Congratulation Cathy
You're going to get so much fun

What do you guys think of this food for puppies? It's what Tanner eats and is labeled for all life stages. I know it's not the "best" but Tanner has done very well on it and the price is great. I'm open to buying a second food for a growing pup.

http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-reviews/natures-domain-dog-food/

Change of plans. I', going to be picking up pup on my way to Missouri. It'll spare pup the stress of shipping and a really long drive to Missouri. He'll only have to go through two 4 hour days of driving versus three 7-9 hour days. It also reduces the hotel stays with him to one night. I figure I'll put him in an airline crate in the front seat(strapped in) and Tanner will have a hammock seat cover in the back seat.

It just means that I miss out on two weeks of socialization and puppy getting to know me. I actually have my last day of class Dec.19 so I would have my schedule completely open for pup. It's just such a very long drive. Has anybody made that long a drive with a small pup and found it to be easy?

I decided to feed pup the same Natures Domain food that Tanner gets mixed with wet food for the extra calories.

I didn't get my pup until he was 9.5 w/o and he did fine with socialization. The breeder did stuff with him and he was happy and well adjusted when I picked him up. He did great on the 4 hr ride home, too - after he puked 1/2 hr into the trip. The breeder had sent along a couple of disposable absorbant 2' x 2' pads so it was simple to just swap one out. Be careful about exercising him in normal dog places due to the risk of picking something up. Actually, if it's just 4 hrs then I wouldn't stop to let him out along the way unless he needs it.

Buy some ear plugs or head phones for that trip!

I like to have my pups shipped. They howl themselves silly in the plane, by the time you pick them up crate breaking is 3/4 accomplished.
Of course, then you can't pick out your pup yourself, something which is priceless.

You will be able to pick your pup, and see the dam too. And if the whole place is a disaster and the dam is a disaster you can drive away ---- maybe!!!

 Quote: Betty Landercasp

You will be able to pick your pup, and see the dam too. And if the whole place is a disaster and the dam is a disaster you can drive away ---- maybe!!!

I was planning on calling them this week to pay the rest of the amount but you just reminded me that it might not be the best idea. The more I talk to them the more I like the breeder but plenty of people have showed up to something completely different than they expected.

I made the decision to not buy this pup.

I would still really love to get him but while I was giving notice to my current management company I showed them a picture of the pup. "Is that a Shepherd pup? We don't rent to those". We're currently butting heads over prorating the last month so I thought it might just be that.

I went around and showed a handful of rental management companies a picture of an adult Malinois and their response was pretty much identical. "That's a German Shepherd mix. We don't allow those". Even after explaining that it was a different AKC recognized breed and even showing them the AKC website listing it as a different breed they were not willing to let someone rent who had a Malinois. I understand a few companies being ignorant but I went around to 7 of them and got the same response. These weren't apartment complexes either. They were the house and condo rental companies that I expect to have to use for the next several years.

I have to seek out the landlords that don't have a long list of banned breeds but practically everybody bans Pit Bulls, German Shepherds, Dobermans, and Rottweilers. I don't want to put myself in a situation where housing is impossible to find. I'm going to wait until I get to the school in January to get a pup.

I am so sorry

(Renting really is the pits.)

Very sorry to hear that. Hearing about situations like this just makes me sad and angry. I'm not sure who to be more angry at, the ignorant rental agencies or the clueless or evil owners of those breeds who failed to properly train them or shape their behavior properly that caused the rental agencies to create those unfair policies.

Yeah, it's back to square one on a pup but at least I'm not frantically trying to find a place that will rent to my "German Shepherd mix".

I forget that other people might not have ever heard of these breeds.

I think I'm going back to an easily trainable breed with some drive but there's so much variation in temperaments among those breeds that I can't even attempt to find a pup long distance. I wouldn't mind a Poodle but some lines are just plain nasty as far as health and temperament goes. A hunting test bred lab would also be fun and are very versatile. I've been looking at Australian Cattle Dogs as well but I've honestly never been around one for more than about 5 minutes. I really "click" with terriers well but I've never been around the more "herdey" personality dogs. I know I don't want a Border Collie or any of the more "sensitive" breeds.