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(Q) When will
your next Weimaraner litter be? (A) Our next
litter will be from Silvestre Shotokan and
Silvestre Timescape. We expect puppies
January 2011
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(Q) When will
your next Hungarian Vizsla litter be? (A)
Our next litter will be from Bitcon
Skymaster with Silvestre and Silvestre
Wicked. Expecting puppies New Years
day.
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(Q) I want to
go onto your waiting list, can you put me on
it. (A) No...Let me explain firstly how our
waiting lists are formed. You can
register your interest now for our next
litter and we will tell you to send us an
email with your landline number, mobile
number and home address, email address and
we will record these in an enquiry book.
We never make a waiting list up until the
bitch who we are going to breed has been
mated then we make up a waiting list.
We will have our bitch scanned at day 30 to
confirm pregnancy. We encourage you to
visit us before the puppies are born.
We chat to you at length on the telephone.
After all this process and the bitch is
mated we will put you on the waiting list
and keep in contact with you. We also
do NOT put you on our waiting list if we
find out you are on someone else's waiting
list. As we always say you are wasting our
time and the other breeders time. Make
sure you want firstly a puppy off us.
If you do and can wait we will put you on
our waiting list.
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(Q) I live a
long way away and just can not visit you,
will this stop you from selling me a puppy?
(A) No it will not. We quite
appreciate that not every wants to drive
endless miles to see us and then again when
the puppies are 5 weeks old. Then
again to pick up the puppy. We
normally get a good feel of someone just by
talking to them. Call it sixth sense if you
like. Just call Rachel for a
good chat. If she feels that in fact a
visit is necessary then Im afraid it will be
a visit.
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(Q) What is
the best time to call Rachel for a long
chat? (A) The best time is during the day
time however because Rachel works as a dog
groomer some days she may not be able to
talk. For a general chat call 11am to
4pm. Or evenings after 7pm and not
after 8pm. Weekends not Saturdays at
all please. Sunday afternoons or
evenings are ok.
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(Q) What is a
time I should avoid? (A) Never call before
10am, or call between 4pm to 7pm or after
8pm weekdays. Never call Saturdays.
You will certainly annoy me if you call me
the times I have stated on here not too.
Mostly I say call back later.
The reasons are. This is a family home, its
not some business with business hours, you
call me I may be cooking, with my family, or
with friends. Do not call me late
evenings, we have had people call at
midnight for a puppy the reply is very
frosty!
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(Q) Once Im on
the waiting list should I call you (A) You
can always call me if you want an update, I
never mind. In fact its those people
who do call and make me remember them that
end up with a puppy. If you never call me
back I do not chase you up. I will
give you dates the litter is due to be born.
I will contact you once they are born.
Then I will tell you to give me about 3
days, and then call me. Its pretty
much first come first served on that day
when you call me. This is when we take a
deposit.
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(Q) How do
deposits work? (A) Once the litter are three
days old we will take a deposit. This
is how it works. We allow you one week
to send us a deposit. If we have not
received a deposit in that week we will
offer the puppy to someone else. We
take £300-00 Deposit. This deposit is
non-refundable. This means if you back
out from the sale of the dog we keep the
deposit. By taking such a large
deposit this stops people backing out and
making sure before they put a deposit down
on the dog they really
do want their
puppy. This shows commitment to that
puppy. If however the puppy does not grow
according to plan, and is not fit for
function or ill or dies, we will return the
deposit. If the puppy is being
exported to another country payment details
are different to sales in the United
Kingdom. See export questions below.
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(Q) When is
final payment due? (A) The final payment for
the puppy is due in Cash when you pick up
your puppy. If you do not like
handling cash you can put into our account
the final remainder 10 days before the puppy
is due to leave our home.
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(Q) Oops I
forgot to tell you Im going on holiday and
cant pick up my puppy is that ok? (A)
Because this has happened lots of times we
have now put in place the following.
All puppies in the litter are to be picked
up on a Friday morning or Saturday morning
between 9am to 12 noon. If a puppy has
to go to Scotland or Cornwall and owner
wishes to be at our home 7am that is fine.
If you can not pick up your puppy on the
date stated, please note we charge extra for
the puppy. We charge £10 per day for
every day past the Saturday we have to keep
the puppy. This is due to extreme time
wasters who have messed us around and its
unfortunate that because of the minority
that we have had to put this in place for
the majority.
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(Q) So how
many weeks over from the date of the puppy
leaving will you keep the puppy for? (A) I
can keep a puppy for as long as I like,
however I know that its detrimental to the
development of that puppy. A puppy by
7 weeks needs a new home, new experiences,
social skills etc. A HPR breed needs to be
in its home by 7 weeks, a toy breed such as
pug can not be placed in a home until 10
weeks after second vaccine. Toy breeds
are different to HPR as they develop
differently. See
HERE
for more info.
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(Q) Why are
puppy prices so variable on the internet?
