Trip to a breeder today. I don’t know? Advice needed.

[samsons]

thank u for some awesome info ~

we are thinking of adding a new addition to our family in about a year ... sam will be 3. he is a rescue and i love the fact i was able to give him a great new life , and probably will go that route again - but if i consider a breeder i want as much info as possible on how to pick one - so i have been following ur post and a cpl others ~~ thanks for all the great dos - AND donts i have gotten ... good luck on ur hunt - and keep us posted !!

 

[Darbysmom1]

Good Job

Well good job it can be very frustrating hitting dead end after dead end but what is important is it sounds like you are taking your time and doing your research. I agree with you that the internet should not be forgotten all together if you are careful good breeders are out numbered 3 to 100 on the internet but that doesnt mean they are not out there. I also agree with you it is nice to see win pictures and pictures of mom and dad in the ring ect... Many good breeders have very informative websites that discuss health testing and boxer traits ect.... I do not think you are silly looking for a brindle I just agree with before that you do not want to reduce standards on health testing in order to find a certain color with that said Brindle is certainly not rare so you should have no problem. Sounds like you are on the right track keep us informed can't wait to see pictures of your Brindle healthy happy baby..

 

[dsgordon]

The good and bad news ??

The good news is that I have talked or had email correspondence with several members of the local boxer club. They have all been very helpful and nice. One even had a lead for another member that had a litter. He has pubs that are 4 weeks old. Three puppies are available the others have been sold or are show potential. I think there were 7.

The bad news is this breeder is located a long way away in another state. He is a member of the local club but also a member of a club in a different state. According to Google it would be at least an 8+ hour ride one way to visit. It does not seem realistic for my wife, daughter and myself to make a visit to meet the breeder on short notice. It would probably require an overnight stay to visit. Both boxer parents have been health tested and shown. I have also been told that both sire and the dam have longevity in there line. They own the dam. They do not own the sire but he is a CH. My wife absolutely loves the picture of sire they sent us. He is stunning.

So as my wife and I were discussing the puppies last night. Trying see if there were any possibility to visit soon. Unfortunately right now it is a busy weekend time for us. Our daughter has dance and CCD in preparation for her upcoming first Communion. It is also her birthday and we have a kids party planned for next weekend. It wouldn't be a problem to find time if it were 5 hours instead of 8+ away. I could go by myself but that's not what I want. It's a family decision and I want my wife to choose.

So here is the big question my wife and I have. Assuming that I get references from boxer club members who have seen the parents. They provide health documents. They give a health guaranty on the pup (I haven't asked yet but I assume at least 1 year hopefully more). Do you think we should consider purchasing a puppy without visiting first to meet the breeder, the dam and see the puppy? Any advice?

We may be able to wait on hopes that of the 3 puppies left the one we like is still available in a couple of weeks. But I doubt that will happen. It would be no problem to plan a weekend or day trip in a several weeks to drive out to bring home the pup. Also the breeder is allready driving half way to meet someone who lives not that far from us who is getting a puppy from the litter.

The other option is to wait and see if we can find another breeder. Talking to boxer club members I have heard of only one other possible brindle litter planed for spring early summer. Several others will be fawns only and another one I talked to found out they are only having a single pup. Even if the last lead does have a litter I have not talked directly with this breeder. They might not have any pups available for us.

 

[dsgordon]

After calling a member of the local boxer club that I have become friendly with over the phone. Based on her advice we have decided not to purchase the puppy without first meeting the breeder and the puppy. She does not recommend skipping this important step. She felt you really need to meet the puppy. When she has puppies she doesn’t even take deposits and never sells until she meets the people and they meet the puppy. I contacted the breeder and explained my feelings. Really the only problem is distance and time. My wife and I really want him but feel we would need to visit first and make that connection. We have decided after much discussion (My wife really wants him). If it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be. If he is still available in a couple of weeks after Easter. (Do to other commitments like my daughter’s birthday party and then Easter that is the first chance we could possible make the drive) We would plan a trip out with an overnight stay at in hotel. If it worked out the puppy would already be 8 weeks old then and we could be driving home with a new family member. If not then we will just have to keep searching and keep our hopes up that we can find the right one.

 

[Althea]

Good for you! that sounds like a very logical decision. If you truly feel this is a good pup, you could always put a small deposit on him to hold him. I'm glad you found what appears to be a good breeder. Soon you'll enjoy those sleepless night with pup in tow around the yard. But it's so worth it. Suki hasn't slept a night through since we've had her, but I wouldn't trade it. Can't wait to hear how it turns out! appicon

 

[Darbysmom1]

Congratulations

Even though your search may not be over yet it seems like you are on the right track and taking the right steps.... I agree you should see and get to know the puppy before purchasing however you can still get lots of pictures and even put down a deposit and something to consider too is many breeders will allow you to use the deposit towards another puppy is that puppy really is not the one for you.. On the other hand most breeders do not have too many litters so it may be a long time before you have the opportunity to use that option but it is a choice or like mentioned before just be willing to give up that deposit if it is not the right puppy. Good luck...

 

[dsgordon]

I spoke too the breeder and he has agreed to hold the puppy for small deposit ($100) until we can make the trip out after Easter. That's a lot easy to walk away from then half the cost of the puppy if for some reason it was not the right one for us. The travel expenses to visit will cost us more than that. It's over 400 miles away. The puppy will already be 8 and half weeks old when we visit so we may be bringing him home with us. It's a long way to travel but this breeder has had all the health tests done along with selecting a sire that is CH and also been tested. The breeder also contacted a friend that lives closer to us about 2 hours away who I think he said owns the sister of the sire or was it dam that has offered to help us out if we have any questions and also introduce us to the local boxer club if we wish to join. I will let you know how we make out and post a picture if we get him. Although we will be getting a health guaranty in the end there really is no guaranties in life. It's been a sad week. It was exactly 1 year ago this week that we lost Monty our last boxer at only 4. I hope in the long run we will be happy we traveled so far and were more selective in choosing a breeder this time.

 

[KWilson]

Been watching this thread and I really hope things work out for you and your family. The breeder sounds really nice to hold the pup for $100. Hopefully you will be bringing that pup home in a few weeks. Keep us posted and please share some photos!

 

[k9ma]

Such a breath of fresh air to see someone going through the breeder selection process with patience and awareness! Even though in life there are no guarantees, going with a reputable breeder does so much for a prospective buyer. If the process starts to feel too involved, please remember just a few of the perks of choosing an ethical breeder:
1) it stacks the odds in your favor of getting a healthy puppy
2) it ensure that conformation and temperament were on the agenda when the parents were bred
3) it give you access to a great knowledge base
4) it ensure that there will be support should something go wrong
5) it supports the people that preserve the breed vs funding the irresponsible and damaging breeding practices of the BYBers

Please keep us posted!

 

[Kilby'sMum]

Just wanted to congratulate you on your research and restraint!! It is soooo hard to not get sucked in by these cute little puppies and forget common sense altogether. When we got our first boxer we did all the research you're doing and it paid off. I didn't care about colour with our first so we got a flashy fawn girl (Kilby). When she was about 12mths my husband wanted to get another BUT he wanted brindle. So, we contacted the same breeder and unfortunately she wasn't breeding any brindle pups but we went to the top of the list for when she did. Well, she had a couple of hiccups along the way (and a few all fawn litters) but we ended up getting our brindle girl and bringing her home about 18mths later! They are both gorgeous healthy dogs and we're really glad we did our homework and stayed patient, it'll pay off for you in the end