Picking new puppy "pick of the litter" - only 3 days to pick?

[Alex]

Hello All!
We have been wanting to get lincoln a sibling for a long time and have finally decided on a sheepadoodle. We found a reputable breeder with great reviews. The litter is due in March and we put in a deposit to have pick of the litter. The breeder is giving us only 3 days after birth to pick our puppy. This seems incredibly fast to me as we won't know anything about the personality, etc. Is this common? The only reason I can think of is that some people request to have their puppy's tail docked which we WILL NOT be doing but if someone else does the breeder would need to dock it in the first few days. Is three days an accurate timeline for pick of the litter? Thank you!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

There's no possible way you could know anything at all about a puppy at 3 days old. And I have never heard of any breeder asking that people choose a pup at three days old. I've never heard of having people pick their pup before they are at least 5 or 6 weeks old.

No offense to anyone, but it surprises me that a "reputable" breeder would be docking tails, whether someone wants it done or not. They can't be shown, no there's absolutely no reason to do it, period. 

[Stacy]

I so agree with Karen about the tail docking. It's one of the reasons I have a doodle and not a poodle. I can't abide the thought of amputating parts of my dogs for purely cosmetic reasons (I know, I know, it wasn't always cosmetic. But for my dogs it would be.) I know you said you wouldn't be doing this - so that isn't aimed at you. I just get very passionate about loving them the way they're born. 

I know that general consensus is to wait until they are older to pick the right puppy. And I definitely wouldn't pay a premium to have pick of the litter and then have to choose within three days. But all other things equal... sometimes I wonder if it's more nature or nurture that creates the right dog. How would you feel if the situation was reversed and you had last pick? I hypothesize that you would love that puppy just as much. Katie was the only girl available in her litter. I don't feel like I somehow missed out by not getting to pick between all the puppies at 6 weeks. I also went to pick up Ava sight unseen. And there was never a question in my mind that I was going to love her so so much. Maybe I've just gotten lucky with the right dogs, but I kind of think that my dogs have turned into the dogs I needed them to be, because that's what they do. 

And maybe I'm way off base. But I have several examples of this. My dogs are kind of couch potatoes, because I'm kind of a couch potato. They're happy to go to the park, but they don't need a daily run. I have a friend who got a puppy to be her running buddy. And that dog is a world class athlete - because from the time he was little (too little, in my opinion) she was taking him out to run. And now he needs that every day. 

Like I said, I may be completely wrong (it wouldn't be the first time) but I will say that in all my dogs there has never been a single time that I have chosen between two or more dogs. I think the guilt of leaving someone behind would be more than I could take. But every one of my dogs has been my best friend, who I wouldn't trade for the world. 

I guess that doesn't really answer the question of if it's ethical to make you pick when they're still so little. I don't know the answer to that. But I do think it would be possible to choose a pup at that time and end up with the dog you're meant to have. 

[Alex]

Thank you Stacy,
I appreciate your response very much. I did clarify with the breeder and she said that most people ask for the sheepadoodle puppies to be docked so she automatically does it on all her puppies within 48 hours. I will not be docking my puppy and I don't care whether it's male or female, I will love him or her no matter what. I do not agree with docking tails but my research has shown that unfortunately many people do request docking for sheepadoodles. I don't think that this breeder is a bad person or a bad breeder as she has been extremely responsive and helpful, has excellent reviews and provided pictures of the parents and past litters on request. We will pick when the litter is born and I will be grateful and blessed for whatever baby I end up with! Thank you again for your kind words.

[Stacy]

I know you will love your new baby!

I will say one last thing for the sake of playing devil's advocate. I hope that you looked at the "what to look for in a good breeder" flyer that Adina put out recently. Katie and Ava's breeder was also very nice with good communication, and a pretty website, and pictures of the parents, and glamour shots of the puppies. She has a lovely home and property. And like a good car salesman she knew all the right things to say to a potential puppy buyer to put them at ease. But it wasn't until I got Ava that I realized that all was not as it appeared.

They take really good care of the puppies for the first eight weeks, but they treat their "breeding stock" like livestock. Ava was completely shaved down. She didn't know what a bed or a couch were. She had never been to the park to play with the other dogs. And she was so very scared of everything. She had a raging ear infection when I picked her up. And she has some other health concerns that we're working on, but that would have precluded her in my mind from being a dog that should be bred.

She's so sweet and gentle and loving. And she's funny and loves to play and snuggle and hog the whole bed. It makes me very sad to think that she spent her first six years in a kennel without the life that she deserves. And when I bought Katie I inadvertently said that it was okay with me if that was her mother's life. I don't regret my girls. But I do regret not doing a better job picking a breeder. If I ever go this route again I would definitely follow the guidelines to pick a good breeder. And ideally I think I would pick someone who uses guardian homes. Dogs that live full time with their families and just occasionally go to the breeder to have puppies. 

