seller call half hour before you planned sayin they're running late but could meet you somewhere then I'd have alarm bells ringing.

I know you've stated it was an accidental litter but I'd still ask if the bitch had a litter before this one. Were there any complications with the pups?

Good luck with it. Hope you find a lively healthy pup

daisyduke87

FoxyVixen wrote: »

I'd also add to make sure you get to view the pups on their "home turf". Should the seller call half hour before you planned sayin they're running late but could meet you somewhere then I'd have alarm bells ringing.

I know you've stated it was an accidental litter but I'd still ask if the bitch had a litter before this one. Were there any complications with the pups?

Good luck with it. Hope you find a lively healthy pup

Yep, I'll include that one, thanks.

I've read a few horror stories online about meeting in supermarket carparks and the like so I'll avoid that at all costs, thanks.

tk123

Buyer beware tbh - you need to take your heart out of the equation and use your head - which will be really hard lol! Websites are full of accidental and once-off litters so quiz them on that. GSDs are known for being bred poorly - whatever your opinions on IKC papers I'd be asking to see the GSDs health certs - hip/elbow scores and eye certs etc and tbh if they didn't have them I'd walk away. A cheap pup could cost you a lot of heartache if ends up with health problems.

daisyduke87

tk123 wrote: »

Buyer beware tbh - you need to take your heart out of the equation and use your head - which will be really hard lol! Websites are full of accidental and once-off litters so quiz them on that. GSDs are known for being bred poorly - whatever your opinions on IKC papers I'd be asking to see the GSDs health certs - hip/elbow scores and eye certs etc and tbh if they didn't have them I'd walk away. A cheap pup could cost you a lot of heartache if ends up with health problems.

Is it likely that a dog used to breed a crossed litter will actually have IKC papers or will have been hip/elbow scored?

Zapperzy

The OP has stated that a rescue dog is off the cards so stick to the topic at hand- advice on what to look out when going to look at this litter

tk123

daisyduke87 wrote: »

tk123 wrote: »

Buyer beware tbh - you need to take your heart out of the equation and use your head - which will be really hard lol! Websites are full of accidental and once-off litters so quiz them on that. GSDs are known for being bred poorly - whatever your opinions on IKC papers I'd be asking to see the GSDs health certs - hip/elbow scores and eye certs etc and tbh if they didn't have them I'd walk away. A cheap pup could cost you a lot of heartache if ends up with health problems.

Is it likely that a dog used to breed a crossed litter will actually have IKC papers or will have been hip/elbow scored?

They could possibly have IKC papers as lots of puppy farmers have them becuse the rules aren't enforced. I wouldn't entertain a breeder/seller if they didn't have health checks done. What you save now you'll pay in blood sweat and tears if the pup develops problems - that's speaking from experiencen btw not a soapbox lol

daisyduke87

tk123 wrote: »

They could possibly have IKC papers as lots of puppy farmers have them becuse the rules aren't enforced. I wouldn't entertain a breeder/seller if they didn't have health checks done. What you save now you'll pay in blood sweat and tears if the pup develops problems - that's speaking from experiencen btw not a soapbox lol

Ah no, I understand, I just wasn't sure if they would actually have these papers. If they have these papers then that means that the pups have been checked appropriately, i.e. hip scores etc.?

andreac

It's the parents,that should be hip scored, not the pups, so make sure you see the certs. If they don't have them or don't know what you mean then walk away.

daisyduke87

I've just found this information on gsdireland.com, is this good advice to follow re: hip scores and will the certs show the information clearly, i.e. will I know what I'm looking at? I'm just wondering will the information be worded in such a way that it will be hard to decipher.

Hip Scores

The parents of your prospective pup should both be hip scored and these will be recorded on the pedigree .the lower the score the better are the hips. A score of 0.0 is perfect (and quite rare) and the accepted score for breeding purposes is below 20 for males and 24 for females. These scores are the total for both hips; scores are listed for right and left hip so that an evaluation for each hip can be made. For example a total score of 13 may be made of 7 for the right hip and 6 for the left, but this would be different to a dog with hip score 0.13.

daisyduke87

I have another question.

I have come across an advertisment for a litter of purebred puppies, in the advert the sire is named but the bitch is not. Should I assume that this is because the bitch was brought from another kennel? I assume that if the bitch is not named and she was brought from another kennel that she probably won't be with the puppies (once they have been weaned) to be seen by me (puppies will be available in a week and a half) , would you avoid this type of situation or is this a common occurence?

andreac

To be honest, if you are looking at ads online, ie donedeal i would steer well clear. When you say named, is it a long registered name?

Sometimes people use registered show dogs on their bitches so that might be why they have named the sire.

It wouldnt mean anything about the bitch from another kennel. They own the bitch but have used a dog and want to advertise that it was a certain dog they used.

daisyduke87

Yes, it's a long registered name. I have just contacted the kennel that the sire is from and the man I spoke to gave me loads of information about the litter and the parents. It seems to be that the person advertising the litter owns the bitch and is the one selling the puppies.

I am going to go see the puppies on Saturday. They're not available for another week and a half anyway so I feel happier that I can go away and think about it and make a reasoned decision.

Thanks to everyone for the advice.

jsn.peters

Sorry your dog passed away, we did the same when ours went, but didnt get the same breed incase it reminded us of him, just give the dog a good home & lots of love. any member of the family who would be at home more often would really notice the void. Filling that void with another animal was great for us.

daisyduke87

Very exciting day today, we met and picked out our puppy. He is a very strong looking dog, biggest of the litter and full of energy. The whole litter are gorgeous and the mum is in great form having given birth so recently. We will be picking him up over the next few days once everything is organised.

The woman selling the pups is going to give us some of the food that she has started the pups on. She mentioned that she is feeding them Red Mills puppy food, I am not sure of the exact name. She said that she has always fed her two dogs Red Mills and in fairness, both her own dogs are in great condition, both look very healthy, full of energy etc. so she started the pups on this food also. I just want to make sure I am feeding the pup the best food for him. I have read a little bit on here about how puppy foods are not always ideal for puppies due to high protein content. Can anyone on here advise of suitable food for my new pup?

toadfly

Congrats! Which breed did you end up going for? Are the parents tested for all the usual problems with the breed.

Pictures please!

daisyduke87

He's a german shepherd. Both parents tested and both great examples of the breed. The sire is a showdog, rated very highly in Ireland and the UK.

No pictures yet, will have some when I get him home.

Any advice on the food would be greatly appreciated.

andreac

Did you actually see the hip score certs with the results?

daisyduke87

Yes.