Importing German Shepherds - Page 3

Another great post D.H.!

DH you should be a writer

This topic has been beat to death ad nauseum on this board and most others I read. Gimmie10, here is the bottom line - establish a relationship with some on this board who have had good success importing dogs and learn who their brokers were, you have already had several offers of assistance. OR buy here in the US. Again, ask for references, do some research on which kennels have the most success. Don't buy from a US kennel that has never titled a dog; buy from one that shows and trials their homebreds and places consistantly well with their dogs. Ask for hip and elbow reports and I myself will ask for eye checks next time I think about another GSD. I'd also check around trying to find out if the lines you are considering are subject to any types of cancer, torsion or other lifethreatening diseases and how long do most of them live. A dog from unhealthy lines is no good to anyone. Take your time, it's no different than buying a new house, you have to look beneath the glitz to find the real deal. If you get a bad feeling, walk away; if it seems to good to be true, it is. None of the big players in this breed are going to give an unproven novice any sort of break. You might pay less for an import than a Am bred dog, but you will probably not get any sort of guarantee. If it were me, I'd bite the bullet and pay the money for an Am bred dog unless I had hundreds of thousands to spend on an already proven V or Va dog from Germany and had a VERY,VERY trustworthy broker to do the deal for me. This is not the place for amateurs, you will get screwed to the wall if you're not proactive. Buy the very best you can afford. Otherwise, you will end up with a bunch of pets and be a dog collector, not a dog breeder. Frankly, I feel a lot of empathy for Gimme 10. He or she is obviously just starting out. I wonder how many brokers have PM'd him with deals he can't refuse. Give him a break!!! Everyone reading this was a newbie themselves at one time. Think back and remember all the mistakes you made, I won't even talk about mine, there's not enough bandwidth on this board. Be a mentor, not a critic - in the long run it's a lot better for the breed to encourage new people than to ridicule them and drive them away.

SGBH - thanks :o) GSDfan - book is in the works.