I think sheepadoodle puppies are the cutest! I have a friend whose puppy is about 12 weeks old now, and I would love to just kidnap her and cuddle her forever! 

[Amy and Annabelle]

I do kind of agree with you about dogs adapting to their owners lifestyle. It may not always happen that way, but it does happen. I think Annabelle is the perfect dog for us because, she is like the canine version of us. She is happy doing whatever we do. If we want to go on a 3 mile walk, she is game. If we want to sit on the couch and binge watch a favorite tv show, she is up for that as well. She even seems to love long car rides, which we do a lot of in warmer weather. 

[Stacy]

I did spay my girls. And I would agree with you if I spayed them because I didn't want to deal with them going into heat or needing to avoid male dogs. I had them spayed because of very clear and specific health benefits associated with spaying them. I wish they didn't have to go through that. But I also don't want to lose one of them from pyometra, which is completely preventable. Not to mention the cancer risks that come with an intact female. I agonized over spaying Ava, and then I almost lost her because I was trying to help her. 

I really do try not to judge. People do what they feel they need to do with their pets. But there is research into the long term effects from docking and cropping, and cat declawing in particular. And the only reason I can come up with to do this is cosmetic. There is no health benefit can I can see. I know that historically dogs had their tails cropped so they didn't get caught in the underbrush when they were hunting. But the closest my dogs are going to get to that kind of underbrush is a lightly wooded trail at the park. To each their own, but it's not for me. 

A lot of people do things with their pets that I wouldn't do with mine. I'm not so arrogant to think that the way I do things is the only right way to do things. This is just my personal opinion. And I'm not out to try to convert anyone. I was just sharing an opinion. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Spaying (as well as neutering) is not "mutilating", there are clear and proven health benefits. It's also pretty cruel to leave a dog intact and then prevent them from acting on their hormonal drives. It has nothing to do with convenience, it has to do with being a responsible pet owner. it's also required by most reputable breeders and all reputable rescues and shelters, you have no choice in the matter. 

[Ginny Nightingale]

huh? Spaying is mutilating?? What the? Spaying is to control the dog population and to preserve the dog's health--cancer rates are higher in unspayed females. Docking a tail is purely for looks. Not the same at all.

[Ginny Nightingale]

Very weird and a red flag to me--I can see the point about the tails (although I don't agree with it, some people want that sheepdog look)--and that would probably be the reason, but what a bad way to match up pups to families---I know of breeders (not good ones) that send out pics at one week and you choose the pup you want. More reputable breeders will have the new owners meet the pups at 6 weeks and then match them to a pup at 7-8 weeks based on what they observed on the 6 week visit day and what they see in the pup over the next week or so in terms of temperament.

Then there is the whole allergy issue---so many people are coming to doodles because of allergies ( not the best idea) and need to spend time with the pup once it's coat is in a bit. 

So. although I know people do this, I don't agree with it at all--and by the way, there are not that many sheepadoodle breeders out there, I don't think--so if there is a demand for them, the breeder can probably do whatever they want. And the mixed breed, being so new, has little consistency. 

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Since you have to choose at 3 days, this is the only time I would say choose for looks.  I hope you didn't pay extra to have this pick of the litter option.

[Alex]

I agree with you. We would prefer a girl so depending how many females are born, (if any) our decision will be made for us. There is only one other breeder in our state and they are not expecting any future litters this year. I'll just pick at 3 days and love him or her no matter what. Thankfully we did not pay extra for pick of the litter. We were the first to get our deposit in so this guaranteed our pick. I'm grateful that we have first pick as ours will most likely be the only one with tail intact unless someone else requests theirs remain undocked as well. Thank you again everyone for the comments and advice. I didn't mean to cause a debate I just genuinely didn't know if this was normal. After I clarified with her that she is a breeder who docks all of her puppies, my research indicates it is normal in this case to pick mine within 3 days to guarantee he/she remains intact. Thank you all again, I'll post updates when we take the little one home in a few months.

[Ginny Nightingale]

When I sell pups, the order of deposit makes no difference, because it is too important to be able to match the pup to the family--everyone is on equal footing at the end when the matching takes place.Glad you did not pay extra--good luck picking that puppy! If you want a really doodle-y look, see if the pup has "wrinkles" in the short coat on the back (this would be visible especially when the pup is wet after birth, so you might want to ask the breeder to look for that--and look for a square head and shorter nose. There is a lot an "expert eye" can pick up, even at that young age.

This will give you an idea of what you might see! This first pup was curly as an older pup and will get curlier as an adult (see third pic) and the second one had more of a wavy fleece coat (fourth pic). Both have nice heads. Both are 6 months old in the second set of pics and two days old in the first set. Good luck!