I am a newbie, please help! - Page 1

Hello everyone, I am newbie and don't have experience in choosing and purchasing Top high quality pup for futher show. I want to purchase a male pup. Actually I have found one that I like very much. The question is, can anyone give opinion on every thing on this puppy. Here is my email kobe69tai@yahoo.com , I will sent you guys the photos and all back ground. Thank you. Kobe

It's too bad a serious post like this gets little attention while the others get so much. In any case. If you want a top prospect. Find someone that has the type of dog you like, proven results and are willing to help you do whatever it is you want to do. The German Shepherd sport is one where you need support. It takes a team to succeed. Find a breeder you are comfortable with whose dogs you like. Someone that has accomplished what you want to be. Let them find you a pup. Good Luck

Rand, there should be more people like you in this world!!! very nice advice :)

A puppy may not be the best option if you have high hopes for success with your very first GSD. Too much can happen along the way. Be prepared that even the most carefully chosen pup may not grow up to what you or the breeder had hoped for. If it only was that easy. A promising young adult will give you a much better head start, but it may be out of your price range. And without the right know-how success may still be out of reach. Keep in mind that everyone has to earn their lorels. Experience comes with time. So does success in the breed. But there are some shortcuts you can take advantage of. Dog1 (hi :) ) makes a very good suggestion in that you should try to find someone you can partner up with or who will mentor you. Listen, watch and ask a lot of questions. Don't question what you hear, some of it may be rather contradictory. Make a mental note of it and draw your own conclusions over time. Ultimately you need to find out what works for you. It would be difficult for someone else to make a choice for you. We could point out some of the good and the bad about the pup you like. In the end you alone have to be happy with your puppy. If you would like some general advice, thats a different story... Good luck.

Well said D.H but is it really that z to find a mentor..i mean are ppeople willing to pass on their knowledge on to beginners... Can u tell me if some som kennels offer apprenticeship programs.. fida

Hi Fida what kind of job title would this apprenticeship be for? Sorry, there are no apprenticeships that I know of. Some breeders hire kennel help. I doubt that you would actually learn much from just being hired help. Guess you just need to take the time like everyone else. If you are courteous and show genuine interest there are many people that love to pass on their knowledge. Some of these guys can't get enough of telling their tales. Problem is that many newcomers come with a head full of their own ideas, lots of preconceptions and such high ambitions, that most lack the humility to treat some of these old timers with the respect they truly deserve. Then their interest quickly vanishes. If you are respectful you will soon get invited, share more tales, sometimes even get to visit areas of their kennel that very few people ever become privy to. Then some day they will call you.. But such privileges, like so many other things in life, have to be earned. That takes time and patience. You are still young. Many of the breeders that are big today, and even the big ones of the past took years to get to the top. Bide your time and you will get there too. Go too fast, chances are you will burn out along the way.

Hallo Kobe and DH, I do rather like the 'rosy tint', DH. Kidding aside, Kobe, forward your details to DH - I believe few would be better qualified than this person for sought opinion.(photos can be misleading though!) I can't add much, but to suggest you first find a few better books on the subject. I'd also suggest you join local club, attend their Shows and training sessions, and introduce yourself to the people there, asking questions all the time of course, no matter how stupid - I did and still do! (the notion of readily finding a mentor, as such, may be a tad optimistic! ) I certainly wouldn't rush to buy a pup either - 'feel' your way in gradually! Thus, you should realise that expert Breeders study their pups very carefully - some spend hours with them so they know exactly which have the potential to become champions. And, of course, it's not the future winners which will be on offer --- these they normally reserve for themselves or friends. (What's worse, they may see you as an ideal candidate for offloading defective ones - only stark reality here, Kobe!) Also, I know I mentioned books, but it takes years and many pups to develop 'the eye' - if you know what I mean? It's much easier to ascertain quality of more mature animal. Kennels also often have their 'bread and butter'(for want of a better term) lines/bitches from which they'll readily sell pups, and the 'supreme' ones, from which they'll often 'run the pups on'just to see how they turn out. Believe me, some Breeders would rather sell their mother than a champion pup! I know a lady nearby who truly is an expert(and even has some good connections - but not in the dominant clique here! - and she's spent over a year now looking for quality pups with which to start a new Kennel. She's now becoming very discouraged and talking about German imports and/or breeding her own! Final suggestion: once you've struck up frienships at club, and find person who is experienced herein, ask him/her to come along to the Kennel offering pup you're interested in. This is what I did when I bought the first. The fellow I had with me happened to be a judge and pretty fussy and, we ended up trouping off to over six Kennels! What, I suppose, all this adds up to, is a suggestion to perhaps delay acquiring any pup at all until you're better informed and have struck up mentioned club acquaintances. Regards and good luck.

Hi Peter am known to have a few philospphical moments on occasion . Here is something to think about... As the story goes, Zamb von der Wienerau was originally sold as a puppy. He was obviously not the pick pup at the time, but was later bought back by his breeder to move on to become World Sieger. The 2003 Youth Sieger Zamp Thermodos (must be something about that name) was supposedly the runt of the litter. So the story goes that I have been told anyways. Moral of these stories - even the best get passed up as a pup sometimes. Others are kept instead as very promising but end up going nowhere. You just never know. Breeding dogs is no sure science.

Welcome Newbie! We all started where you are now. May I make one suggestion? Make sure you see where your puppy is coming from before you send in a deposit, if you are new to this. It is important to have a rapport with the breeder of your pup and to know where it is coming from. A show pup is a crap shoot as you will have read in many other posts. As D.H. says it is important that you like the pup. As you are aware, the one side is the conformation of the dog, but the dog has to also be trained and titled if truly a good prospect and you should be aware of the costs and time involved to do this. The biggest piece usually is temperament and health of the dog. If your dog is healthy and has good temperament you will enjoy him regardless of any disappointment in the conformation ring. If the dog is beautiful, but can't do the work or does not have good temperament, you will not be able to go very far with him in the show ring. Good luck to you and enjoy the path on reaching your goal. Sunshine

Hallo DH, Philosophical? Don't get me started - few drinks, and all's gloom and doom! I know what you're saying about runt of litter becoming champion - know local examples. Trust you're well? Website?