Comments on my new dog & her pedigree, please! - Page 4

i have been reading all the comments on here and just wanted to add my .02 cents. No one ever bothered to ask if she was planning to breed the female for pets or for show/sch. that makes a big difference. I think sometimes we forget all the people around who just want a normal priced puppy. I also think that puppy prices have gotten out of hand lately but what can we do about it. The market is what it is. The funny think about the market to me is this. breeder A may have puppies from a normal V dog and charge 3000.00 for the pups. Breeder B may have pups out of a VA male and charge only 1500.00 for his. The market always assume that if its more expensive its better. Price has nothing to do with quality. If we all kept that in mind it would make the market better for all involved. I was just recently told about a breeder who was offered a top show female and turned it down because she said that another top breeder was in Europe and if he didn't buy the dog it must not be good. Making a long story short she went out and bought a female for double the price from this top breeder(the female did VA here in the states)only to learn it was the same female that she orginally turned down. So much for price. Ceddy

Flipfinish, and GSDFan Yes, your points were made, and to be truthful, I didn't think it out YOUR way until you mentioned it. As some of you know, I dabble in Golden Retrievers, my first girl I purchased was $1500...which is above average for a quality Golden...As it turned out the dog had more gentic problems then I can care to recall...The ONLY thing that didn't go bad on that dog were her hips...Obviously she was NEVER bred, but As you said, I assumed that by paying that price I was getting quality...After selling her after being spayed, I bought a normal charged one for $800, and probably the best $800 I have ever spent. Thank you Flip and GSDFAN for showing me your points to this, Krista blueskyekennels@msn.com

Krista, I have also been burned by paying waaaaay to much for a dog that was so-so at best. But I do at least understand the concept of charging $2000. If you have premier lines, premier titles, and premier skills then you charge what you can get. I still dont think that is fair and I also think you eliminate the ability of the average joe to afford a very nice dog. Just because someone can afford an expensive dog doesnt mean they can train it. I used to screen my prospective buyers and I would adjust the price based on the desire and level of love for the dog. I also worked payment plans for what I felt were honest hardworking people. Why you ask? What better way to further the breed than to put good, rock solid specimens out in the public. Would you rather someone in a pet store who is afraid of GSD's run across an ugly, american, backyard bred fear biter, OR a beautful bi-color or balck and red german bred, confident and clear headed GSD? If you price them so high that no one can buy them, then you almost force people to go to the local paper and when they see AKC reg GSD pups ($200), what do you think they will do? Spend $200 and then a lifetime in lawsuits... I only know of one breeder who offered me the chance to pay in installments once, you know her Krista. But I am not mentioning her name here for obvious reasons. Food for thought to all breeders....

Ceddy: I personally don't believe anyone should breed GSDs to be pets. Frequently there are pets born in even high quality litters of super-well bred and titled parents. A pet, by my personal definition, being a dog that could be protective with a family, make it's people happy being a part of that family, but is not suitable for top working dog pursuits. I do not have show dogs, so I do not feel qualified to even mention that aspect. Also like Klatolkin, I think being a police dog or a SAR dog qualifies the dog to be a breeding dog. These certifications as well as Schutzhund titles are not recognized by the AKC, and will not show up in a pedigree acquired from the AKC. Research may uncover some good breeding in the dog. At this point it is only hopes and dreams for the particular pup mentioned here. Flipfinish: Unfortunately, no matter how reasonable I attempt to be with my prices on high quality puppies--and at least half my puppy sales are in term payments over 1 year with a minimum down payment--I have had people who say I ask too much money for my puppies and they buy a registered mutt for $200 less than mine. So even when breeders go out of their way to offer high quality pups out of--WUSV and BSP competitiors, police dogs, titled dogs, and imports-- for very reasonable prices with super guarantees, who come with tattoos, and/or fee microchips, a free training and housebreaking DVD or free training help from working trainers, all shots and wormed....some people decide to buy the BYB pup who comes with nothing or almost nothing for $200 less.

i feel that if your dog has the temperment to be a working dog...have her tested ...at a schutzhund club....etc...her hips are good;;;she has strong working lines in her sires pedigree... why not... she looks better than many dogs i have seen at trials..we all start somewhere... i purchased a dog sired by a VA in 1975 that didn't look this good ...and you can't always tell by a photo...definitly breed to a working line..

AKVeronica, I agree with you. I had it happen as well, heck I even gave free obedience classes or one on one training for ANY of my pups. I spent a lot of time doing that and yet I too had people saying that $500 was too steep for a pedigree that included Pirol van't Enclavehof, Endy V Svenshome, Tell v.d. Daelenberghutte, and other greats. But hey, you cant force people to make good decisions....