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  • Looking for a puppy...but picky! Help!

    We already own a five-year-old Dane. My husband and I just retired and are starting the search for a new baby. Since we have a special retirement vacation planned for end-of-May/first-of-June, we are starting to talk to breeders now about upcoming litters mid-June. VERY DISHEARTENING! We have visited three different breeders and feel that they are little more than puppy farms!

    We have visited three breeders with dozens of adult dogs on site who are dirty and all live outside. My new puppy will be an indoor dog and very spoiled - but I hate to support a place like that! I have always heard that the best breeders have few litters and they are in the home where they are socialized from the beginning. Any advice? I know that breeder names cannot be mentioned here - but can I give my email or phone number for anyone who can recommend a good breeder?

  • #2
    You most certainly should NEVER support a place like that. Ethical breeders show--often to champion--and health test (not health check!) which includes heart, hips, eyes, and sometimes thyroid. Some ethical breeders breed only a few times, but others breed more, depending on how many Danes they have.

    You can go to DOL Home at the top of this forum, click Breeders at the top (a white/green paw print) and you will see on the left side a bunch of Dane colors. All of those are good, ethical breeders that you can begin your search with.

    Also, make sure you check the ABC's of buying from a good breeder to make sure you ARE buying from an ethical breeder and not supporting another byb

    ETA: And what do you mean by "picky"? Looking for an ethical breeder certainly does not qualify you as a picky person. Do you have a certain color in mind?
    Last edited by 21softballstar; 04-03-2016, 07:56 PM.
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    Willow and Liv

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    • #3
      Originally posted by merrymartin View Post
      We already own a five-year-old Dane. My husband and I just retired and are starting the search for a new baby. Since we have a special retirement vacation planned for end-of-May/first-of-June, we are starting to talk to breeders now about upcoming litters mid-June. VERY DISHEARTENING! We have visited three different breeders and feel that they are little more than puppy farms!

      We have visited three breeders with dozens of adult dogs on site who are dirty and all live outside. My new puppy will be an indoor dog and very spoiled - but I hate to support a place like that! I have always heard that the best breeders have few litters and they are in the home where they are socialized from the beginning. Any advice? I know that breeder names cannot be mentioned here - but can I give my email or phone number for anyone who can recommend a good breeder?
      Shows are a great place to meet breeders. You can also go to the GDCA website and look at the breeder referral section, or look at the website for the closest Great Dane club. That's a good place to start. Also check out the links to the left for the ABCs to buying a purebred puppy so you know what to look for in a reputable breeder. At a minimum, you want someone who shows their Danes to their championship, health tests for hips, cardiac, thyroid, and eyes prior to breeding and posts results to OFA (go to offa.org and plug in the dog's registered name or registration number to verify), has a contract requiring spay and neuter at an appropriate age, and only sells pet puppies on limited registration. The DOL litterbox section can be good, but I've seen some not so good ones there too.

      Beware of PMs with breeder suggestions and do your due diligence. Some backyard breeders lurk here to try to sell puppies to unsuspecting buyers.
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      Chaucey
      Asaah ~ xxx Asaah LaLa, CGC, registered therapy dog

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      • #4
        By "picky" I mean what kind of breeder I am supporting (not the color of the puppy). I will love and nurture my new puppy no matter where they come from but I only want to support and encourage those breeders who are in it for the betterment of the breed - not for financial gain. And financial gain is the feeling I got when we went to visit what I felt were "Great Dane Farms". The Dane I have now came from a single family who had the female and male on site - no other dogs. They were born in the house and were raise with small children. I am after a PET - but DO NOT SUPPORT those who are in it for the financial gain. Can anyone out there help?

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        • #5
          Originally posted by merrymartin View Post
          By "picky" I mean what kind of breeder I am supporting (not the color of the puppy). I will love and nurture my new puppy no matter where they come from but I only want to support and encourage those breeders who are in it for the betterment of the breed - not for financial gain. And financial gain is the feeling I got when we went to visit what I felt were "Great Dane Farms". The Dane I have now came from a single family who had the female and male on site - no other dogs. They were born in the house and were raise with small children. I am after a PET - but DO NOT SUPPORT those who are in it for the financial gain. Can anyone out there help?
          Even if you're after a pet, a show is the best place to start. Not every dog in every litter is cut out for the show ring for various reasons, so there are always pet pups to be had from a show breeder. As was mentioned before, another great resource is the breeder directory on the GDCA website, or do a Google search to find the nearest Dane club to you.
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          Fergus
          SC Dinnie Stone Guardian, CGC
          Eisen Shark
          C Shadows On The Sun, CGC

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          • #6
            Originally posted by merrymartin View Post
            By "picky" I mean what kind of breeder I am supporting (not the color of the puppy). I will love and nurture my new puppy no matter where they come from but I only want to support and encourage those breeders who are in it for the betterment of the breed - not for financial gain. And financial gain is the feeling I got when we went to visit what I felt were "Great Dane Farms". The Dane I have now came from a single family who had the female and male on site - no other dogs. They were born in the house and were raise with small children. I am after a PET - but DO NOT SUPPORT those who are in it for the financial gain. Can anyone out there help?
            You should only buy from those are in it for the betterment of the breed, and buying from an ethical breeder does not mean YOU need to show your dog, though they show and health test in ORDER to better the breed.

