Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 20
  1. #1
    House Broken Fredbearthelab's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Location
    Texas
    Posts
    66
    Thanked: 29

    Picking out your lab puppy.

    What is your thoughts on breeders who deal in ways like this. Some breeders reserve puppies in the order they were born. Deposited 1 through 4 get puppies 1 through 4. What if your potential owner number two and puppy number two has a small quarter size white spot or a white toe? What do you look for in a new puppy besides the pedigree and the mother and father. Size wise or color wise, temperament. I look forward to seeing what everyone's experience from past pups are.

  2. #2
    Chief Pooper Scooper JenC's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    Colorado
    Posts
    2,598
    Thanked: 2588
    You WANT a breeder who picks out your puppy. They live with these pups 24 hours a day and know them very well by 8-10 weeks when they are ready to go home. A good breeder knows her families who are buying puppies and will match the right puppy to the right family. While doing it any other way works too, the dogs and the people adapt to who they got, a more perfect match is the dog that suits your family 100% because the breeder took the time.

  3. The Following 6 Users Say Thank You to JenC For This Useful Post:

    Annette47 (04-26-2015), Charlotte K. (04-25-2015), ChoppersDad (04-26-2015), doubledip1 (04-25-2015), Meeps83 (04-25-2015), wendy (05-02-2015)

  4. #3
    House Broken Fredbearthelab's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Location
    Texas
    Posts
    66
    Thanked: 29
    Very well said Jenc! Thank you for your post!

  5. #4
    Senior Dog doubledip1's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    Upstate New York
    Posts
    1,944
    Thanked: 1711
    My breeder picked for us. We told her what we were looking for and we ended up with the PERFECT dog.

    When looking at breeders, our #1 concern was health clearances. I didn't care about the pedigree if the hip and elbow clearances were "fair"/"normal". Clearances should be your #1, always! You want, at a MINIMUM, OFA/PennHip hip and elbow, cardiac and eyes.
    Hidden Content
    Sarah, human
    Luna, born 6/14/13, gotcha 8/18/13 and TDI certified 5/12/2015
    Comet, born 4/3/15, gotcha 6/9/15
    Double Dip, 25 y/o Draft/Welsh pony
    Gracie, 17 y/o DSH cat
    Hidden Content
    Hidden Content

  6. The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to doubledip1 For This Useful Post:

    Fredbearthelab (04-25-2015), wendy (05-02-2015)

  7. #5
    Senior Dog MightyThor's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    Bend, Oregon
    Posts
    2,024
    Thanked: 3035
    We were ready for our breeder to do the pick, but it turns out we knew thor would be ours since the day he was born - he was the only male and we were the first deposit for a male from that pairing. It was fun to know which one of the pups was our boy and watch him grow through pictures! But it was also fun to watch his sisters and their emerging personalities, then watch them get paired with their new families. FWIW, his sisters were all holy terrors and Thor was the calm and sweet one. Dodged a bullet there!

    But, as said above, our primary concern was also health clearances. Our breeder also has a private open house for interested buyers so we were able to go meet the on-site dogs (the males) and see how they raise the pups.

  8. The Following User Says Thank You to MightyThor For This Useful Post:

    Fredbearthelab (04-25-2015)

  9. #6
    House Broken Fredbearthelab's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Location
    Texas
    Posts
    66
    Thanked: 29
    Those responses are exactly why I posted this thread! I missed out on the whole process when I bought Fred bear. I picked him up when he was around 10 months old. There was no pick of the litter or watch him grow. none the less he turned out perfect for our now growing dog family. Is there any connection between the breeder you picked and the specific colors they breed. I've notice some only produce yellows, some chocolate some black. Thank you for sharing your experience with me.

  10. #7
    Senior Dog windycanyon's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2014
    Location
    C. WA
    Posts
    1,624
    Thanked: 1235
    Okay,as a breeder, I do NOT allow pups to go "in order" of "picks". I don't breed for color either, though mostly have blacks and chocs, and only the occasional yellow.

    I pick / select pups based on the information the prospective owner (and I repeat, prospective owner) is looking for. I don't take deposits until the litter is a week or 10 days old though either, so I know what I have to deal with ahead of time as I don't run a business here w/ my breeding--- just w/ my real business (ag related consultiing). I may only take a handful of deposits because ime, it's better to match the pup to the home, and deal w/ any livewires etc as they blossom, appropriately. That said, I'm not breeding FOR pet homes either, but am breeding for hunting/performance/ more active middle of the road types... so I have a very hard time w/ breeders giving a "pick number". That's why we have so many bad placements coming thru rescue I guess.