(A) Quite simply the good ethical breeders
will of had more costs than puppy farmers,
mills, or people having one off litters as
they will not of under taken the health
tests on the parents that an ethical breeder
will of done. Also ethical breeders
put a lot of care into their puppies such as
social skills, care 24/7 and being with
those puppies. Teaching them basics
already. Keeping prices low is not the
way ethical breeders do things because if
you skimp on food, worming, good bedding etc
the puppies will not be in great condition.
Keeping a puppy area clean for eg means
being there and away from your normal job.
A puppy farmer/mill will put all the puppies
in a pen and walk away. They are throw
food a few times a day and given no social
interaction with family life, they are also
sold from 5 weeks to get rid of them just
when they need to play with their brothers
and sisters and mummy dog teaching them
skills we cant do. The time we put
into talking to you and answering questions,
giving you information on the breed all adds
up to why you will spend more on a quality
puppy than a puppy from an bad source.
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(Q) Can I meet
your dogs with no ties to having a puppy off
you. (A) Yes you can but at my convenience not
just because you have nothing better to do
that weekend. I will do
week day appointments which suit me, and
when I feel like it. Nothing gets me
more mad than a phone call on a weekend
saying Im near where you live can I just
drop in. Answer will always be NO! I
do not have time in my life to just give
away because you want an afternoon out.
Their are dog shows you can visit to see the
breed, their are game fairs, and Crufts
discover dogs. If you are at that
stage of wanting a dog but you are just not
sure if its the breed for you, then that is
when I say yes. I do not mind if you
walk away thinking this breed is not for me.
I just do not appreciate time wasters who
want an afternoon out a free cup of tea and
no intentions of having a dog, and believe
me their are many of you that do this to
breeders. Also please note, I am
never on my own when you visit my home and
you will not be left with free fun of my
house. We have friends who have had
items stolen after people visiting their
homes.
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(Q) Is it
right you have a contact of sales? (A) Yes
we do. We have always had a contact of
sorts for you to sign, such as breeding
endorsement contract. But after joining the
Kennel Club assured breeder scheme it is set
out how to word the contract to include
breeding endorsement in it. You can
request to see this before sale of your
puppy. I can email a word document over to
you.
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(Q) It all
sounds so formal now buying a dog why is
that. (A) We always feel the same way. But
the rules put in place are just to protect
us from the several nut cases that think
they want a dog and do not really want a
dog. Also so many people are dishonest
now a days that having all this paper work
in place is to protect the dog and us as the
breeder. We have to have a contract as
stated in the Assured breeder scheme, and
you have to sign it and we have to sign it.
This is the way things are done now a days.
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(Q) Do you
worm your puppies? (A) Yes we do, before you
get your puppy. Aged 3 weeks and 6
weeks and we also send you home with a
worming tablet which if cut in half will
last you one month.
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(Q) Do you
vaccinate your puppies? (A) NO!. A puppy
must not be vaccinated too young for various
reasons, first reason is the mother gives
anti bodies to the puppy at birth through
milk. These wean off by 8 weeks so there
fore normally vaccines are given from 8
weeks onwards by vets. We however
believe that a puppy should not be
vaccinated until 9 to 10 weeks of age.
Letting the puppy have at least two weeks in
your home before you vaccinate other wise
the move from its nest and straight away
vaccinating can be detrimental.
If your puppy has a reaction to the vaccines
we as the breeder can not be held
responsible for this. Your vet is the
one that vaccinated it. Puppies are
usually vaccinated with two vaccines, with a
two week gap. After the second vaccine
you are supposed to wait one week before
taking puppy out where others dogs are. All
puppies must be in some kind of
socialization class by week 16.
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(Q) Do you
micro chip your puppies? (A) Yes we do this
at 6 weeks and we register them with Pet
Log. This is a good form of
identification of your puppy. We do this as
a free service at the moment. If you decide
you do not want your puppy micro chipped,
please let us know before 6 weeks. No
price reduction will happen if you do not
want your pet micro chipped as this is a
free service offered by us.
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(Q) Are your
puppies Kennel Club registered? (A) Yes as
Kennel club assured breeders we have to
kennel club register them.
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(Q) Do we get
a pedigree? (A) Yes all our puppies are sent
away with a pedigree. A pedigree is a
chart showing you the parents, grandparents,
and great grandparents of your puppy, to
prove its a pedigree dog.
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(Q) Do I need
to insure my dog? (A) We send you home with
4 weeks free insurance, but we highly
recommend you take out insurance in full for
the year before you take your puppy home to
cover any unseen health problems which can
arise.
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(Q) Can I
breed from one of your dogs? (A) We send
every puppy home with a breeding endorsement
placed on their Kennel club document. This
means the progeny of that puppy can not be
registered with the UK kennel club.
The answer is then no it can not be bred
with. We do have a clause in our
contract however that if you show your dog
at championship shows and gain a 1st to 3rd
and qualify your dog for Crufts and show
your dog at Crufts, or you work your dog and
it wins working or field tests we will
consider lifting the breeding endorsement.
