Selecting a working puppy - Page 1

Good question. Look forward to reading the responses.  So many times different pups develop at different rates, a pup that one week acts like the stand out,  is the most forward, most bold,  might be towards the back of the pack the following week. 

Same, but I also look for food drive, hunt, grips even at this age, courage, nerve, willingness to follow me as a stranger, confidence, etc.

Well Sue, if they don't have it the day I'm looking, I walk. I'm not going to take a gamble they will have it next week. If it is a well respected breeder and I trust them, maybe I consider. But for the most part, they have to have it when testing

Don,

 How do you like to test hunt drive with a pup at 7-8 weeks old? 

I'm guessing he hides a toy and watches the pups drive to find it?


I also look for willingness to interact and follow, I do not like the independent puppy, I would pick one that's in the middle.  Not the clinger, but the one who comes, goes off to explore, then comes back again.  But I like the outgoing puppy who has a very quick recovery time to novel stimuli, curiosity, who has high food drive, high prey drive, very playful, good grips.  Not too reactive to physical touch, you may pinch the scruff of one puppy and it does not react at all, then another same pinch will start screaming.  Look at the Volhard puppy assessments...

I naturallistically observe the litter interacting, and interact with them together-- but it's very important to also take each puppy away from the litter to assess them.

I think the nutrition and stress level of the dam is very important and I would prefer a raw-fed and weaned to raw puppy whose mother was brought to great condition before the breeding and was herself raised on all good supplements and raw prey-model diet and minimally vaccinated.

The best person to know each puppy is the breeder, as they watch them grow and interact together, and they see the personalities developing.  I believe a good breeder should choose for you based on what you want, not the other way around.

IMO .. your question .... to vague .. lacks intention and direction .. "What EXACTLTY" do you want to do with the pup as it matures into an adult ? Answer that for yourself foremost. Next . Doberdoodle makes a most poignant remark ... You should if possible look at the parents .. i want to see the structure , the temperamnet , and what and how the parents perform . WHY .. becuae if the parents don't have the desired behavioral traits and 'make-up' then the pups will never have it either !! what do you want to do?-- if you want a dog for PSA or Ring then you want a dog that RECOVERS extremely Quickly from challeging environmental stimuli eg sprayed water, weird prompts- a pup that is not concerned about ANY  other type of environmental input. . I like to see a 4 week up already going throught tunnels to feed , going up puppy 'A' frame to eat , etcetc . ...maybe  i don't want or maybe  i want a domineering pup....... or a pup   mod to high in an aggression trait  ,high to mod stress level , high to mod harndess.... if for example you want a pup selected  for Schutzhund then other traits you may desire to  keep in mindwith the others traits  : socialbility and also , the trait expressing the pups willingness to interact with future owner [ to please / biddable as we now say],  for sch ask perhaps : does the dog have a high natural rerteive instict. I peprsoanlly  also test to see how, where , when  the dog uses it's nose [ie .. will it go to the source and /what will it do to get to the source of the scent /  or does it give up easy  is it persistent in tasks ??..  [ used for tracking lateror police narcotics / building searches] ,. these are just a few things to bring to mind.....and be careful of categorizing and cliche cook book puppy selectiontechniques !!! .. for example .. you may want a dog with independence [ need for protection work ] BUT you are better with a dog that is not so independent that it will not take direction from you ..don't limit thought to ' i want a dog that is independent'.. the wrong quality / quatity of independence can  lead to future control problems and poor perfromance !!. SO it not an issue of just what you look for as a trait but also the degree and the expression of that trait. e.g herding .. you need a dog with independence but not so much that when it is away it has the bent to blow off you commands !! think very very intently  about what you want to do with the pup ... i have a GSD who had a low retireve intstinct .. was highly possesive and independent.. .. so sounds not like a great Sch candidate as a pup ... welll ...someone  passed him  by i got him .. this GSD .. got an invitation to Budessiegerprufung !! again in life it is how you pick and how you hold 'em and how you fold 'em ...  GOOD LUCK AP

Well I just assumed that we all knew to look at the parents and pedigree first. I figured we were past that point since we were looking at the puppies. I don't test for anything different or look for anything different. Whether it is PP, K9 or sport. I guess I would for Herding, S&R, etc., but for the most part, I believe the pup I test for will do well as a PP, K9 or schH dog.

I thought the same thing, Don.  I  figured he meant once a particular litter had been decided upon, which pup from that litter. 

The reason I was saying that about the different pups growing at different stages was because in a uniform litter it usually doesn't  make a big difference which pup you choose, so much more has to do with what happens after the pup goes home anyway.