Breeder's home pages and advertisments in dog
magazines are full of
promises, most
of it designed to trap you just as soon as you develop a bond with your new
companion. Since these traps work on your own emotions, it is within your means
to stay out of them, simply by reading and interpreting the ads
logically.
Following are some of the real easy to recognize, most blatant indicators of
someone using puppies or dogs as merchandise, to be handled, shipped, traded or
exchanged for money like pieces of wood or metal, or life meat, fresh from your
out of state puppy
mill. Important note: The following tips and
guidelines
are NOT specific to German Shepherds, but almost all can be
applied to all
breeds of dogs and to all puppy/dog advertising in any media, in any
language. The three main types of advertised
"qualities": show, working, pet. Show quality. Usually
the most expensive,
show quality is of value only to those already familiar with the show ring and
intending to show the dog, be it for profit, as a status symbol, or to show it
off as a priced possession. If your idea of a companion dog is a reasonably well
behaved house pet that's also good with children and barks at strangers, you can
save yourself a lot of money and grief, not only in the acquisition, but MUCH
more so
later, throughout the dog's life, on vet bills, food supplements, and other
maintenance
costs, by staying away from show quality. Show quality dogs are specially bred
to conform to a written standard that specifies certain conformation features
(looks) they must possess to have at least "some" chance of winning
anything in a show ring. There is little or no "room to maneuver" for
show breeders, to be concerned with anything else but looks, which may be the
main reason why so many show dogs have such a variety of health problems, a lot
more than normal dogs. German Shepherds are generally accepted as being the
world's most versatile and intelligent breed, except in north America, where
sloping backs and over-angulated legs are the signs of an unnatural and
crippling structure with many health problems. A small group of a few hundred
AKC/CKC style show-GSD fanatics has taken show dog breeding to new heights,
causing
the animals they claim to love a lot of pain and suffering, all for the sake of
a lousy ribbon and a lot of selfishness. Those "extreme show" GSDs are
nothing but a liability and major financial drain on the novice owner. Working quality. This term used to refer
to police service dogs and guide dogs for the blind, etc., but now relates more
to dogs bred specifically for training purposes and Schutzhund competitions
(trials). They can cost almost as much as a show quality dog, but are generally
very trainable and healthier than show dogs. Unfortunately, some breeders have
taken this end of the breeding scale to it's own extreme, called the
"Sport" of training, be it under the name of Schutzhund, Ring Sport,
or whatever. Those super "high drive" sporting dogs are always under
tension, on the go, edgy, ready to jump at anything, or tear apart something.
And those super "hard" sporting dogs are typically rather indifferent
to their surroundings and almost impossible to train except with a 2x4 or
electronic
shock collar. Both types of extreme sporting dogs are intended to be used like a
foot ball, for personal satisfaction, egomaniac goals, or financial gains. They are virtually impossible
to keep inside a house and are condemned to living their entire lives in solitary
confinement in a kennel or small fenced-in area, without contact to humans or
other dogs, except for a few minutes of
training once in a while, when they get to wear the electronic shock collar. The
typical sport fanatic doesn't appear to give a damn about the dog as a living
being, just like the breeder that puts into being a type of dog that is
imprisoned by it's own mind from birth till death. Fortunately, many working dog
breeders do breed normal/average working dogs that are easy to train and make
excellent pets, companions,
protection dogs, and home watch dogs that get along with children and some times
even with cats and rabbits. Your chances of finding a healthy companion
dog among working bloodlines is at least 10 times better than finding one
among north American show bloodlines. Pet quality is a term often used to
describe lower quality, "unfit" to qualify for either of the two above
extremes, and
therefore less valuable and available at a lower price. However, simple logic
would suggest that this is where by far the greatest number of "real and
true" companions, protectors, watch dogs, helper dogs, house dogs and
millions of children's pets can be found, and where any novice can safely
concentrate their search for a future companion. (By the way, if you're not a
novice, why are you reading this section?) What may be pet quality for a show or
sport nut, more often than not will turn into THE PERFECT companion dog simply
by the quality of the relationship between dog and owner (my dog
Shep
being THE PERFECT example), and DESPITE any kind of a label stuck on a puppy or
dog by someone with a weird value system based on show ribbons, title scores, or
greed. Disposition or "Temperament" is
