Journey to Finding a New Puppy

~ by Jaymie Cardin

 

How Will I Find the Right Puppy For Me?

About eight months ago I started the quest to find a new puppy for me. I knew that Marshall, a golden retriever that I trained to be a service dog, wouldn’t be with me forever. So, I decided that after he went to his new partner I would find one of my own. This time it would not be temporary.

I started by making a list of all the things I wanted to do with this new dog- therapy work, agility, demo dog for classes, rally, and I wanted to train him to the level of a service dog.

Then I moved onto temperament characteristics; goofiness, ability to make me laugh, high drive, able to chill with me on lazy days, cuddly, will think I’m the center of the universe, dog-friendly and human-friendly, and most importantly trainable. Although many of these traits can be trained I wanted a dog that was genetically predisposed to having them.

Finally, I looked at physical characteristics, larger than 55 pounds, fluffy, dark in color (I went back and forth on that one) and male.

Searching for the Perfect Puppy

After I knew in my mind all that I wanted out of this dog, I started Googling. And, I came across the “perfect” breed quizzes. I think in total I took about seven different ones, and many I took more than five times. This gave me a base for what breeds to start considering. I already knew I didn’t want a terrier or a hound because the independent and feisty temperament of a terrier was not suited for my purposes and activities.  And I was pretty certain I wanted a dog either in the sporting group or the working group. The results of the quizzes varied, but not as consistent as one would expect. I got multiple that told me, Golden Retriever and Bearded Collie, some said Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever, Newfoundland, Flat Coated Retriever, Berger Blanc Suisse, Airedale Terrier, Irish Setter and so many more. Some I eliminated right away and others I had never heard of before. The one that intrigued me the most was the Berger Blanc Suisse or White Swiss Shepherd. After learning more about the breed and their temperament, I was nearly dead set on getting one. That is until I learned how rare and expensive they are, for the well-bred ones at least. So, it was back to the drawing board.

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Links to the Breed Selector Quizzes

https://www.selectadogbreed.com

http://www.animalplanet.com/breed-selector/dog-breeds.html

http://www.akc.org/find-a-match/#slide1

http://dogtime.com/quiz/dog-breed-selector

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Eventually, I had it narrowed down to about five breeds. Golden Retriever because no matter how much I tried to pick a less popular breed I kept coming back to them. Flat Coated Retriever, because they were just different enough from the Golden that they didn’t seem basic. Leonburger, because who wouldn’t want a lion for a dog. Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever, because they are little red fluffy rocket dogs that were bred to look like foxes. Finally, Berger Blanc Suisse, because I just couldn’t shake this star of a breed and thought maybe there would be some miracle that allows me to possess one. Oh, and I kept re-thinking about a Bernese Mountain Dog. So, I guess that makes six.

Contacting Puppy Breeders

The only next plausible step after months of research and going back and forth between breeds was to contact breeders. Was I certain of what breed I wanted yet, not really? But I knew that I needed to somehow have a deciding factor; which boiled down to price, temperament, and attainability. I think I contacted a total of ten, if not more, breeders. Some readily got back to me and others never did. I asked them about health, price, puppy socialization process and availability. I also used the resources available to me as a professional dog trainer and picked breeders that were recommended by my peers.

My New Puppy!

Some breeders had puppies available, but only female. Others wouldn’t be breeding for another six months and some were simply too pricey for what I could afford. In the end, only one breeder really had what I was looking for. I went with a Flat Coated Retriever breeder near Chicago IL (location of breeder wasn’t of much importance to me). The puppies were born September 30th and I will be going to get my puppy the beginning of December.

If you are thinking of getting a puppy or have already started the process my advice to you would be –

• make sure the breed you choose will fit your lifestyle

• know ahead of time how you will care for the puppy as far as training, diet, veterinary care and home life

• don’t set unreasonable expectations upon other people in your life

• take your time

Ultimately this puppy is for you and will be your new companion for the duration of their lifetime. So, use my experiences to help guide you in the right direction and don’t be afraid to take a step back and evaluate. Which might mean saying no to the first puppy that gets handed to you.

My journey to finding the right puppy was long, I wasn’t even sure I would really be getting one when I first started. Somehow I ended up in the place I am and am getting a great puppy out of it.

My journey isn’t over yet, I still have two weeks to go, but then the real fun starts.

Training!

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Contact us if you would like to start training your new puppy! 602-237-6775