Hello! My Name is Amy and I am an Explorer for Dog Friendly!
My partner in crime, Davey, passed away a few months ago and our house has never been the same. Around Christmas we decided to start a new chapter and look to get a puppy. I’m going to share my experience over a few blogs to help any of you guys looking to start your own new chapter. Today, I’m delving in what to consider when getting a puppy.
Are you ready for a dog?
Firstly it’s really important to make sure you really want a dog. Despite how it looks from the outside they’re not all fun and games. Whether you’re buying a puppy or rescuing an older dog, both come with many issues that need to be faced. You need to do your research before you chose either option. Look at different breeds, their lifestyle, and your lifestyle. Think about any costs associated with that breed such as grooming requirements or potential medical issues. The importance of this is enormous. You don’t want to get a dog that needs grooming every other week if you don’t have the time or money. Likewise, if you’re getting a Husky that needs over 2 hours exercise a day, do you have time to commit to that? Bored dogs can often become stressed and destructive.
Having already had a Bull Terrier, we already know we can afford the upkeep, so decided on getting a BT puppy! Dave was a rescue BT and it was hard for him to socialise with other dogs. This is something we wanted to avoid this time around. The only way we could almost guarantee this was to start from scratch with the help of an amazing behaviourist. We also knew we wanted another Bull Terrier breed as I’ve never met a happier pooch with the biggest smile!
Crufts is a great place to visit if you’re thinking of getting a dog. Not only are there over 200 breeds on display for you to meet and fuss. There are even more experienced owners and breeders happy to talk to you, answer any questions and offer advice.
Finding a Repurable Breeder
Another thing to consider when getting a puppy is the breeder. Once you’ve settled on your breed you can use Cruft’s and the Kennel Club to help you find a reputable breeder. Their Assured Litters page will show any Kennel Club assured litters born near you and throughout the UK if you’re willing to travel. (In my opinion, you should always be willing to travel for the right puppy.)
Providing you have done your research you should know what to look for in a breeder. The health testing performed on the parents, any health tests that will be carried out on the pups, will the Pups be Kennel Club registered, and will they be microchipped? I knew that I also wanted a breeder with experience, someone breeding dogs for the love of the breed (or a nice smile as our breeder aims for). Not someone who was in it just to make money, I wanted someone that cared enough about the puppies. Someone who cared about whether I was going to be a good fit for them.
We already knew of a great breeder, so we set up communication and travelled to meet her and her dogs. She was so open and honest with us we knew she was the perfect breeder for us.
She happily showed us around her home and where the puppies would be born and raised. We were given social media accounts of almost every puppy she had sold and was encouraging us to contact them. Seeing someone so confident in their puppies and 5 happy little dogs running around with not a care in the world sealed the deal. I’m pretty sure that not every breeder will be as open as ours, but I think it’s important for you to be happy and to be able to trust them. There is nothing wrong with looking at their past litters and asking them questions.
Costs Involved
The price of any future bundle of fur is also very important to consider when getting a puppy.
Rescuing a dog will come with some fees and some home checks. Whereas a puppy from a breeder will usually set you back a touch more. A lot of things can influence the price of a puppy, from its genetics to its gender.
If you’re buying from a breeder you need to remember that not only are you paying for the puppy. You’re paying for the time and effort from the breeder, the care they have put in non-stop for well over 10-20 weeks, the equipment, vets bills (for your puppy and for their own dog) and food needed. In Bull Terriers (and most terrier breeds) almost 80% of puppies are born via C-section, when you take this into consideration and the costs the breeder has to pay it makes their sale price seem a lot more reasonable. I think the key thing to remember, is that a price seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Most of the time when buying a puppy you would usually contact the breeder about a litter that has been born, in which you would go and meet the litter and make your choices etc. Once this process is done and you have paid your deposit, you should begin making preparations at home. As our process has been a little different were not quite at that stage yet.
I am happy to announce that our breeder has successfully mated her dog, and the litter of puppies is expected to be born in the coming weeks. Keep your eyes peeled for the next blog to see our next steps and how we plan to prepare.
