What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

The Giant Schnauzer is an example of working breed of dog and has a dense, coarse coat that protects them against the elements and vermin. The Giant Schnauzer is the largest of the three breeds.
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Please feel free to post here if your topic does not fit into one of the categories under 'Caring for your Schnauzer'. There are sections for breeding, feeding, grooming, showing and many more that may be more appropriate than this generic section
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What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

Post by Caramomo »

DraXparK wrote:If you have researched the breeds characteristics and requirements, and have met the parents of your puppy and spoke to the breeder at length, then you should have a better idea about what you are taking on. Have a look at the parents temperament, energy levels and coat, and also the coat and temperament of your puppy. Your breeder should be able to give you some good advice on exercise and grooming, if they can't then ??!!.....The handbook and grooming guides are a great addition to the advice and information provided by your breeder.
Cara and Mo, two black mini's and Molly a black & white Heinz 57 all served by Elaine, the cook, poop picker, and chief toy thrower.
I live by the Mini Schnauzer code; when in danger or in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout!
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Re: What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

Post by Caramomo »

Gently Bentley wrote: Reputable breeders will let you meet at least one parent but preferably both or other members of the family. Ideally the parents should have been health screened. The breeder should supply you with a puppy pack full of info and health check your pup before you collect it. Good breeders will also microchip it, insure it for 4 weeks. At 5 months yours should also have had it's innoculations and certainly be house trained. They should also be on hand after you've bought your pup for any additional questions you may have and be prepared to take a puppy back in the event that things don't work out for whatever reason , or at the very least help with rehoming. If the breeder you've chosen doesn't offer any of the above then I would think carefully about whether you would still like a pup from that breeder.

I too have dipped into the Draxpark site for additional info and find it extremely useful - so thank you for creating such an informative site
Cara and Mo, two black mini's and Molly a black & white Heinz 57 all served by Elaine, the cook, poop picker, and chief toy thrower.
I live by the Mini Schnauzer code; when in danger or in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout!
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Re: What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

Post by Caramomo »

Caramomo wrote: All pups should be confident, clean, playful and appear healthy. They should have bright eyes and glossy fur, slighly plump rather than skinny. Mum may appear a little skinny or tired, raising pups is alot of work, but she should not be in obvious distress or ill health. She should be reasonable happy so let you play with and handle the pups and should not be nervous or aggressive. The puppy area should be clean, reasonably warm with a supply of fresh water for the pups. As the pups should be at least 4 weeks old mum may not be in with them but she should be near by and you MUST see her. If she is out anywhere say your happy to wait for her return. You will probably be there for over an hour anyway chatting to the breeder and playing with the pups. The breeder may have several other dogs there of a couple of breeds. You should be happy that the number of dogs the breeder has can be given the time, care and attention they need and all other dogs should be in good health. If there are several litters there ask the breeder why. I would only expect one, maybe two litters at the same time for the breeder to be able to play with and provide the necessary socialisation to.

The breeder should ask you plenty of questions and listen to your answers - they should care about where pups are going. They should be able to answer all your questions. A responsible breeder will make it quite clear they would be happy to stay in contact with you when pup goes home and they should also be clear they will take pup back with first refusal should you ever have to give pup up, even if its in 5 or 10 years time. They should be happy to provide you with as much advice and help as you want/need. You should get on with them, find them easy to ask questions of as with any luck your relationship with them will last the next 12 or so years.

Finally, and most importantly, it should feel right. If ANY ONE THING feels at all wrong, underhand, suspicious etc then, please, for future pups, WALK AWAY!
Cara and Mo, two black mini's and Molly a black & white Heinz 57 all served by Elaine, the cook, poop picker, and chief toy thrower.
I live by the Mini Schnauzer code; when in danger or in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout!
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Re: What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

Post by Caramomo »

masterplumber wrote:Having been (a couple of months ago) in the same position as you and having just bought a pup a week ago, I can offer you some limited advice. The first thing I did was lots of research. Not just about the correct breed of dog (that was a fairly easy conclusion to reach) but mostly to convince myself that I had the wherewithal to be able to look after a dog properly - particularly the puppyhood bit. I asked a few questions on here and got a lot of useful answers and sometimes a bit of mild abuse.