Also the dog must be hip scored at the
correct age, and be at least 2 years old. We
also encourage you to join a breed club to
adhere to their breeding ethics. If
all this is met, we will consider lifting
the endorsement, this does not mean
automatically we will. As some people
should never breed dogs. I would only
lift it if I thought you had the breeds
welfare at heart. We are custodians of the
breeds for the future generations to come so
we should think carefully what we breed.
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(Q) I would
like two puppies from you at once is this
ok? (A) Normally its a big no.
Although with some special owners we will
say yes. Those people that are experienced
in the breed, have great knowledge on dogs
and what they are letting themselves in for.
If not no wait and have one twelve months
apart. It is very important that you
understand having two puppies is DOUBLE
TROUBLE. It will make your life a lot
harder.
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(Q) When will
my bitch have its first season? (A) Every
breed line is different. In our breed
line it is approx 9 to 14 months.
Although once we knew a bitch that had a
first season at 6 months, and also the other
extreme of a bitch having a season at 18
months.
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(Q) When is it
best to spay a bitch? (A) If you can wait
for a bitch to have her first season, do so,
and then wait 3 months from that first day
of season and then have her spayed. If
you can not wait then at least wait until
she is 12 months old. It is
detrimental to spay a bitch too young. Some
vets are doing this at 5 months and the
bitches growth hormone is affected in
Weimaraners/Viz, they will grow too tall too
quick and be very gangly. The plus side of
spaying young is no mammary cancer, but I
have yet to be told of a bitch in
Weimaraners or Vizsla that has had mammary
cancer.
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(Q) When is
best to castrate a male? (A) In Weimaraners
my thoughts are changing. If you own one
male dog on its own, and it shows no signs
of dominance or sexual aggression then you
can wait until 14 to 18 months. If
your Weimaraner at 9 months shows itself to
be standing above male dogs in the park,
looking for a fight, wanting to hump the
other dog, get him castrated. Do not
wait he obviously is maturing quickly.
Most vets will castrate as early as 5
months, the down fall again is maturity is
not reached as quick, and it can affect
growth hormone. The problem which a
lot of trainers are telling owners to
castrate a dog to stop aggression, it wont
affect a Weimaraner this is incorrect
information. Aggression is something
different to sexual aggression. Sexual
aggression is something where the male is
wanting to mate any dog, pawing it, biting
it because it wants to hump it. Aggression
where a dog attacks another dog is not going
to be cured by castration. This is a
problem dog, and will need to live its life
in a muzzle when out. To stop all this
is down to your socialization skills with
your young puppy as young as 16 weeks, so
its all down to you. Also a Weimaraner that
is bitten by another dog young will never
forget it. So only socialize with dogs
of a friendly nature. In Hungarian
Vizsla they are different dogs all
together. A male can be castrated
between 14 and 18 months.
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(Q) Your
photos are great can I use one of them? (A)
All my photos are copyrighted to me, so no
you can not copy them or use them. If
you are a company wanting to use one email
me and tell me the page the photo is on and
I expect to be paid for use of my photo.
If you are a puppy buyer who has brought a
puppy and wants a picture and it may be your
puppy just ask me and I will say yes.
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(Q) If you
cant help me with a puppy where else can I
go? (A) Just ask me because I may know of a
litter and can tell you where to go.
When you are looking for a puppy these are
the things you should look for. 1)
Breeder is kennel club assured breeder. 2)
Breeder is a member of a breed club.
3) Hip scoring mum and dad. 4) You can see
mum with the babies. 5) You can meet
the breeder before pups are born. 6)
Clean home/premises. 7) Breeder
offers you diet sheets, and info. 8)
Does ask you questions. 9) Does care
what happens to puppies if you cant keep
them. 10) Shows a keen interest in the
breed. 11) Can show you the hip score
results, pedigree, and Kennel club forms and
will give you a copy of each at time of
sale. 12) Kennel club registers their
puppies.
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(Q) I do not
want a puppy but an older dog can you help?
(A) Sometimes we have back on our register
an older dog through no fault of its own,
sometimes families split and the dogs got to
find a new home. It is worth
contacting me to see if I know of one.
All dogs are usually kept in owners home
until we can seek a home for that dog.
If no we suggest you go to Hungarian Vizsla
Society or Club rescue, or Weimaraner Club
of Great Britain Rescue or Independent
Rescue. Their are pitfalls with taking on
some older dogs, so be prepared.
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(Q) Is it all
down to the breeding to get a good dog? (A)
I wish I could say yes, but the truth is
this makes up a large part of the dog yes,
but really what you do with that dog from 7
weeks onwards will determine how that dog
will act with other dogs when older, or
people. If you do not socialize your
puppy early enough it could show a nervous
nature, aggressive nature, etc. If you
neglect taking the puppy out early enough,
if you neglect its social skills with other
animals, including walking by farm animals,
if you neglect your puppy being cuddled by
children, do not expect it as an adult to be
a great dog. We can not be held
responsible for your lack of training.