What would you do? - Page 2

Have you actually met both the sire and the dam of this litter? What are their respective personalities like--are they aloof with people they don't know?  Am curious as to her age, too...

Can't help but wonder if, being a handler-oriented pup, she's withholding her allegience to you until it's clear that you belong to her, and until that happens she's being polite but cool.  How long I'd wait to determine whether she's a good fit with me or not would depend somewhat on age, somewhat on her familial history--I'd need a little time to see who she really is.  You mention you have dogs of similar lines, but that you got them as adults...how many handlers did they have before coming to you? Maybe she's not so much independant as she is just not impressed with you yet...

Eating and drinking fine, terrific stools ( can poop be terrific? Lol) 8 wk old puppy, wants nothing to do with people. Not really concerned with the infatuation with other dogs as it is a puppy after all. You take puppy out to potty, puppy just sits there. Mover around trying to get puppy to move around, snifv around, nothing. Puppy sits and stares, runs to door, won't budge. Pick puppy up, put in yard and repeat. Walk away from puppy, puppy just sits there. Doesn't budge. Pick puppy up, move to new location, repeat. Make game of toys, puppy sits and stares. Break out a rag, puppy half heartedly chases, drops runs to door. Puppy is in crate if she doesn't potty outside, tethered when she does, LOTS of high pitched praise, won the lottery every time.  Puppy resists the tether, digs feet in, sits and stares. I am home all the time, have pleanty of 1 on 1 time for puppy.

After 5 days of this I told the breeder that I would give her 2 weeks. Breeder said return her immediately, so I did. Was refunded, minus 500.00 shipping. I have no problems with this person, I like the dogs they have. I'm not out to bash a breeder. I want to know how long you all would carry this on before you knew that this puppy did not match your personality, nor your training style and goals. 

Vk, I had a sleeper as you described too, but I was well prepared to keep him as just a pet if his drives had not exploded at around the same age. I have no room for a 2000.00 just a pet. I have two spayed 10 yr old females and my 2 boys that we will be training in earnest to finish ipo 1s with by fall and a cdx. 

Frankly, I think this situation speaks well of both you AND the breeder--both of you remain cognizant of the fact that these are unique, living beings, and what one person considers to be just the right amount of aloof could be too reserved for another person, and just because a person & pup don't 'click' doesn't make either one inferior...just not the right match, that's all.  You kept the breeder informed of what you were seeing and feeling about the pup, and the breeder relieved you & the pup of going through a period of trying to 'make' it a match. Kudos to both of you for behaving like reasonable adults.

Hexe, my male is half brother to the dam and came as a puppy. I've been breeding into these lines for 5 years. similar for another 5.

Logisticsdid not allow personal contact with sire, dam or puppies. I would not normally buy sight unseen.

I've raised 5 litters from these lines, 3 litters from another close relative and a litter of Mali puppies for a friend. 

7 wk old puppy from my last litter. This is more like what i was expecting. Solid, genetically strong bite, pup follows waiting for a game, to learn something new, ready for a toothy cuddle etc... MMed high drive, something that is a strong worker, but able to settle.

Maybe my standards are too high, maybe I have been spoiled by the easy bonding with my own dogs. 

I had an Iimport from Germany, impeccable breeding, pink papers beautiful dog. I worked on bonding with her for 5 YEARS. I finally gave up and placed her with man as a pet. She was a man's dog and I couldn't compete. I will not do that again. 

 

 

Returning the pup was probably safest for you and the puppy in terms of time invested and possible outcomes .. she can go to another home and get started on a new life and you can get a puppy later that has the tool set you need.  Sometimes the different ones are the best ones though.  Viktor failed his puppy aptitude tests at vom Mystical Haus because all he wanted to do was bite Jennifer's hands.  Throw a ball and he would bite your hand instead of chasing the ball.  He was a biting machine as a puppy and would not follow the song book as far as training goes.  He finally got that the idea of the games was not biting my hands or arms ... that I throw and he chases or I hold the tug and he bites, outs and rebites but I had a lot of scars getting to that point even by 14-16 weeks.  Food was never a big deal for him, he just wanted to bite.  Viktor's half sister Bella was also a biter as a puppy but she was not anything like Viktor .. nobody of the 60 or more since has been like Viktor.  I always like the different ones as if you can figure out what makes them tick they can be the best of the best.

Bubba, I like the biters :) at one point in time, I owned no pants that weren't swiss cheese lol. If she were like that, it wouldn't bother me as much as the standoffishness. I do not enjoy working super independent dogs. Not my cup of tea. I like a very biddable dog who can think for itself but lives for its handler and family. 

 

I've had pups like that. Extremely independent and "cool" for lack of a better word. They turn out fine- stronger than some want, not for obedience competition, but they can have very "noble" temperaments, strong character, but they are nobody's robot. They don't make training the easiest but damn, they are worth it in the end. When you get that respect...amazing. 

I'm a little confused about the situation though in terms of your question- are you now just asking out of curiosity since you already returned her? I admire the breeder wanting her back immediately. I also commend you for returning her instead of just selling her. I would bet she didn't act like that with the breeder, whom she was likely bonded to. 

You got your refund. The breeder took the puppy back. Most times buyers complain that they didn't get what they wanted or a refund, ie: breeder wasn't reachable. What exactly is your end game here? As in, what are you hoping to accomplish.

Many can give you horror stories, some have spent FAR more and it didn't end quite like this, as in, the favor of the buyer so again, what are you hoping to accomplish?

And for someone with as much experience as you claim, how do you not know that an 8 week old puppy can take time to adjust?!?! They don't all come with the "add water" feature. German Shepherds get very attached to their "person" & a few days is never enough time for that attachment.

I wish you luck with the next breeder, or should I be wishing the breeder luck?

An aloof one can be trouble fitting in with a family with small children and other dogs especially an aloof female with other female GSD.  They can create tension and uncertainty in the social structure which in my dogs is a sort of family organization.  I have had a couple of females that were trouble makers and they were difficult to fit in with the other dogs as they kept everything in a turmoil as much as possible.  I have raised most of mine from birth so I had the mother and father of the puppies along with some nanny dogs to teach them how to be good dogs and make them fit into the social structure but an aloof puppy brought in from the outside might have a difficult time in such an established social structure.  I think those type dogs work best as one on one dogs.  They can be family dogs but usually they may have problems with social order in a mixed breed or age spread between multiple dog household.

Breeder is angry with me because I did not give her more time, because I did not feel she is what I asked for. They are adamant that she is exactly what I asked for. I want to know what others would have done, for my own curiosity.

As I have stated, breeder is an upstanding person, I like and admire their dogs. I have no qualms with the ethics of this person, they did what many wish their breeder would do. Not an issue. This was not the right puppy for us, but that is neither here nor there.

FWIW, I had never had a problem getting the puppy I asked for until now. I have also not had a problem turning a buyer away if the puppy they were asking for did not exist, the puppy they wanted was NOT the right puppy for them or placing the the right puppy with the right family or working home. I've kept several puppies back from every litter I have had, to run on. I've either donated them to police departments, co-owned with friends that work them in specific venues or kept myself. My old girls will live and die with me as will my 2 boys. I understand these are not Golden Retrievers.

I have high standards. I know this.

I was so excited for this litter, I wanted this SO bad, you just have no idea.