Once I had convinced myself that I had the right breed and the mental and financial capacity to cope with a puppy, I set on the task of trying to sort out breeders and how to approach them.

At first I thought of going only to those on the accredited breeder scheme as that sounded quite sensible. A few posts on here though put me right on that score as it seems that membership of that scheme gives no guarantee of any kind (makes you wonder why it exists in the first place but that's another question). So I went to the kennel club website and looked for breeders who had pups available. It's quite good because it has breeders listed by area. I also contacted the giant schnauzer club and the northern schnauzer club for breeder lists and cross-checked them on the kennel club website.

I decided to ignore all of the other sites that had puppies for sale (although coincidentally I discovered that the breeder I am buying for had puppies for sale on one of those sites at a cheaper price than I paid...).

I had my list of preferred colours and sex. I then phoned a few who met those basic criteria and, if I liked them, I arranged a visit. One of the breeders had a really nice website and was comparatively close to where I say but I really didn't like her attitude on the phone so she was crossed off the list.

Once I had my list of breeders to visit, I made a up a checklist from the various things that people had advised on here (such as in Elaine's post above). The main thing I was looking for though was a feeling that I could trust the person I was buying from. I didn't feel that I had the professional knowledge to know what kind of things to look for re the breed standard so I settled for being comfortable with the right person.

I ended up with a choice of two. One was a breeder who had shown dogs and judged competitions for many years. She was really nice and the pups were great. I had gone to see her first but was determined to see both breeders before making my decision regardless of how I felt about the first lot.

When I went to see the second breeder I got a much better feeling although the breeder herself was probably less experienced. There were lots of kids around and they were happy picking up the pups; the house was pretty noisy; the pups' mum was there and looked a bit worn out but happy and well cared for. I asked a few questions about the pups (how old they were, how much they cost, when they were due to get vaccinated etc.) and what homes the other ones were going to. I was able to learn quite a bit about how the breeder went about her business by some of her answers.

The breeder went and fetched a whole lot of paperwork and patiently explained all of the owner registration stuff, vaccination schedules, pedigree certificates, feeding, care, insurance etc. etc. She also asked me quite a few questions about what preparations I had made.

As far as I could see there was nothing to choose between the pups (and I wouldn't know what to look for anyway) so I made my decision purely on whether I thought the breeder was a fit person to breed and sell a dog to me. To be honest, I could easily have bought one from the first one as I liked them both but the second one seemed more organised and friendly and (strangely) more of a dog lover (I though the first one had a somewhat clinical approach maybe due to her professional involvement in shows etc) although I am almost certainly doing her a gross disservice by saying this.

I would reiterate what someone posted above though. If anything at all strikes you as being not for you then just leave it.

Good luck
Cara and Mo, two black mini's and Molly a black & white Heinz 57 all served by Elaine, the cook, poop picker, and chief toy thrower.
I live by the Mini Schnauzer code; when in danger or in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout!
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Re: What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

Post by henrys mum »

There's plenty of good advice on there for all three sizes. Thanks Elaine
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Re: What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

Post by Caramomo »

Yeah, various posts have been taken from threads about the different sizes where it is relevant and some of the posts have been put in each thread about the different sizes, so when a new member comes looking they can find the advice in the section of the size they are looking for.
Cara and Mo, two black mini's and Molly a black & white Heinz 57 all served by Elaine, the cook, poop picker, and chief toy thrower.
I live by the Mini Schnauzer code; when in danger or in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout!
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Re: What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

Post by Grovelea »

Could I add ..... Do not buy a puppy because you feel sorry for it and just want to get it out of bad conditions, you have to harden your heart and walk away, because if you buy that pup the breeder will just breed more to tug on the heartstrings of the next soft touch around the corner, this sounds hard but the only way these breeders will stop is if there is no money in it.
have the courage to stand up for what you believe to be right, even if everyone else is sitting down, as long as you are prepared to be hammered for it.
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Re: What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