    Perhaps a better question of your breeder would be how they would handle a return should that puppy be too much for the home they put it in. Will they step up to the plate and take it back w/o reservation? Do they actually work w/ local or national lab rescues to understand the impact of their placements? Sorry but I've been seeing a real run on rescue emails recently due to poor placements. I'd love to wring some "breeder's" necks at times.
    Hidden Content
    The WindyCanyon Girls (taken Summer 2018)
    IntCH WindyCanyon's Northern Spy CDX RA JH OA OAJ CC (14.5 yrs)
    IntCH WindyCanyon's Ruby Pink BN CD RA CC (4.5 yrs)
    IntCH WindyCanyon's Kanzi BN CDX RE JH (5 yrs)
    IntCH WindyCanyon ItsOnlyMoneyHoneycrisp BN RN CC (16mos)
    IntCH WindyCanyon's Pippin BN RI CC (2.5 yrs)
    IntCH WindyCanyon's Envy CDX RE JH CC (10.5 yrs)
    IntCH HIT WindyCanyon's Kiku A Fuji Too CDX RE JH CC (10 yrs)







  11. The Following User Says Thank You to windycanyon For This Useful Post:

    wendy (05-02-2015)

  12. #8
    Real Retriever
    Join Date
    Aug 2014
    Location
    Wake Forest, NC
    Posts
    294
    Thanked: 179
    First black gal I put in a request for a female. I did tell them I would be out of country but would pick her up when I got back. She was the only one left at 10 weeks old. What an absolute pleasure of a puppy and companion, we were two peas in a pod. She set an extremely high standard for any lab I would get after that. I now KNOW what they are capable of. She knew what I was thinking before I even did. When we discussed 3 and 4 commands in a sentence, she was the gal.

    Second one, she was the only female in the litter. A bit skittish and a sandwich shy of a full picnic, but sweet enough to make up for it. I held her to a very high standard from day one... and... I did have to redefine my standards a bit, but she did well. She was a gentle creature whom I had no fear leaving in a group of children who would climb all over her. She could also pick several commands from a sentence, but would falter if any of them was near something 'scary.'

    Current black gal was a breeders pick. I went down and spent a few hours chatting with her. (I also got to play with a litter of 4 or 5 week old puppies!!) She homed her pups by temperament and owners requirements. There were three females and I was the first to request one, so I would get one, she just did not know which one. When I picked her up, she explained why she picked this pup for me. She nailed her disposition almost to the T, except for the excessive energy that is. At 3 years old now.... 3.5 actually... She turned out exactly as the breeder predicted. A lot more "drive" than I expected, but I've come to appreciate it and work around it. example: If we are playing inside, and she is amped up, I toss something over the coffee table, for her, the fastest way to it is over the coffee table.

    If you find a good breeder, I would go with their pick.

  13. The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to Woodrow_Woodchuck For This Useful Post:

    wendy (05-02-2015), windycanyon (04-26-2015)

  14. #9
    House Broken Fredbearthelab's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Location
    Texas
    Posts
    66
    Thanked: 29
    Windycanyon thank you for that very detailed post! I also have a lab rescue from a puppy mill that was locally run.. Of course I haven't seen the grand scale you mentioned above but I can imagine. I had no idea the Labrador rescue situation has inflated to the level you described. I think your post was a very well written and it was very informative. I have been blessed with every dog I've had to be so enjoyable to raise and became a welcomed member of our home. This threaded is everything and more than I'd hope anyone would share I hope the information and experiences keeps flowing in! Thanks everyone who has posted and God bless!

  15. The Following User Says Thank You to Fredbearthelab For This Useful Post:

    windycanyon (04-26-2015)

  16. #10
    House Broken Fredbearthelab's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Location
    Texas
    Posts
    66
    Thanked: 29
    Woodrow_woodchuck thanks for the post! I enjoy hearing everyone's story and thoughts on breeders. Seems like the poll is for an experienced breeder to pick out which dog best suits you, health checks and certs, and someone who only takes deposits until they know what they are producing! I think this thread just cut out 80% of breeders out there j/k j/k. I went into this thread not knowing what to learn or expect and I feel I've gained so much knowledge already not about choosing a puppy but choosing the breeder! Thanks so much guys and gals! Please keep this information coming!

 



Not a Member of the Labrador Retriever Chat Forums Yet?
Register for Free and Share Your Labrador Retriever Photos

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •