To be brief, all you experienced owners and breeders, if you were starting a breeding program from scratch would you buy a high powered pedigree puppy from proven parents or would you buy a titled and proven adult female or male?
I'm kind of stuck...we want to breed after getting our schutzhund titles and kkl 1(hopefully) if we get a puppy but are wondering if we get a proven bitch that has already gotten her titles that she'll bond with my kids as strong as a puppy that grows up with us would...breeding is a secondary issue for us as we want a companion/protection dog that will be inside with us most of the time, but the breeding issue is so complicated(and expensive)that we don't want to make a costly and uninformed decision that we'd regret later. We know no dog ever turns out to be exactly what we'd want--after all genetics is still a roll of the dice in many respects, but after reading posts here and reading Ed's wonderful articles I'm convinced that we do have a HUGE impact on the dog and can bring an average dog up several notches just by our training and socialization.

any advice would be appreciated and heeded!

Merry Christmas to all!!!

An adult dog will have proven itself. A puppy won't.

Training makes no impact on breeding, since breeding is all genetics. A lot of flaws can be hidden or resolved with training, unfortunately if it's genetic it will be passed down to the pup regardless.

An adult dog will bond closely to you just as well as a pup.

Im no expert at all but I think you would have to puchase a proven bitch. You will have the option of a ton of males for stud.

Again, JMO and I know nothing <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> It just seems logical.

Mike, if breeding is secondary, why bother at all. I'm just curious, not trying to put you down, AL

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An adult dog will bond closely to you just as well as a pup.

not in my experience. i think this probably depends on the breed, and/or the individual dog and owner.

if i were starting a breeding program (which i have been thinking of doing), i would get the very best female puppy i could find, after doing extensive research on pedigrees. my bias is that if the primary purpose of the dog is companionship and competition, i want that dog conditioned to my specifications, not somebody else's. and the genetics are the most important thing in breeding, not always what you see on the ground.

All pups are a crap shoot. If you were going with a pup I would buy 3 or 4 from different lines, possibly a green female and 2 pups or some combination of the two. I would wonder about the breeder who let a good proven brood bitch go and if they were in their prime; it aint going to be cheap <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" /> I hope you are fully aware of all the pit falls, culling, exspenses that go with it- Enjoy <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />

Trying to raise ONE pup is difficult enough. Trying to raise 3 or 4 is CRAZY. It's impossible. If I can't do it and Cindy cant do it. That transaltes into : YOU CANT DO IT" !!!!!!! So dont talk stupid !!!!!

Some breeders do let go of great females due to downsizing and sometimes of age. Older bitches may be able to have at least a couple litters. Buyer beware, of course.

It's been repeated many times here that it takes extremes to produce the norm. In other words, the dog may be "too much dog" for you and your family. If you end up with an exceptional female that people beat down your door for puppies out of the bitch, then you can think about breeding. First and foremost, concentrate on finding a sound bitch that is good with kids that will fulfill the position you need her to. It's EXTREMELY tough to find a GOOD, stable protection dog, especially a bitch. Concentrate on that first and then see where that gets you.

I do commend you with the intelligent, thoughtful approach you've already displayed towards the idea of breeding!