I've been looking for awhile now, can't see, said the blind man...

no, no, what i mean is i can't seem to find a forum about puppy selection

How to go about it...

do go and check him out before the 8 weeks, someone told me i had to go every week t'ill he's 8 weeks, yaeh! right! the bitch (female dog)will really let me!

What if you buy one when you are really far...

What should i look for?
Should i know in advance what i am going to use it for?

Does it matter if i don't want to breed? - i've heard that if you don't want to breed they give you a less quality???

If the parents are titled do you pay more?
and why?

Well finally i will probably get a dog that is far from me, unless someone knows a good one around the area of MONTREAL, QUEBEC.

What should i look for?

Thanks to anyone that will input!

(please if someone have puppies for sales abstaine - or whatever you say that word in english -)
right now i just don't want to make the same mistake and get a REAL GERMAN SHEPHERD DOG.

THANKS
REG.

Well, Montreal is within striking distance of good kennels in the Upstate New York and New England area, so there are *much* worse places that you could live to be trying to get a good dog. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Many of the serious handlers here have bought dogs via long distance - it's just a fact of life. There are some breeders and kennel that you can trust with your money to deliver you the dog that you've both agreed on over the phone, plus getting a video tape of the dog in question being worked is a good tool to guide you in a purchase.

I myself no longer trust scores to buy a dog - I've seen too many out right gifts bestowed by unethical judges and breeders to trust them anymore.

It will help a lot if you decide before hand what you want the dog for - SchH, AKC Obedience, tracking, personal protection....the list goes on and on.

From my own personal experience, if you're looking for a real working dog, this site's owner here ( Ed Frawley ) produces outstanding dogs and backs his dogs up with a great warrenty that he'll actually honor - a rare thing in dogdom, nowadays. My hat is off to Ed for that.

Todd Gaster who frequently posts here also gets a personal recommendation from me if you need a good dog, but his canines can be a real handful and you'll need to meet his requirements for ownership - my current work dog is from Todd and I'm thrilled to own him ( my club helpers that have to work my dog are somewhat less thrilled with Todd, however <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> )

No, you see, you don't get it, What i want to know is:
HOW TO SELECT A PUPPY
not
WHERE TO BUY ONE
but thanks for the advice....it's a really good one.-thought about that one.

what i want to do is:
SEARCH AND RESCUE
so any dog with (WHAT?)DO I NEED?

All i want to do is find people that is lost in the woods (lots around here)- not criminals - BUT if i do come around one, i would prefer not that my dog went for it (look what happen to JERRY LEE)

Serious handlers has actually bought long distance???

How do you go about choosing?

Here are a couple of links for selecing a working prospect.

PAWS

and

K9 Services Service Dog Selection

Kevin has some great info on service dog selection. You can disregard most of the info on bitework/aggression as you are looking for a SAR candidate, but the rest is very applicable.

Also, like Will said, find a good, reputable breeder and take their advice. Reputable breeders/brokers will readily provide you with references and will not mind you 'asking around' about them. If a good dog person knows what you want and what you are expecting the dog to do, they will be able to set you up with an appropriate dog, whether they're next door to you or 1500 miles away. Good luck.

Originally posted by Regine Brackley:
No, you see, you don't get it, What i want to know is:
HOW TO SELECT A PUPPY
not
WHERE TO BUY ONE
but thanks for the advice....it's a really good one.-thought about that one.

what i want to do is:
SEARCH AND RESCUE
so any dog with (WHAT?)DO I NEED?

All i want to do is find people that is lost in the woods (lots around here)- not criminals - BUT if i do come around one, i would prefer not that my dog went for it (look what happen to JERRY LEE) Finding the litter (and breeder) is half of the puppy selection battle. Yes, there are certain traits you should be looking for, but finding a breeder that has produced dogs that are doing what you want (SAR) is going to be a good step in the right direction. Sure there are people with dogs in SAR from the pound, but those are total luck cases.

As for the puppy traits, hunt drive, problem solving ability, EXCELLENT EXCELLENT EXCELLENT nerves, strong play and food drives to start.

If you are interested in SAR have you already been meeting with a group in your area? A lot of times you will be able to find dogs through other handlers who know of litters around. Having someone who has been around in SAR for a long time help you to evaluate the litters isn't a bad idea either. As impartial as humans may want to be, sometimes having someone else to play the rational one can be a good thing.

And yes, some people buy pups sight unseen. I have done it and the dog is perfect for what I asked for and wanted to do with the dog. It all goes back to a reputable breeder that has enough knowledge to be able to look at an 6-7-8 week old pup and see what the dog has the capability of being. It is then up to you to groom and shape those behaviors you desire as the pup grows.

If you are to just pick a dog from a litter there is also an article on the leerburg website that speaks of doing puppy testing while at the breeder ie...dropping loud item behind puppy to see reaction, putting puppy in new room to see reaction...I did all these tests in the article on my new dog and I am sooo pleased, he has the temperment I was looking for and the energy to go with it. NO I did not get a GSD, and glad I didnt I sure am not ready for one...maybe in a few years.