I met a puppy the other week, i meet a lot of puppies i guess so that in and of itself isn’t surprising. However what really threw me was that this puppy was from a “breeder”  and “trainer” (and i use these terms OH so loosely) of german shepherds in the southern tier area.

Now let me say i have met, and know of a lot of good breeders, and have huge respect for those that know their lines, title and work their dogs, and breed stable nerved pups matched with the best home possible.

HOWEVER- i have seen to many puppy buyers duped by your average Joe pretending to know how to breed and train dogs, and the family and puppy always pay the price.

This puppy has numerous medical conditions, comes from a line of back yard bred dogs but  being sold as “working german shepherds” and the parents have no hip or elbow xrays or clearances because the “breeder” gives a long story of how its a waste of money and puppies can have it anyway so why bother.

The puppy came out of the car and immediately barked at everything, and everyone with hackles raised, backing up. Ok….well….maybe some work and she’ll be ok? Over the next hour I worked my dogs, but kept an eye on the 4 month old pup. I watched her work, tried to get her to want to interact with me with hot dogs, and while i saw a slight improvement, for the amount of time and hot dogs i had every new position i went in, or object that crept up started the panic all over again. Sadly the nerve strength on this pup was a touch above some of the worst rescue mutts i’ve gotten in. The good news??? Oh i’m sure the litter will be repeated…………..

If your going to spend the time, money, and want to add a purebred dog to your family, regardless of breed, PLEASE do your research! I’m always available to look at litters,  help people pick a breeder or pup that suits their family, or just talk over the basics the breeder, sire and dam, and pups should have health and training wise. Remember your bringing this dog home for the next 15 years, don’t rush into it. I love the dogs i breed, they are amazing, but they are not for everyone and in fact are not for 80% of people i meet. That’s ok, everyone is different and every litter bred matches its family and future job.  All dogs have weaknesses and downfalls, we breed to improve, if your breeder cannot state their dogs weaknesses or the areas they are breeding to improve do not walk away, run very very quickly.