What to Expect!
Puppy purchase requires a deposit and a signed puppy contract. If some tragedy were to befall your puppy while in our care your deposit will be refunded. Payments can be made by wire transfer, credit card (through pay pal) or check. Typically, we put a puppy on a 24 hour hold to give prospective buyer time to read the contract. The 24 hour period is also to give you time to contemplate the purchase of a puppy. This is a big decision and commitment on your part and you need to think about how a puppy will impact your life both positively and negatively.
Puppies are all individually marked with their purchase price. If the puppy is available it will have a price, if marked "TBD" it simply hasn't been priced yet, but is available. If it is marked "sold" it has a deposit and signed contract by its new owner.
When you receive a puppy from us, it will be up to date on all vaccinations and worming. It will have health records, registration documents and a schedule of necessary follow up boosters. If picking up in person or by ground transport we also include a starter of puppy food. If shipping by air, we will include food if allowed. Air shipments will have puppy documents emailed in advance to new owners. with the hard copies attached to the crate. All fees must be paid before the puppy leaves our care.
Puppies will be started on crate training, potty training and well socialized using ENS and then a tried and true program of puppy stimulation and socialization.
That being said, we encourage you to be well prepared for your new family member. There are many types of early puppy training and most can yield good results IF you are consistent. Consistency is the most valuable ingredient in any program.
Our breeding program does not include dogs with high drive dispositions. Australian Shepherds with "high drive" really need to be in the hands of professional owners. Our dogs are low to medium drive, which does not mean they are "couch potatoes", they are in fact very active and compete in all related Aussie events. The difference is they are content to relax and enjoy life regardless of the pace.
MDR1 is a prevalent issue in all collie type dogs. This includes Australian Shepherds. Even though a dog has tested free of the gene mutation, ALL Australian Shepherds should be treated with the MDR1 protocol. You are the puppies owner and you may have to insist that your veterinarian treats your dog with MDR1 in mind. There have been many cases where dogs tested clear of MDR1 and had a severe reaction to certain drug therapies. Frankly, while everyone has opinions on why this can happen, we really don't have an answer. It is much better to be safe then sorry and it is not difficult to avoid the drug therapies that can cause a reaction.
We ship puppies across the USA and sometimes to other countries. Millions of puppies are flown across the U.S. annually. With a professional team in place, flying is less stressful then driving a pup across country. Our shippers, vet, and airlines are all USDA licensed professionals. Shipping costs include the cost of the crate, health papers, insurance, transport to the departing airline and airfare. Most domestic shipping costs range from $350. to $450. You will pick your puppy up at the designated cargo terminal. Because puppies only fly within certain temperature and weather regulations, the details of your flight can only be confirmed 10 days before the targeted flight date. If inclement weather cancels your puppies flight, it will simply fly the following week.
As preparation for your new puppy begins, I have compiled some useful information that will increase your knowledge and help you with a smooth transition. Having countless conversations with new owners I find that I have forgotten some of these useful tips, as I often think I have already said it in a previous conversation. That being said, I am more than eager to speak to you in depth about any questions or concerns, this is just for your review in case we didn’t cover the topic.
All of our puppies are intensively vaccinated, wormed and given coccidia prevention. Your medical record of these procedures will be emailed to you a couple days before you receive your puppy. In all cases, at 10 weeks your puppy must have a veterinary exam, vaccine boosters and wormed. Bring your medical record to your vet so he/she can make appropriate recommendations. I do not recommend your puppy be in dog infested areas until at least 4 months (dog parks, doggy day care). In fact, at the vet’s office, I recommend carrying your pup both outside and inside so his/her feet don’t touch the ground. While this might be overboard, I am the better safe than sorry kind and you don’t know what other dogs may have tracked to the vet’s office. While the subject of immunity is fairly complicated, it is best understood as from 0 days to 4 months the immune system is being created much like building blocks, each step is incredibly important.
Your registration papers will come with your puppy either handed to you or attached to the puppy’s crate. If you need any help filling them out, give me a call. If you would like me to register the pup for you, I will be glad to, but you need to choose a registered name ahead of time.
Extreme cold and heat are both hard on young puppies, one thing to watch for is the surface that they walk on…. Hot concrete will burn their pads, similarly, ice can frost bite their pads.
Puppies will be on a feed regiment of Diamond Naturals Chicken and Rice All Life Stages (a bag will accompany your pup) 1/2 to 3/4 of a cup, 3 times daily. If the stool is too soft, back off the amount a little. You can continue with our brand of puppy food or use the food you get with the puppy to transition to your choice.
If you are picking up your puppy, I will expect to know a date and time and a means of communication while you travel. While I am primarily at home; home consists of 40 acres, acres so good communication will be a big plus. PLEASE smell like a human being ... heavy perfumes are really confusing to an 8 week pup. When picking your puppy up, please understand we are not "open to the public". We are a remotely located ranch in a very private setting. I do not allow my own children to bring their dogs to visit us, nor will I allow visitors dogs out of their vehicles. I want to greet you warmly when you arrive, but I can not allow infractions of the bio security that keeps all of the puppies in my care from an accidental exposure. While I know this may seem very strict, it should in fact give you a confident understanding of how I am protecting your puppy as well as the rest of the litter. To expound on that a bit, you will certainly get to see the sire and dam of your new puppy, but your puppies litter mates will be inside and not available for viewing. I am happy to explain in further detail the reasons and science behind these restrictions.
If I am flying your puppy to you, you will want to bring a garbage bag, handi wipes, scissors and a towel or two to the airport. Your puppy will be in an airline approved crate with water, food and clean bedding when he/she boards the plane. The crate is yours to keep. Once the puppy is on board, no one is allowed to open the crate unless there is a medical emergency, so he/she may have had an accident or a “food fight”. The crate door will be zip tied closed, making scissors necessary to unfasten it. As previously stated, your paper work and puppy food will be taped to the outside of the crate. (I keep copies of all this, so no worries if it is lost in transit)
Flight schedules are based on weather conditions. Airlines make rules about when puppies can fly based on forecasted temperatures. The safety and well being of your puppy is their priority. For this reason, booking flights, and arrival times are not available until 7 to 10 days prior to flight days. Our typical flight days are Tuesdays and Fridays. At the time of contract I will give you the proposed flight day. If for some reason your puppy’s flight should be cancelled, it will be rescheduled in 2 to 7 days at no additional cost. So having a flexible schedule to pick your pup up from the airport is helpful. When I receive your booking I will email you the info. with your flight number, time of arrival, air waybill number and pick up location. Your air waybill number is what you use to claim your puppy as well as an ID. You can track your puppy’s flight using the Air Waybill Number as well. I am convinced that flying a puppy is much less stressful than driving a puppy long distances. The sensation of flight causes the puppies to sleep and they all arrive ready to jump out of the crate and “go to the party”.
Your puppy will be started on potty training. Weather permitting they go outside after every meal for at least 20 minutes. While in the nursery pen they have a “potty box” that they have been taught to use. Our potty box is much like a large litter box with wood shavings in it instead of kitty litter. Wood shavings are available in most tractor supply type stores. You can utilize this training to make life a little easier with a young puppy. A similar box can be placed in your garage for night time potty breaks during inclement weather. Also, it makes a great addition to an exercise pen in the kitchen. If you want to designate a “spot” in the yard you would prefer them to use you can place a patch of wood shavings there as well.