            Most ethical breeders do not have both the stud and bitch on their property, since they breed to different lines in order to further their breeding program and better the breed.

            Some ethical breeders have children, and therefore their puppies are socialized with them 24/7. If they don't, those puppies are socialized to all sorts of other people, often crate trained, and sometimes even partly potty trained before they leave the home at 8-10 wks.
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            Willow and Liv

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            • #7
              Okay - so where can I find a breeder who might work with me on finding a healthy puppy who will become the next very spoiled member of my family?

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              • #8
                I have been told about going to dog shows - but everyone mentions that "dog people are snobby". I have a hard time believing this - but it worries me about approaching dog show people. Thoughts?

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                • #9
                  Provided you speak with them during their off time (meaning they are not preparing to show soon) they will gladly sit and chat with you. I'd keep the conversation short and sweet. Let them know you're wanting to get a puppy. Talk about the dog(s) they have with them at the show, meet the dogs and get a phone number or email Address. Speak with them again over the phone and go visit their home and other dogs. You don't need to immediately jump into buying a pup from them. Reputable breeders want to build a relationship with you. Get to know you and who they will potentially be giving a puppy too. They can even point you in the direction of another reputable breeder who has pups on the ground or will soon have a litter born if they themselves do not. I would also recommend going onto your states great dane club website. They would have listed the breeder and kennel names and links to their websites if they have one.
                  Where are you located?
                  ~Kelsey, mom to~
                  Kumah-merle Great Dane 4 years
                  Nala-fawn Great Dane 2 months
                  Cece- Calico 4 years
                  Sammy- Black Domestic Long Hair 3 years
                  Tyke- 4 months

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                  • #10
                    Originally posted by merrymartin View Post
                    I have been told about going to dog shows - but everyone mentions that "dog people are snobby". I have a hard time believing this - but it worries me about approaching dog show people. Thoughts?
                    I've not found that to be the case AT ALL. It's usually BYBs that say that, trying to make themselves look better. Just make sure you catch them during some downtime. Briefly introduce yourself, explain that you're looking for a pet puppy sometime in the future and you like the look of their dogs and would like to find out more about their breeding program. Be prepared to wait though. Most have a pretty good waiting list before they ever have a litter on the ground. We lucked out with Ferg and found him after only about 3 months (but only because somebody ahead of us backed out on him), but with Eisen we were on a waiting list for nearly 2 years.
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                    Fergus
                    SC Dinnie Stone Guardian, CGC
                    Eisen Shark
                    C Shadows On The Sun, CGC

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                    • #11
                      I have been to several shows and have found people in all breeds to be very friendly and they all loved to chat about their breed, provided I wasn't trying to talk to someone who was about to walk into the ring. Not a single person was ever snobby to me. I do hear quite a few backyard breeders say that, which I guess is there excuse to just breed their dogs without showing.

                      The club websites are great resources and you can always ask those breeders to refer you if they won't have anything for awhile. You can also check out the Facebook page Great Dane Puppy Announcements. Definitely still research the breeder, but the page requires people who post to be active exhibitors.
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                      Chaucey
                      Asaah ~ xxx Asaah LaLa, CGC, registered therapy dog

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                      • #12
                        You don't buy from a show breeder because you want a puppy you can show or a "show quality" puppy... You buy from a show breeder because they are actively evaluating their breeding stock by competing at dog shows. Show breeders only keep the best couple puppies from each litter to continue their breeding program with, the rest of the very well-bred, quality puppies go to PET homes.

                        BYBs do not do this because its expensive and hurts their bottom line ($). And they don't care since they are going to breed their pets anyways, regardless of any conformational faults and/or health issues.

                        What area are you located and are you willing to ship your puppy? Also, do you have a color or gender preference? Many members here will be happy to point you in the right direction. Or, if you are considering a specific breeder you may PM members to ask their opinion of them.
                        *Jennifer*
                        Member GDC of Mid-Florida
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                        • #13
                          We live in Colorado but since we recently retired we would be able to travel to pick up a puppy. I would rather do that than have the puppy shipped.

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                          • #14
                            I live in Colorado and have done some research on breeders around here. I have some that I would love to have a puppy from and some that I would never ever give money to. I will PM you what I know.

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                            • #15
                              Congratulations on your retirement! If you're near a city, look up the local breed club and see if you can attend a meeting or two. Also, be aware that a good breeder will want to know all about you before giving you one of their puppies.
                              sigpicLisa
                              Missing Mira (7/15/03-12/17/13)

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