Puppy Buyer Etiquette - a must read

 What?!  A post with no cute puppy pics?  What gives?

Well, it's about that time - a moment we encounter in every litter we've had - The moment when potential puppy buyers begin to get antsy and anxious.  

And we begin to get inundated with emails asking where you all are on the priority list, and folks worrying if they'll get the puppy they want, or if they'll get puppy at all.

So... now for some Zen words of wisdom (we hope).

We want to remind everyone not to focus on just one puppy, but instead to sit back and enjoy watching the puppies and the whole litter (both litters!), and the whole process.

We know that waiting is hard.  And trusting the process and having patience is hard.  But it hasn't failed us yet, in 21 litters bred over the years.  

Plus - patience is a virtue that will be required of you when you're raising a pup, so this is good practice. ;)

Joking aside, we also know how easy it is to fall in love with a puppy seemingly out of the blue, just from pictures.  

We often experience the same thing - loving the look or markings of a certain pup, not to mention that we spend nearly every waking moment right there with them and their developing personalities for 8 to 10 solid weeks.  Talk about getting attached!

We also often have our early 'favorites'. But we've learned to let things develop naturally, and let the pups develop to their full potential before we even think about who goes where.

As I shared recently in an email with a good friend, there are at least 7 steps to the whole process:

1.  Healthy whelpings - we had great luck with Theo, but the difficulties of Trinity's litter and loss of some pups reminds us that nothing is ever guaranteed, no matter how great our track record is.

2.  Keeping them all healthy and gaining weight each day. Again, Theo's pups are more in keeping with what we're used to.  Trinity's litter and their difficulties are uncharted territory for us and continues to remind us just how fragile pups are in the beginning of life.

3.  Begin to wean, potty train, etc. - Theo's litter is just approaching this stage.

4.  Begin to socialize - with or without puppy parties, depending on what Covid and Jen's work schedule/training room availability look like.

5. Keep them from killing each other (and us) as they start leaping off of things and exploring their world.

6.  Temperament testing - we don't even THINK about this until the pups are at least 7 weeks old.

7.  Home matching - we'll be asking lots more questions about your current resident dogs, etc. to make sure we're placing the pups with the very best matches for all.

We also know that while patience is a tough thing to come by, sometimes all the 'rules' of buying from a breeder can be even more overwhelming - not to mention the anxiety of the waiting!

Sometimes the way breeders do things can seem weird (like not allowing any visitors before 5 or 6 weeks), or super-controlling (why do we ask for such a detailed puppy application?), etc.  We promise - there's always a method behind our madness.  If you have questions, don't hesitate to ask!

And on that note, Jen stumbled on a really well written and informative blog post from a Cardigan Welsh Corgi breeder that really hits the nail on the head, in regards to Puppy Buyer Etiquette.  

We'd like to ask everyone to read through this post, if you will!  If the above link doesn't work, here's the address: https://rufflyspeaking.wordpress.com/2009/04/26/puppy-buyer-ettiquette/

This gal (as well as every other really good dog breeder we know) does things a lot like us, and her post on Puppy Buyer Etiquette is a great way to avoid pitfalls along the way.

Because her philosophy is so similar to ours, a lot of the information will sound familiar, if you've read our own Horsetooth Whippets Puppy Selection Primer.

But there is lots of new information, too - she talks about things we've been through here at Horsetooth Whippets, and that have shaped the way we match our pups to their homes and homes to their pups.

The one thing we differ on from the above article is that we don't value show homes over pet homes.  In fact, because of our professions, our first and foremost priority for each and every pup is to be in a loving home that matches its personality to a "T" - regardless of show potential or desire.  If any particular puppy owner wants to show their dog, great, but the love comes first!

 (Also note that the discovery of the Puppy Buyer Etiquette blog was just great timing a few years ago - not aimed at any particular person or situation!) 

And ok - just for fun, because you've hung in there through this long, picture-less post...here's two pics to ease your puppy fever:

Theo and her crew and their 'new digs' - they've graduated to the bigger pool!

Agent 99 & QT (front of pile) Scarlet & MK Ultra (to the right of the black & white girls),  Dreyfus up top, and Foxxy Cleopatra top left side of puppy pile.  Only pup missing - Miss Brindle Mata Hari.

 Trin's pups left to right:

Napoleon Solo, Lyla Lolliberry, Emma Peele, and in the back, skipping this nursing session - Lancelot Link.

 

(Also note that the discovery of the Puppy Buyer Etiquette blog was just great timing - not aimed at any particular situation!)  :)