Looking to buy a puppy after Xmas. Never done it before. Where do you start looking?

[Untang13d]

Dd 16 has been v poorly the past year and in hospital a fair bit. She has researched a lot as have we and think the time is right. Where do we start looking? Want to find one from a reputable breeder and not to be ripped off. It will be our first dog and thinking of a Cockapoo.

@PollyRoulllson speaks a lot of sense in her post upthread. A lot of posters have come down way too hard on OP. It just serves to put off other people who might later post here for advice: who wants to get bollocked for wanting a puppy?

And in all honesty yes, puppies are very hard work, some much more so than others. But even our worst puppy wasn't as difficult and demanding as any of our babies. And by 18 months most dogs are fairly civilised. By 3, even the most late-maturing breed is really quite grown up and nice to know. Whereas human 3-yr-olds....

OP, I will echo what others say: think about the breeds and their needs and how they'd fit in with your life. A good fit? Go and meet some. A bad fit? Think again.

As for breeders... Proper minefield. You can find decent breeders in Pets4Homes, but you need to do a LOT of due diligence. I have a very lovely dog who we found on there; her breeder home-checked all his buyers, has used his sense with regard to the stud, was happy for us to make repeated visits and so on (he's kept in touch). And you need to think what matters most to you. I'd rather have a puppy with a low co-efficient of inbreeding (COI), no health tests and and a dam in work at 5 and a sire still in work at 10, than one with a high COI, loads of health tests, and both parents very young and untried in any activity (agility, obedience, whatever work the breed was designed to do).

And not rescues, and not all rescue dogs, are equal. There is someone near us who wanted one dog to be a happy house pet and the rescue convinced them to take a pair who have multiple issues and cannot be off-lead. this wasn't their plan for dog ownership, but they're stuck for about a decade. Someone else acquired a failed gundog direct from the breeder/trainer, young adult, trained, wonderful disposition, just not cut out for the work, and they couldn't be happier.

Keep an open mind, talk to experienced dog owners in the park or wherever, and good luck.

*and not ALL rescues, I meant to say.

OP:

Get a small lab or a spaniel. That's the safest bet, I think.

And I'm sure you know that the first few weeks, you just need a tiled floor, a good floor cleaner (there's a special Flash for pets one), a good system and to understand you're looking after a baby.

There will be challenges and yes for sure tears and upset and self-doubt and way too much spent on dog items along the way, but in the end, you'll have a beautiful loving member of the family for life.

Think about the adult dog when you make your choice. Good luck 😘🌲

And visit at least three breeders. You need to see both parents. The pedigrees. And the breeder should give you a puppy pack snd various other things and ask about you and decide if you'll be a good match.

Just had another thought. Breed clubs and their associated FB groups or similar are useful places for finding out about breeders/types etc.

Some breed clubs manage puppy finding lists as well, which is how we got our first pedigree. We waited for 18 months on the list and then the breeder contacted us, at which point we went through a very strict approval process over the phone and then again when we went to meet the pups for the first time.

Please don’t get a puppy. You say you’ve enough to cope with. Puppies (and dogs) are very hard work and it sounds like you’ve got enough on your plate.

Don’t want a cockerpoo because it’s trendy but because we’ve started researching breeds and it’s the breed a few people we know have and feel it would suit our needs

Well you can't have done that much research because a cockerpoo isn't a breed.

It's a cross breed and as such, its traits and characteristics are hard to predict.

@Aphrodite31

And visit at least three breeders. You need to see both parents. The pedigrees. And the breeder should give you a puppy pack snd various other things and ask about you and decide if you'll be a good match.

Accepting that none of the advice anyone can give applies in ALL cases, it is just a 'balance of probabilities' - this is what makes puppy buying such a minefield ...

Although it would obviously be nice to meet both parents, many (most?) good breeders don't own the sire of the puppies - they choose the best dog for that particular bitch, wherever he lives, and use them.

Owning both parents is far more the remit of people who are just producing puppies for money, same dog to same bitch each time, and is definitely not something I would see as necessary, and often not desirable either.

I do feel that someone who wants a cockerpoo that doesn’t know that puppy farms exist probably hasn’t don’t nearly as much research as they need to do. You might think you’ve done a lot but I’d say you need to do more still.

I wouldn’t get a cockerpoo or anything crossed with a poodle tbh. Do you have time for a puppy? They are hard work, you need to be at home a lot too, I have a 15 month old golden retriever pup.

