Casa Hidalgo

Turco Andaluz, Spanish Water Dog, Perro Turco

Guide to breeder selection

So you have decided after thoroughly researching the breed, that the Spanish Water Dog is the right dog for you. great, but how do you go about finding a good one?

After much soul searching I decided that I should write a little something on finding a breeder as I don't have puppies year round to satisfy all the people that are interested in the breed. and when looking for a breeder we become victims of our bad decisions.

Below I have written a few questions that you should ask potential breeders and the difference in answers that will come from responsible breeder vs. backyard breeder.

First let us define what the difference in RESPONSIBLE BREEDER and  BACK YARD BREEDER is

A RESPONSIBLE BREEDER is truly committed to the betterment of the breed. He/she may be a larger professional breeder or a small hobby breeder. Number of dogs is not important, but it is the effort behind the dogs that is.

A RESPONSIBLE BREEDER spend a lot of money on dog events (show or trials) training, quality foods, and medical care for their dogs. They evaluate their dogs honestly and stand behind what they produce. they seldom make any profits from their litters.

A BACKYARD BREEDER May only own one or two females and hide their origins by calling them by cutesy names such as Donny or other name and they might be related such as sister and brother and display cutesy fotos, just remember all is not what it seems, they can also be a large commercial kennel. It's the attitude towards breeding that differentiates them from a responsible breeder.

A BACKYARD BREEDER is usually motivated by profit . They may cut corners where they can. They often skip important genetic testing, type evaluations and temperament tests, or are not even aware of the necessity of them. they seldom will discuss their dogs faults with you. Many are simply unaware of them, others will say their dogs are flawless. Some will say that a judge sometime ago said that their dog would surpass his father, or their uncle or such,  but they wont prove it in the ring because the dog might spook or desert them in the show ring.

Expect to be interviewed as you are interviewing

A RESPONSIBLE BREEDER will want to know a lot about you. He may ask you a lot of questions about your home and family. They will want to know your experiences with dogs, how you will house a pup, and why you want one. They are concerned with making sure that you are right for one of their puppies. They may even refuse to sell you one if they feel that are not the right home for one.

A RESPONSIBLE BREEDER will want to know what you are expecting out of your dog. They will want to know if you are looking to show or breed. If you are looking for protection or other working prospect. Or simply want a pet. They may refuse to sell you the dog you want, as it wont suite your needs. They probably require the pets to be altered. This is not a reflection on you, but simply that the breeders will know the puppies better than you and wants your match to be right from the start.

A BACK YARD BREEDER will not care why you want this puppy. He will sell you one with severe breed faults and tell you its show quality. He will sell you one with severe temperament problems as a working prospect. He wont care that you selected a strong character male, yet you are a submissive person that wont be able to handle the dog properly. He doesn't care whether you plan to breed your dog, as it wont be his problem when you do.

Pet quality vs. show quality. what is the difference?

Each litter only has a certain amount of top quality prospect puppies. Not every dog of a litter is show or breeding quality. Generally there is a difference in price, with pets being less expensive as they are generally altered. If the show ring is your goal, ask the breeder to help you select a dog with the potential to be a winner. Ask him why he thinks so, or why not. Generally it takes years of knowing the breed to be able to predict "winners".

A pet quality puppy is one that the breeder has deemed to have faults of the breed and is therefore not suitable for breeding . This should not mean that the puppy has serious health problems or temperament defects. Pet quality puppies enjoy the same pedigree as their siblings and should be expected to be as healthy and happy.

The breeder will help you select the one that is best for your needs. They generally don't sell their best potential pups to pet homes, when there are pet quality animals that will do just as well for you, and for a lot less money.

A BACK YARD BREEDER may claim that all puppies in every litter are "show quality" . Take you pick of them and you cant lose in the ring. Though this breeder has no way to guarantee that. Even those breeding for many years can only predict potential in a young puppy. Every puppy in the litter is often the same price, or females may be more than males, as you can breed her and get your money back right?.

The questions to ask.

What is the cost of the puppies?

While cost alone should in no way be the deciding factor of a purchase of a dog for your family, it's suggested you compare their price to the average for the breed. if the price seems rather high compared to the average, or seems "too good to be true" don't hesitate to ask why. Expect to pay more for show quality vs. pet quality. Expect to have a pet quality animal altered. Avoid any breeder who charges more for registrations and pedigrees.

A BACK YARD BREEDER will sometimes sell you a dog cheaply with "breeder terms". These terms usually mean that you breed the dog and give him a certain amount of puppies back. Few responsible breeders do this with total strangers. This is usually only done by back yard breeders who wish to take advantage of someone that doesn't know anything about breeding, thus perpetuating the back yard breeder market. Do NOT be talked into a breeding commitment that you do not want.

What do you consider the negatives and the positives of the breed?

A responsible breeder will answer you questions honestly. He will tell you the good points and the bad points about owning this breed. He will help you asses if this is the right breed for you, and if the type of dog he produces will fit with your family. He will be there throughout the life of your dog with his guidance and advise. He will inform you when he doesn't know an answer to something.

A back yard breeder will usually not answer many questions. He will only tell you great things about the dogs. They are perfect for everyone all the time. He will make things up if he doesn't know the answer. He may never talk yo you again once he has your money.

what is the pedigree behind the dogs?

A RESPONSIBLE BREEDER will openly discuss the pedigree behind his dogs. Most responsible breeders have gone through the trouble of obtaining quality animals from Spain to assure they are breeding correct animals. He will tell you the good and bad qualities about the dogs in the pedigree of his breeding stock. He has his breeding stock confirmed to be of breeding quality by qualified judges. He can evaluate a pedigree to find good mates for his dogs.

A BACK YARD BREEDER Will only know about the pedigree as he reads it. He often has no idea who those dogs are. He is usually more concerned with throwing "champion titles" in the pedigree at you than the quality of the dogs with them. He may use terms like , "imported" to validate that he has quality dogs. Imported is NOT necessarily a sign of quality, only a place of birth of the animal. Sometime imported doesn't mean from Spain either. He will tell you that confirming a dog isn't necessary  as "his dogs win big at American shows". What he neglects to mention is that often the judge does not know the breed well, or that only his dogs were in the competition there.

What are the parents strength and faults?

A RESPONSIBLE BREEDER will tell you all the faults that the Sire and dam have, as well as be able to asses them in the puppies. He will be able to show you the good and bad traits of each puppy and guide you in selection to best suit your needs.

A BACK YARD BREEDER will usually have "perfect parents", without faults. This is entirely impossible as no dog is perfect. They often have no understanding of breed type, or simply say they only breed for "pets" or "working animals". Even these deserve to be proper examples of the breed. They are not able to asses the puppies good  and bad traits nor help you select the right one for your family.

What is the goal of this litter?

A RESPONSIBLE BREEDER will be able to answer this question. They will tell you the specific reasons for the mating of this female with that male. They often use stud dogs owned by other breeders to ensure the best possible dog are paired together. They generally breed for themselves first and after selecting the best prospects offer the rest of the litter for sale.

A BACK YARD BREEDER will generally not have an answer to this question. the "goal" was simply to produce puppies. They may keep a puppy to have one they produced, but often sell the entire litter. Beware of "both parents on premise" advertisements. While many times the breeders own both the sire and dam, they don't generally make it a selling point. A back yard breeder wants to advertise you can see both parents, but usually this means they did not breed to the best possible male, but to the closest one.

How many litters do breed a year?

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