Puppy Tips
When it comes to Puppy, we've been there, done that, now serving 130 tips in 14 categories ranging from Am I Ready for a Puppy? to Why Buy a Puppy Online?.
Ask Questions When You Buy a Puppy Online
It is so easy to fall in love with a puppy's picture, put down a deposit and wait for your new puppy to arrive. However, just because it is easy to buy a puppy online is no reason to be less careful about making your purchase than you would if you were buying locally. Ask questions and when you have answers to all of them, ask more questions. You don't want to find that you bought an unhealthy puppy because you didn't do your research before you fell in love.
- Always ask about genetic problems in the breed. If you want to be sure the parents do not have one of these problems, ask if they were screened and have passing scores.
- Find out if the puppies are getting good nutrition. The breeder should be using a good quality food that doesn't list corn meal as the first ingredient. Ideally, the food should not contain any meal and chicken should be the first ingredient in chicken flavored food. Poor nutrition in developing puppies can create lasting problems.
- Ask about immunizations and vet checks. Your puppy should have a clean bill of health from a veterinarian and should be up to date on shots.
- Don't forget socialization. It isn't much fun to spend the first four or five weeks of your puppy's new life just trying to convince it to let you pick it up and give it a cuddle. Ask how often the puppies are played with and where they were raised.
Reviews of Puppies for Sale Online
You've talked to a few local breeders, talked to online breeders by email and have asked for references from both, but you're still hesitant about making a final decision. If only there was something else you could do to feel more secure about buying puppies for sale online. Actually, there is a great feature on puppyfind.com that helps people find out about the experience other people have had with a breeder who uses that site to advertise puppies.
When you pull up a puppy listing, you will notice that there are stars beside the seller's name and a link to reviews that have been given by previous buyers. Each breeder can have up to five stars. They are calculated by the star ratings given by each buyer who writes a review of his or her experience with the breeder and his or her new puppy. If you notice a breeder has less than five stars, check the reviews, as some people are delighted with their dog, but gave the breeder less than five star ratings.
If you click on the link to reviews, you can read the actual reviews. In them, you can find out how helpful the breeder was during the entire process, how the puppy arrived and whether the buyer was happy with the quality and health of his or her new friend.
Reasons Breeders Sell Dogs Online
You want a puppy, but you're sure no ethical breeder would sell dogs online. After all, they should have plenty of local sales, right? Actually, quite a few ethical breeders sell puppies online and they have some great reasons for doing so. Surprisingly enough, getting more money isn't usually one of them. Selling online means spending more money and time than selling locally since the breeder needs to complete quite a few tasks to ship puppies.
- Selling online means a breeder can reach a worldwide customer base. This is especially important if he or she lives in an economically depressed area and is afraid that many local puppy buyers won't be able to give the puppy the care it deserves. After all, coming up with a few hundred dollars for a one time purchase is just the beginning. The breeder wants to be sure the puppy gets all immunizations and flea, tick and heartworm preventatives.
- A breeder who lives alone may be nervous about having strangers come to his or her home to look at puppies for safety reasons. Without being able to ship puppies, this breeder might not have puppies at all. If he or she put years into showing and breeding dogs, this would really be a loss to the dog world.
Diversify Bloodlines When You Buy Puppies Online
It seems like every single dog of your favorite breed in your area can be traced back to one local breeder. You have a very nice male puppy and he is really shaping up to be a gorgeous example of the breed. You've decided to start showing him and are interested in getting a female puppy to start your own kennel. However, you're pretty sure you should get some new blood into the lines. Where can you find an unrelated litter of puppies? One simple way to find a different bloodline is to buy puppies online.
- Since you will be trying to create your very own doggie dynasty, you will want to be particularly careful as you search for puppies. Find a site like puppyfind.com, which helps breeders include information on championship backgrounds and champion sires right on the classified listing for each puppy.
- If you want to show your new puppy, too, look for puppies that have show potential. Finding this information is as simple as looking at the classified listings. On puppyfind.com, a show quality puppy will be listed as having show potential right in the ad.
- When you find a puppy you like, email the breeder and ask if the puppy has the same bloodline as your local dogs. If the answer is no, you are on your way to fulfilling your dream.
Be Safe as You Buy a Puppy Online
In an ideal world, there would be no scammers and all breeders would be honest and ethical. Unfortunately, the world is not ideal, which means you will need to be safe as you buy a puppy online. There are some simple things you can do to be sure you are getting the puppy you are paying for.
- When you pick out a puppy, ask the breeder to make a short video of the puppy interacting with its littermates and parents. If the breeder doesn't have a video camera, ask if he or she can use a digital camera to make the video. Many newer cameras offer this option. If not, ask for some pictures of the whole family.
- Some people recommend asking the breeder to include a specific object in any photos to be sure they were taken recently and the breeder does have a litter of puppies ready to go.
- Ask that the breeder's vet fax a copy of the health certificate directly to you as soon as the puppy gets its paperwork filled out. The health certificate will include information about the puppy's breed and coloring as well as guaranteeing that the puppy has had vaccines.
Benefits of Buying a Puppy Online
You want a dog breed that is pretty rare. You were excited to find a breeder locally, but that excitement quickly turned to disappointment when the breeder offered to place you on the waiting list for the litter that will be born about two years from now. A quick search on puppyfind.com revealed a puppy ready to go now just a few hours away. As you drive to the airport to pick up your puppy a few days later, you realize that you are experiencing one of the benefits of buying a puppy online. There are several other good things about shopping for a puppy online:
- People who shop online for puppies actually tend to be more careful during the whole process than people who shop locally. You would probably check references for an online breeder, but wouldn't even think to do so as you cuddled a local puppy in your arms. You also will probably take the time to find out more about the puppy's background.
- Online transactions are actually more secure than local sales, since most people tend to use cash to pay for a puppy through a local breeder and use a credit card or an escrow account to pay for the sale online.