Dogs all have history puppies/dogs/rescue dogs it’s all about the breeder if you’re getting a pup (meet loads with their dogs and previous pups) then once you get it home it’s all about how you train/expose your pup to things so research training and book classes so you can give your pup the very best start. All be consistent and calm reward calm anyway just do as much prep as you can before, once you’ve chosen your breed and met the breeders make sure they live at home with a family or have kids visiting ask lots of questions. Don’t settle for the first pup offered either

Good luck 🤞

Hi, first time puppy owner here. I knew my breeder already and he gave me loads of advice based on what he knew we were like as a family. He also recommended champdogs website to go on. You can register on waiting lists specific to the breed you want.
Have to be honest and say I found it really tough despite all the research but ours is now 5 months and all the effort is starting to pay off.
It's so easy for people to say "get a rescue" but actually it's not for a first time owner. We were but dog savvy, sometimes working long hours and had one child slightly nervous of dogs. Rescue centres don't want to know as soon as you mention that so that's why we went with a puppy.
As for sleepless nights, we had exactly 4 then she settled down. She is 99% housetrained and has been for a couple of months. Oh, and she's beautiful. Good luck with all your research and your new puppy xx

Being more frank than I generally am, it’s worth bearing in mind that the Doghouse topic is one which is avoided by many dog owning Mumsnetters. There’s a reason for that.

Very true. Some of the posts on this thread (and on others) represent the very worst of Mumsnet. The Doghouse would be the last place I would look for advice about dogs due to that sort of thing.

Having said that, I think the posts by PollyRoulllson and dustofneptune are excellent. It's a shame the OP had to wade through so much nonsense to reach those helpful words.

@Untang13d I hope you find the pup that is right for you and your family. I have had both rescues and purebred dogs, all of them delightful.

@Untang13d

Don’t want a cockerpoo because it’s trendy but because we’ve started researching breeds and it’s the breed a few people we know have and feel it would suit our needs.

A cockerpoo isn’t actually a breed. It’s a mongrel/crossbreed with a fancy name, and like all dogs will take on characteristics from both parents. Some may lean more towards one parent than another, so it’s a good idea to read up on the breed characteristics of both . Then you need to take into account the individual temperaments of the parents.

I have a 16 month old White German Shepherd and it was quite tough for the first month whilst she was toilet training, but then she just blended into the family and was much easier to control than the kids 🤣

We didn't bother with a crate, she slept in the kitchen at first, then when she was toilet trained we let her sleep in the lounge. Now she sleeps on the floor in our bedroom. She is so well behaved and has been an absolute godsend for my mental health. She is a bit of a velcro dog and follows me around everywhere, but I kinda like it 😁

The OP might not be open to a rescue but it might make others open their minds.

This lovely boy came to us over 10 years ago as young adult rescue. He had been through several homes and the rescue paired him with a foster home for assessment. He spent 3 weeks with a Rottweiler, a cat and 3yr old before he came to us.

He's never put a paw wrong since the moment he arrived. Fully housetrained, obedient, lead trained, non-destructive, dog-friendly and the kindest and most balanced dog you could hope to meet

He's old and creaky now and we know we'll lose him in the next couple of years, but he was an instant family dog and we're going to miss his presence. We adore him.

'Owning both parents is far more the remit of people who are just producing puppies for money, same dog to same bitch each time, and is definitely not something I would see as necessary, and often not desirable either.'

I meant see as in see a photo of and have all information about. I presumed sire from another breeder. Sorry as wasn't clear.

@ChocolateDeficitDisorder your dog is stunning

@MintyGreenDream

@ChocolateDeficitDisorder your dog is stunning

Thank you.

A £150 donation got me the best dog ever.

Actual 'puppy farms' are rare in the UK.

No they are not. Ask the staff at Many Tears rescue, or any other rescue and they'll tell you that. They're particularly common in Wales.

Most buyers don't know that it's a farm that their puppy was raised, that's not where they go to buy the dogs. The 'front' is usually a family home where there's some 'valid' reason that the pup isn't with Mum or that they bought the pup but can't keep it for some reason.

Don't underestimate greed or ignorance.
deanfarmtrust.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/DFT_RunforFreedom_WK05_puppy-farming_01.pdf

@ENDOFMESSAGE unfortunately that’s just not true. There are loads.

@ENDOFMESSAGE

Most of what people call 'puppy farms' are just backyard breeders. Actual 'puppy farms' are rare in the UK. I suspect the 'rescue dogs' people pay hundreds to import from places like Romania are in fact just puppies coming straight from real puppy farms.

I suspect you know absolutely nothing about what you’re talking of!

Look up the breeder on the Kennel Club register and or get a puppy from somewhere tried and recommended.

@ENDOFMESSAGE

Most of what people call 'puppy farms' are just backyard breeders. Actual 'puppy farms' are rare in the UK. I suspect the 'rescue dogs' people pay hundreds to import from places like Romania are in fact just puppies coming straight from real puppy farms.

This is actually true about "Romanian " rescue pups

A lot are coming from puppy farms in Eastern Europe and made to look like rescues, to gullible brits.

We got our dogs via the Kennel Club listings.

We travelled 3 hours for one dog and 2.5 hours for the other...which added up a lot with weekly visits so make sure you have time to visit lots.

The breeders could ask you a ton of questions about your set up and lifestyle; they may not think you are suited to their puppies so be prepared for that. I had a long list of questions for the breeders with our specific requirements.

The first six weeks are super tough, they will pee everywhere and no matter what your kids say, they will not clean up pee!

Get the best insurance possible, it could be about £50 a month (postcode dependent).