Getting the right puppy is STRESSFUL! Oh my gosh...so many options! And all the endless what-iffs! I recently helped a friend through finding a performance puppy and it was awful -- and it wasn't even my puppy! And now she overwhelmed on where to begin with the puppy. I already have plans for my next puppy which includes flying to the furthest point across the US that I can find, naturally, getting my puppy, then driving home over a week or so. I need to make sure that puppy is used to crates (note to self). I have already been in touch with the breeder and I won't even be ready for a puppy for about ten years. I'm crazy!

Luckily, I was not looking for a performance dog with either of my two dogs that I got as puppies. It just happened. I ended up taking them to tons of classes not because I wanted to get into performance, but because I was paranoid that he was going to be a bad dog when he grew up. I've done too much rescue and seen what happens, which makes me paranoid. And, yes, there is only so much you can do because it's a dog, not a robot, and they have quirks. That said, since I did not choose them for performance, it means that I probably don't need to go through all I'm planning to go through for my next puppy. Most any pup, if bred well, trained right and to their personality, can probably work out just fine. I will keep telling myself that...