a such a big subject on it's own, that it needs to be discussed separately in
great detail. Back yard breeder is a term used most
often by breeders to put down, discredit or smear another breeder, and by humane
societies to put down all breeders with a single word in one fell swoop. The
fact is, some of the world's best breeders actually are, or could and would be
called back yard breeders by most humane society officials (i.e. "Busecker
Schloß", "Lahntal", "Maineiche", "Hirschel",
etc.). The only notable difference; breeders located in Germany are under very
strict
SV control and receive excellent support, breeders in north America
under AKC/CKC rules receive no support and are not controlled at all, which, if
anything, is further prove that it is perfectly safe to discard the term
"back yard breeder" as meaningless propaganda. Purebred or mixed breed? The only
"big" difference is the price. Beyond that, nature had a lot more
influence on the making and the quality of a dog than any human could possible
have, with-, or with-out registration papers. There is, however, a good reason
to stick with a so called "purebred" dog, if you can find an
honest and diligent breeder. A "good" breeder will have done as much
screening and selecting as is humanly possible, to get "some"
predictability into his/her puppies, and to eliminate as many health problems as
possible. Therefore, the price you pay is not so much for the puppy/dog, and
certainly NOT for any papers, but almost entirely for the breeder's honesty and
diligence,
for without it, you are better off with a mixed breed from a dog
pound. Registration papers (pedigree's). The
typical north American
registries (AKC, CKC, etc.) all have only two (2) breed rules: 1) both
parents must be registered, and 2) the fee must be paid first.
(that's
it, no other rules.) and are therefore worthless and without international
recognition. The way the north American registry system is set up, it actually
penalizes
honest breeders and encourages puppy mills (I know this out of experience. I
been there, suffered under it.). However, there still are several
registries in America, with very good breed rules, (USA being the one for German
Shepherds) but they are getting harder to find, because the AKC is squashing
them, one after another (to kill the competition, it's good for
business). A microchip number is a sign of a
conscientious
breeder. Even though microchiping is not required by the AKC (it is in Canada)
any
breeder not microchiping his/her puppies is a sure sign of advanced
irresponsibility and a "don't give a damn" attitude. I wouldn't touch
a puppy without a microchip number Period. King, Shiloh, White and AKC-style Show
Shepherds are not German
Shepherd Dogs, but are separate, purely north American sideline breeds, not
recognized internationally by dog organizations such as the FCI or
WUSV. They
are considered worthless rejects by the SV and WUSV and can only be registered
with internationally unrecognizednorth
American registries.
Small classified ads are intended to establish an initial contact on a
shoestring budget. They should be checked-out first.
Large display ads and "breeder's home pages" should be
scrutinized very carefully. More pictures than text usually
indicate a show breeder with nothing to say about health, temperament, pedigrees,
titles,
qualifications, background, guarantee, etc. Puppy pictures in ads are meaningless and
intended to play
on your emotions. Puppies always look cute, but their picture does not say
anything about their health or final appearance, as pictures of their parents
may well do. Photo-montages and professionally touched-up
pictures
tell of a professional sales approach often used by large kennels (puppy mills).
A home made picture of a sire or dam (or
both) to show their conformation is the accepted standard of most honest
breeders. Accepting credit cards. The overwhelming
majority of
dogs being euphemized in dog pounds and at humane societies all over the world
are the direct result of impulse buying, which is greatly facilitated by the use
of credit cards. Breeders discouraging the sale of puppies in pet stores is
great, but
to then turn around and offer credit cards like a pet store, just shows the
"snake oil salesmen mentality" of some breeders. How two-faced
can breeders get? Any breeder accepting credit cards is in it only for the
money, is running a puppy
mill. Contact info should include (besides the
kennel name) the breeder's name. Classified ads
can't include much info, but any display ad and certainly any web site that
does
NOT include the breeder's name should be avoided A written Guarantee always looks good on
paper
(in ads and web pages), but when it comes time to return your pet before you can
get a replacement
under the guarantee, reality will hit you. Exceptional, correct, properly, nice, are
a few
examples of expressions that always impress, but hardly ever say anything
definite
and maybe indicating "slick" advertising, reminding me of used-car and
snake-oil salesmen. Club membership (AKC, GSDCA, CKC, SV, USA,...)
in one or two dog clubs can indicate a breeders preference, such as GSDCA,
AKC, CKC, UKC = Am-bred show -, or USA, SchH-USA, SV = imported bloodlines.
