Should I Consider Buying an older puppy?
High Jump Drop Kick Murphy CGC TKI, who went to his forever home late, and is turning into a DYNAMITE agility dog!!!
I recently received an email from someone wondering if it was a bad idea to consider buying older puppy as a sports prospect. I thought that this was something that might be of interest to other folks. So, with her permission, here is my answer.
Q. I was considering getting a puppy from a (well-known) breeder, but the puppy is the last one left from the litter, and 16 weeks old. Is this too late for proper socialization? Should I pass on this puppy?
A. It is COMPLETELY based on the breeder, and why the puppy is 16 weeks when it is placed. I have placed several puppies at 16 weeks, or older. And in each case, that puppy has been a “hold back puppy”, meaning that it was a puppy I was keeping for myself or my breeding partner, so one of the very best puppies in my litter, that I then chose to keep the litter mate rather than that one. The person who got that puppy, was getting one of the very best puppies in the litter, NOT a “left over puppy” that no one wanted.
AND while the puppy was with me, he got all the training that every one of my personal puppies gets. They went to classes, lessons, socialization outings, etc. While they, of course, also got time playing with their sibling and other family dogs, they were purposely penned separately, crated separately, and lived the lives of separate little students, getting plenty of one-on-one attention from me as well. The new owners basically got 6 or more free weeks of “Board and Train”! I usually am even more picky about where I place these puppies than I am about the rest of my puppies (which is STILL very picky!) specifically because they are very special puppies. Two of those puppies actually ARE agility dogs now!!!
Now, that does NOT mean that is true of ALL puppies that are still with a breeder at 16 weeks. Some puppies are still with their breeders because they simply have not been sold. The breeder may breed too many puppies or there may be other reasons that people do not jump to buy that breeder’s dogs. You need to do your homework. Or the breeder may not do a lot more than feed them, keep them clean, love on them and give them toys to play with. That sounds OK, but it’s not enough for a puppy of that age, in my opinion. This is such a critical period of development. If the puppy is not in his own home yet, it is the responsibility of the breeder to do this important training.
You would need to ask a lot of questions and find out WHY that puppy is still with the breeder, and what has been done with that puppy while it has been there. Has the breeder really been working on potty training? Has she been taking the puppy on field trips almost daily? This is really critical. Puppies MUST be getting out and about at this age. Has she been training the puppy? What does the puppy know? I would expect a 16 week old puppy to be crate trained, to be happy hanging out in an ex-pen and to use a potty tray reliably in that space, even if not completely potty trained in a larger area. (ANY 16 week old puppy is going to need continuing potty training work when moving to a new home, even if they are doing really well in the breeder’s home!)
The puppy should be walking happily on a lead, either on a harness or a collar. They should be comfortable with grooming on the table, being bathed, blow drying, and having their feet and nails trimmed. (though some may still be fussier about this than others!) My puppies also have been taught a sit and down by then. Some “old school” conformation show breeders won’t teach the sit and down to their puppies before they start showing. That is not the end of the world… those are easy skills to teach. But if not, the puppy should be learning to stack on the table instead, should allow their mouth to be handled and have started to “free stack” on the floor. Does the puppy enjoy meeting with people outside the home? If not, what is the breeder doing to address that shyness? That’s important!
All puppies progress at different rates. Some will be more advanced than others in certain areas. Some will be stars walking on a loose lead by 16 weeks and still swear at you in the bath tub, while others are sweet as pie for having their nails trimmed but have not quite caught on to that down on command. That is absolutely fine! What you want to see is that the breeder is working with them, that they are making steady progress and most importantly, that they are getting out and about for that so-critical socialization during this period! If all that is being done, getting an older puppy from a breeder can be a joy, and nothing to worry about at all!
One other note on older puppies. Do not expect to pay less for a puppy because it is older. The breeder, if she is a good breeder, has been putting a lot of work into that puppy. There is absolutely no reason for a puppy like this to be discounted. Think hard about why a puppy is being discounted if a breeder offers you a “discounted” puppy”!
High Jump Drop Kick Murphy “Enzo”, All grown up!!!
