Selecting the right puppy...

Your first question is to take a really take a good look at your dog. You should not waste the money showing a dog that is not of the quality to win or to represent the breed. Notice I said "of the quality to win". Unfortunately the "winning look" is not always the best representative of the breed. Dog shows, like Horse Shows, Goat Shows, Llama Shows, Cat shows, and most any event that includes subjective opinions of judges, have their share of "politics". If your puppy truly is not of a good quality, then it is time to “learn” how to show with that puppy. Let it grow a bit and down the road make a decision. Meanwhile you can learn a lot by taking the dog to some local fun matches and begin to familiarize yourself with all of the aspects of training and showing a dog.

"The head they have at eight weeks is the head they have as an adult." is a breeder's saying. I can say for a fact that this does happen 90% of the time, but there is always that one pup with a gorgeous "headpiece" that turns out to be a piece of trash when it is grown up! Check the bite when they are young, overshot or undershot jaws MAY go away but if the bite is really bad, it probably will stay that way! Check for the testicles, they should be dropped for sure absolutely by the age of five months, if they haven't dropped by then it is unlikely that this is going to happen. A dog with one testicle, no matter how good the rest of him, is no good for showing.

When puppies move out, I have always watched for the one who does not break into a gallop but goes naturally into a trot. I have watched for the one that is "laid back", an easy going puppy that gets along well with the crowd of other puppies, to see if it will turn out to be a "show prospect" and not too invesitgative. (THOSE puppies are the pick for a working dog, a Search and Rescue dog, first and foremost, and THEN you worry about showing them) Speaking of "show prospect" puppies, if you are buying a puppy under those terms, be willing to co-own. Most breeders want to sell a puppy to a "showdog" person on terms that will make sure it is not used for breeding. They will co-own a bitch and often retain breeding rights on the male. And RESPONSIBLE breeders will always sell with a written guarantee.

A good way to determine whether or not your puppy has potential is to take that puppy and stack it on a table in front of a mirror. This gives you the chance to really see it, and take a good look at all of the whole body. Look at the puppy from all angles.Be sure you have studied the standard and know what to look for. It is nearly impossible to really select a show puppy before the age of 8 weeks, although a breeder (myself included) will often watch the puppies from the day they are born. (With newfies, it is pretty easy to tell a good head right at birth, for example) and a good breeder can usually tell about the bone or substance of a tiny puppy as well. But how their legs are going to grow and develop is another matter entirely.

Regardless of what kind of puppy you are buying, make absolutely certain that the breeder has done the proper testing for that breed. This can range anywhere from one or two hip xrays to the whole gamut of knee and patella, cerf examinations for the eyes, cardiology clearances, thyroid clearances, cystenuria clearances...etc. There is more and more opportunity in these days of high technology to discover through DNA testing whether there are any genetically carried conditions and there is no excuse for a breeder who does not test for these problems before breeding so that hopefully the resulting offspring will be as healthy as possible.

To determine if YOUR dog has the potential to be a winning dog, you need to familiarize yourself with the breed, and you need to ask opinions of people that you believe will give you a fair and honest opinion. If you have purchased a "show quality" puppy from a breeder, now is the time to take your breeder's advice to heart. And remember to look up at least one other person familiar with the breed and get THEIR opinion also, so as to try to avoid the all too common fault of many breeders: "kennel blindness."

As to the selection of a breed, this book is not going to touch upon that subject. Suffice it to say that the selection of the PUPPY needs to be of the best quality that you can afford if you have the intention of showing to start with. If you already have a dog of the breed that you want, and that dog is "turning out" in the opinion of some of the folks who should know, then use that puppy and get started working towards your goal: winning some ribbons and finishing the dog to it's Championsihip.

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