However, membership in a great number of clubs is almost always meaningless,
since
anybody anywhere can become a member, without having to qualify, simply by
paying a membership fee. By
the way, membership in the WUSV and FCI is possible only for clubs, individuals
claiming such membership are lying (However, they may own dogs with WUSV &
FCI recognised papers). Breeding or selling multiple breeds. The
amount of
energy and effort needed to really get to know a single breed in all it's
intricacies is so overwhelming that it is practically impossible for one person
to become a master of more than one breed. Anyone breeding or selling more than
one breed is in it only
for the money, is running a puppy
mill. Shipping puppies anywhere. Any
conscientious
breeder not only needs to personally pre-screen potential buyers to
assure that the puppy goes to the right home, but also likes to maintain as
close a contact with his/her "babies" as possible, wants to be able to
see them now and then, needs to see how they develop as they mature, generally
has a
desire to assure their well being throughout their lives by continuing to give
advise. (see also "Conformation and temperament" and "Dogs
don't lie, only people do" below) Only professional puppy mill operators
that don't give a damn about their "products" will ship
worldwide. Shipping "worldwide" Most
GSD lovers around the globe not only are aware of the difference in the
"German show and working" bloodlines, many even know of American puppy
mills and the immense health problems the typical American bred shepherd has.
Who in the world would want to have one of those north American slope-back
cripples shipped to their country? (except the odd A-C White Shepherd
fancier). Large facility, producing more than 5 litters
per year have
to be considered puppy mills, simply because it can no longer be a hobby at that
level. Your best chance of finding a quality puppy is at a true hobby breeder
that doesn't count the time and expenses, but does it all for the love of the
breed. Any other reason for producing more than 5 litters per year is just
an excuse
to make money. Rare colors: blue, silver, chocolate, white,
is always
a sure indication of a rip-off artist trying to make a fool out of you. Blue and
chocolate are outside
the breed standard and therefore worthless "rejects", silver (and
white in combination with another
color) are simply the undesirable paled versions of normal colors, indicating a
serious lack of pigmentation, and again, are worthless
rejects. Extra large or huge can mean hip problems
and missing
undercoat, and usually come with many of the typical show dog problems, because
the breeder tends to concentrate more on size than on overall health. Longhair (sometimes called
"Altdeutsch") are part of the GSD heritage
and can pop-up in any litter. They do so mostly in show bloodlines and are
automatically disqualified from showing and further breeding under international
rules, and are therefore perfect pet quality. Some longhair do not have the
undercoat required by the GSD standard for having a "weatherproof" coat. Plush coated is somewhere between longhair
and normal and can be used for breeding, but may well produce longhaired
puppies. Combining the best of: this is
always a sign of someone trying to please everybody, pretending to have
accomplished the impossible. You can only have one priority, especially in the
rather complex world of breeding. To claim to have more than one priority is the
same as climbing two mountains at the same time. Give me a break. Breeding
is in many ways like mountain climbing, it take extreme efforts, skills,
meticulous planning, and is dangerous in that you can plunge emotionally just as
deep. combining "companion, protection and
show qualities"
may be possible, but 99 out 100 times is just another "one size fits
all" breeder
trying to please everybody to quickly find a home, any home, for all those
puppies. The differences between show and working bloodlines is usually
so great that combining the two can cause very serious temperament and
possibly health problems. Only VERY experienced breeders with a very deep
understanding of ALL show AND protection bloodlines can hope to be successful.