Post by misspentyouth »

I think that all of the above is really valuable information, but I would like to counter a recommendation that is made by many - to ensure that you see both parents. Do consider that the majority of breeders today can only keep a limited number of dogs - long gone are the days when breeders had large kennels of maybe 20 or 30 dogs which gave potential for tremendous genetic diversity. So, many breeders today choose not to keep their own stud dog, as (a) it severely limits use on their own females and (b) it doesn't give them the scope that going to outside stud dogs offers. To me, it's preferable to have the option of choosing the best stud dog for my females, rather than being inclined to use a dog just because he lives with me! So, don't always assume it's a bad thing if the sire doesn't live with the owner of the puppies, but yes, of course you must see the mother.
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Re: What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

Post by MattW »

misspentyouth wrote:I think that all of the above is really valuable information, but I would like to counter a recommendation that is made by many - to ensure that you see both parents. Do consider that the majority of breeders today can only keep a limited number of dogs - long gone are the days when breeders had large kennels of maybe 20 or 30 dogs which gave potential for tremendous genetic diversity. So, many breeders today choose not to keep their own stud dog, as (a) it severely limits use on their own females and (b) it doesn't give them the scope that going to outside stud dogs offers. To me, it's preferable to have the option of choosing the best stud dog for my females, rather than being inclined to use a dog just because he lives with me! So, don't always assume it's a bad thing if the sire doesn't live with the owner of the puppies, but yes, of course you must see the mother.
With the world wide web I believe if the breeder does not have the stud then they should at least have access to the pedigree, photo's and where possible video clips of the dog (although it could be a pic of any dog, but lets not go down that road).
dannie_kl

Re: What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

Post by dannie_kl »

when I use outside studs i always ask for a picture of the stud for all the new puppy owners to see
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Re: What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

Post by riiseni »

I'm going to Crufts to meet my new puppies sire and will visit the dam in some point as well.
To me picture is not enough, I need to see how the dog behaves with people and other dogs.
Dam for me is even more important, because she will be with the puppies for the first 8 weeks.
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Tulip

Re: What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

Post by Tulip »

This is why I find it odd people can go to a bad breeder - a good breeder will choose the best tempered, best to standard, and best health dogs and I trust that if I choose a puppy from them, I trust they've done the best they can.
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Re: What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

Post by wazzockmum »

When I met Archie's Mum she was an "in your face" GS and quite hyper............just like Archie! ONly saw a picture of his Dad who is very very handsome - Reisenheim Suited n Booted. Archie is also very very handsome.

Do not remember meeting Floyd's Mum or Dad - but then he was such an unusual GS - ( and that is being kind) - short squat pigeon chested , droopy eye lids , lots of spare skin - back legs at ten to two and turkey drumstick thighs. Ohhh but what a brain....... the most clever dog you could ever meet. If I was looking for perfection - then he would not have been on my list but he ended up being the love of my life!
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Re: What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

Post by MattW »

riiseni wrote:I'm going to Crufts to meet my new puppies sire and will visit the dam in some point as well.
To me picture is not enough, I need to see how the dog behaves with people and other dogs.
Dam for me is even more important, because she will be with the puppies for the first 8 weeks.
Pic's are not enough really, but a little clip on you tube of the way the dog moves and interacts with others on a walk is a little better but you can't beat meeting the dog in person.

The breeders set up is also important to me and what they will do during the first 7-8 weeks. The last mini and giant I have got both can't home 95% house trained. Its also important that the pups are exposed to as many sounds, smells, general experiences as possible (keeping it safe). During the first weeks the breeder has an ideal opportunity to shape the pup as it has no fear. Has anyone put a firework CD on whilst the pups have been young? I would be interested to know if this has helped in anyway during bonfire night.
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Re: What to look for when buying a Giant puppy

Post by Grovelea »

Some people can't keep males and females, and just have to decide to keep one sex and then use stud dogs owned by others, this can mean travelling to the other side of the country.
have the courage to stand up for what you believe to be right, even if everyone else is sitting down, as long as you are prepared to be hammered for it.
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