How To Pick A Sport Puppy?

Okay, so excluding picking a dog from good lines... What do you look for when selecting a puppy who will later in life be (hopefully) competeing in something like agility?

Do you have any good links?

How would you test drive?

What do you look for when you are viewing the litter and picking a pup?

Thanks!

~Tucker

I first pick a breeder. One that competes in some sort of sport which requires some of the same attributes you are looking for.
Then look at their dogs lineage. See if it has a consistant types of titles which is in that type of sport they do with thier dogs. Look at health certifications on parents and at least 3 generations back. I like to go 4 or 5.

For me when choosing a pup I look at how outgoing they are. How attentive each pup is to me. I might bring a few things to check out the pup. For me it would be a wing and a small bumper. I want to see if that pup has drive for prey and is birdy. I want a natural retriever.I will play with each pup individually and watch them all together. I couple all of this with what the breeder says that pups over all temperment is like. Im pretty good at picking out pups. For me I also listen to my gut. Instincs will tell you alot if you have picked out puppies before. In this case I would take heed to what the breeder says and let your gut play a part in it too.

Testing for drive as in speed and agility at such a young age is really hard. If the parents have alot of drive and are agile then chances are thier pups will too. There is no guarantee but the chances are better when the breeder is breeding for it.

There are links to temperment testing the internet is so touchy I am afraid to search! If I am on tomorrow and no one has posted one I will.

Thanks for the info Mom .
Those links would be great...

~Tucker

http://www.nrta.com/breedforfoundation/temptest.html

http://www.volhard.com/puppy/pat.htm

To me the choice of a pup should be one that you can live and love 24/7 . I would never buy a hyper pup from hyper parents.

^Thanks for the input Grammy
I would never buy the most hyper pup because I wanted something to compete with, but I would like to know indications of who may grow up as a successful working dog.
Again, something you can live with always comes first .

~Tucker

Good point! Hyper and drive are two totally seperate things. My dogs have drive. They are not hyper.
One good way to make sure is find a breeder that keeps thier dogs inside and out. If thier well bred dog can behave in the house then you got a dog with drive. If that dog is uncontrollably wild you got hyper.

Thing is though. Some people view drive as being hyper. I want my dogs sitting there shaking in thier skin when we are hunting, training, or at competitions.
But when we are home I want them to be a functional member.
So few breeders keep thier dogs inside. At least in the type of dogs I am apart of.

Ask alot of questions and find a breeder who is like minded with you.

A good way to judge that is find the one with energy but you can grab thier attention. That pup should be attentive but happy having zoomies! Its so hard when you cannot be there for a day or two to really watch the pups. My pick of litter will be energenic, attentive (as attentive a 8 week old pup can be) not submissive but not too dominate, a little independant (that shows me intelligence), they figure things out quickly (how to go up and down stairs ect) they will do at least one retrieve, show alot of interest in birds or wings.

Even with all this its a hit or miss. That submissive one may very well be the smartest, obedient pup with lots of go.
Find a good breeder that is like minded with you. Take your time and visit many different breeders. Meet everyone of thier dogs. Call thier references and vet. If its a repeat breeding get information on how the previous pups ae doing. If its not check out the mother and what she has produced. Then the father. If I were you I wouldnt buy a pup from a bitch who hasnt already had one litter. Or stud for that matter. You want to see what kind of pups they are producing. If they are studding out contact the stud owner. Find out about other litters he has produced. You have the time to be completely thorough.

When I pick one of my pups for a competition home, I look for a puppy that is looking for something to do, one that sees me coming and comes running with a "WOOHOO! What's next?" attitude. I pick a pup that will chase the ball, AND bring it back (wants to play WITH people). One that will tug and tug and tug and not give up. One that is not sensitive to things moving under it's feet, and is willing to happily dive into something new.

You want persistance, you want a willingness to be with/play with people, and nerve to get through "scarey" situations. And most importantly, you need a breeder that will be honest with you and understands what you want from your dog.

First I want a good breeder, (I"ll use my aussie Jynx as an example) with aussies, there are so many health issues, health is the most important to me, and a breeder who health tests and is upfront(you don't find to many of those but thank god I did!) about health problems they may have encountered in their lines..Second, what's that breeder's dogs doing? In my case, jynx's breeder's "thing" is conformation, however, 98% of the dogs she sells, are doing it all, so they are very versatile.

Third, I want a breeder who can really 'peg' their puppies, they are with them for the first 8 weeks, not me, so I am going to really rely on what THEY think would suit me. (actually this was the first time I relied on a breeder to pick the dog for me!)..I told her what I wanted, first and foremost a dog I could live with, (if you can't live with them, you are going to be VERY unhappy with whatever you end up doing with the dog!!!) and my main interest would be agility, and explained my lifestyle..

Jynx's breeder also temp tests her puppies (another important thing for me)
I lucked out, and got exactly what I told her I wanted. I have to admit, being my first aussie, and the stuff she was telling me about this little spitfire scared the living heck out of me! Could I LIVE with that?? At 4 wks she was the first puppy to climb a 48inch xpen and go look for HER thru the house!!! She was full of energy , the last one to "sak" out, the first one "up", but affectionate and loving to humans, and a "watcher"..Nothing seemed to phase her, and she was curious and daring..

Soooo even tho I've gone a tad off track,,the biggest thing to keep in mind is first finding that GOOD breeder who can "peg" their dogs and matches them to the correct lifestyle/ambitions/expectations of the owner. Second, a dog you can LIVE with 24/7 because your going to live with it MORE than compete with it,,health testing etc, goes without mention, if you have that, you'll end up with exactly what your looking for.

Diane

WOW.

Thanks everyone! Lot's of great info

~Tucker

I forgot something VERY important! Structure! Structure is very, very important to an agility dog - good angles, good shoulder layback, strong hingquarters also with good angles.

Sorry - I focused on drive in my previous reply, but structure is critical as well to be able to get over those jumps, handle the landings, drive up the a-frame, etc.

spiritus is correct as well,,,if you don't have a dog with good structure (not all dogs are perfect buttttt) then you won't have good 'function'.
Diane

Okay, so body is something else I have to keep in mind.

What do you think of these guys as far as their dogs and structure and health etc.?

www.RMSbordercollies.com

~Tucker

So far I LIKE!

Thankies .

My parents said they need more time after I BEGGED them for the sheltie x, so we compromised that if all goes well, I get good grades, etc...

Then we may look at getting a puppy come summer.



~Tucker