Even I never made it into that elite group. combining "imported and American
lines"
is simply ludicrous. These are two separate breeds, bred to two different
breed standards, and if mixed, can only
produce bastards. The difference between these two breeds is so large, that an
imported GSD has no chance of winning anything but a token ribbon in an
American show ring, and an American bred slope-back show cripple can never be
a real working (police, protection, herding, SAR) dog. American police
departments stopped using American bred dogs many years ago. (The fact that
the AKC and will
register those cross breeds doesn't make them pure bred, it only indicates the
extreme low standard and uselessness of north American multibreed
registries.) combining "show and working (sport)
bloodlines"
is possible only IF they are from the same registry. Combining the two
more
often than not will produce undesirable temperament and conformation, and is
usually the result of breeder ignorance. A knowledgeable breeder knows that
his/her puppies can be successful only in show ring OR in trials, but not in
both, and will select their bloodlines accordingly. Combining the two WILL
eliminate most chances of raising a top winner in either, show as well as
sport (Schutzhund) working trial. Imported GSDs (or bloodlines) are no
guarantee for
quality, but they usually are well above your average American "bred for
the
AKC show ring" type GSD in health and temperament,
provided they actually are imported and have FCI
recognized papers and valid hip certificates. Don't take anybodies word for
it, you can check out the validity of those import papers. Czech imports appear to be a current
fad. While
the Czech registries are members in the FCI, it is another former east block
country and well known for registry irregularities (cheating). But the main
reason for seeing so many Czech imports simply is their low price, usually 30 to
50 % below German export prices. Border Patrol, Tactical K-9 Soldiers,
gun/narcotics trained
guardian are unsubstantiated claims by civilians, intended to demonstrate
exceptional hardness, in the hope of trapping police departments and anyone in
need of a personal protection dog. By far the best protection you can receive
from a dog is through a solid and reliable relationship with a level headed,
easy to train dog, but not from a dog so "hard" that it takes a 2by4
to
control it. Not all SchH titled dogs are working
bloodlines. The
difference is difficult to explain and requires several pages of information. Breeder of police dogs is another claim to
fame
designed to impress the public, but may well backfire if you are looking for a
companion dog. The police often uses rather harsh training methods and therefore
needs hard dogs that can survive that type of environment. Consequently,
breeders specializing in police dogs tend to use insensitive (bozo type)
bloodlines which do not make the best companion dogs. Breeders of
"occasional" police dogs usually have given
dogs to police departments free (as an "advertising" expense), because
they could not be sold or had been returned as unmanageable by the original
puppy buyer. Recommended reading: Hard-bitten High drive or ball crazy and similar
claims indicate
pure sporting dogs, suitable only for well experienced trainers involved in
competitions. Those dogs are always on the go, very difficult to manage
(control), and must be kept in specially built "runs". True "high
drive" dogs are completely unsuitable as house pets or companion
dogs. (see also "working quality" below) Do visit local breeders, and find out for
yourself what
is available locally. But even more importantly, you will gain the experience of
dealing with breeders, get used to their lingo and excuses, get to know
different dogs and their behavior, temperament, disposition, sizes, colors,
etc. If you are a good observer and listener, every visit will be a badly needed
education, and the honest breeder will appreciate your efforts. Conformation or temperament? Conformation
(color,
shape, size) is easy to discuss and to form an opinion about. Any child can
apprehend it and express a preference. Unfortunately, temperament (character,
disposition, composure, moral and mental constitution peculiar to an individual,
attitude of mind, hardness, willingness to work, protectiveness, trainability,
courage, eagerness to please, calmness, loyalty) are invisible and impossible to
judge at a glance. It takes time and depth of understanding to assess and
consequently discuss a dog's temperament. Most breeders concentrate on
conformation (show) features and are therefore seldom qualified to discuss a
dog's temperament (as are veterinarians). Your solution to this problem:
Interact with the dogs
directly and simply get a gut feeling for their temperament. It's certainly
more reliable then anything any human (breeder) can tell you. Dogs do not lie, only people do. Always
insist on
direct contact with the breeder's dogs and observe their behavior (temperament),
then decide if that is what you like to live with. All the papers
in the world can't beat a personal encounter. Do listen to all the claims of the breeder
and then
insist on seeing the proof, especially hip certificates and FCI recognized
papers, trial and show participation and titles/ratings earned (don't bother
with AKC CKC or similar registration papers, they're worthless
anyway). Honest breeders will have all of those papers ready and be happy at the
opportunity to show them to you. Do answer the breeders questions! You may
not be aware
of it, but you do need the breeder's expertise, now for getting the best
possible match, and later for getting all kinds of advise on raising, training,
dealing with health and obedience problems, etc. Any breeder not worried about
the right match or whether you are sufficiently qualified to take one of his/her
babies, is likely in it for the money, which is equal to running a puppy
mill. Do your homework and sort out the
contradictions. Different
breeders can have different opinions on the same subject (and disregard
anything one breeder has to say about another breeder, they are likely old
enemies).
You simply have to spend the time and dig up the truth on any contradictory
claims wherever you can find the answer, library, internet, etc. After all, you
are about to commit yourself to sharing a major part of your future time, money,
emotions,
feelings and well being with another living being. If it doesn't work out, it's
your loss and emotional pain you will have to endure. An honest breeder has
already invested an unbelievable amount of time, energy and money in his/her
dogs, the least you must do, is sort out your priorities and know what you want
to do with the puppy.
