Thursday, June 21, 2007

Dog Buying Tips

In America approximately 73 million people own a dog. A dog brings many moments of happiness into your life. As they make great companions and give unconditional love. Owning a canine companion can be the beginning years of lifetime loyalty and friendship.
Before buying a dog, it is necessary to decide on the kind of dog that will meet your expectation. Our article discusses valuable and informative dog buying tips to lend you help for purchasing a dog. It would be good if you discuss these points with everyone in the family.

  • Age: When purchasing a puppy, ensure that it should not be younger than eight weeks. This is because during the initial few weeks, puppies go through lots of physical changes. A puppy’s eyes and ears open and they begin to taste solid food along with the weaned. Few weeks with littermates also help in overall growth of the puppy. The young puppy needs more attention, patience, care and medical-assistance. So ideally, no pup should be purchased before eight weeks. It is also illegal at some places to sell animals less than eight weeks old.

  • Breed: Before selecting the breed, do some research on dogs to evaluate the right kind of dog for you and your family. Note the dog size, coat, care requirements and temperament. You should also evaluate your and your family members’ health issues. For example, if you’re allergic to fur or are asthmatic then select a dog breed which has less fur and sheds less hair. If you are buying a dog for security or surveillance then you must go for an adult dog. They will immediately help you in or some specified purchase motive.

  • Health: Be sure to visually examine the puppy before purchasing. Pups tend to spend lot of their time sleeping, but when they are awake they should be alert, active, and energetic. They should have a clean and shiny coat. There should not be any mucous filled discharge flowing from their eyes. Ask the breeder about the test conducted on dog’s parent to ensure healthy puppy. Pups should have at least one set of booster dosage shots before you take the pup home. When purchasing an adult dog, keep in mind the same health issues as with puppy. Besides that, also look for health, illnesses, and vaccination records.
  • Maintenance: Dogs have regular and daily needs including food, shelter, exercise, grooming and health. Depending upon time which you can exclusively devote in taking care of the dog, you should select a breed. For example, play dogs require more maintenance than guarding or hunting dogs. Particularly, guarding dog " Doberman " requires less care and maintenance. Please remember that if you are purchasing a dog, you should be willing to commit yourself to the pet.

  • Money: Money is also a consideration while purchasing a dog. Some dog breeds are extremely expensive, while some are quite affordable. Expenses would include adoption fees, vaccines, various tests, basic yearly health examination, flea control, license, food items, collar and leashes, brushes, combs, shampoos, nail trimmers, etc. Evaluate your budget and ask yourself if you are ready to spend the purchase cost as well as monthly expenditure.

  • Breeders: Selecting a reputable breeder is advisable to ensure a healthy and active dog without diseases. It is important to screen the breeder about the parent of the puppy or adult dog. If you are purchasing through club or dog seller, you should ask for the contact information about the previous purchaser.

We hope that the dog buying tips discussed here will help you select the right dog breed that best matches your needs! For more information on various dog breeds, visit www.greatdogsite.com

Paul, Owner of greatdogsite.com has written on Dog Buying Tips . Please visit: www.greatdogsite.com for more information.

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