Can anyone advise me please?

I have a litter of Siberian Huskies which are 1 week old today, and several potential buyers have asked if they can send a deposit, after seeing photo's of the pups.

Although i've 'vetted' these people by phone/email, i'm not happy to say that they can have a pup until i've actuallly met them, even though they sound like genuine, decent people.

One man was very upset when i mentioned this, but i'm aware that some people will say whatever they think you want to hear and i'm not going to let these pups go to just anyone! (i realise that you can never know 100% what someone will be like in the privacy of their own home, but feel that by meeting them i'd have a much better idea).

This is my first litter, am i being overprotective? I'd rather keep them all than let one go to a dodgy owner!

Thanks for any replies,
Karen

Hi Karen,
I think you're doing exactly the right thing! Some people can lie very easily over the phone (okay, some can lie very easily to your face as well) - I would never agree to sell a pup to someone I hadn't met personally. If they can't see that you've got your pups' welfare at heart then they probably wouldn't make understanding owners!
Stick to your guns!
:)

They're your babies so you decide where they go !! People can come across differently over the phone to when you actually meet them in person . In person you can see their body language etc - so do what you feel best ( I would do the same ) :)

If you explain your motives and they object they aren't the sort of people who I would sell a pup to!
I expect questions,questions and more questions ,....and then to be met and grilled and am also willing to give references...
Archer

I insisted that prospective puppy buyers come and meet me , that way i could speak to them face to face and see how thay interacted wth the rest of my dogs. They could also meet the pups mum and see a fully grown male (going through the mad teenage stage ! ) that way they could really see what they were letting themselves in  for !.

If you take a "take charge" upper hand attitude with potential buyers, rattle off your policies of finding homes for your pups. Pre plan or write it down. Talk to them on the phone preliminarily. Get a feel. Let them talk. Have some questions, but not in an intimidating way, but incorporated in the conversation, and a way to keep them engaged in conversation, but let them do a lot of talking. Let them tell you about their other pets or past pets, their family. If they sound awful right from the get go, tell them that you will certainly write their names and phone numbers down and they will be considered, that you have a waiting list and sometimes people back out and there could be a puppy. You just never know.....things change. That's just the way it works....that you'll let them know and thank them for inquiring.

If they sound nice and knowledgeable, do the same. Then make one of your routine policies that you go visit them. See how they interact with their children, their other animals if they have them. Have questions for them. Let them talk a lot so you can learn about them. Do they have a fenced yard (if that's something that's required). Do they have a training plan or puppy class in mind? Do they seem sensible or knowledgeable about dogs. Is there house orderly? Do they seem to "have it together" in general. There must be a list of good questions to ask. Look online at breeders questions for potential buyers or something like that. Or go to your breed club. It is very scary putting a pup out into the world when you aren't very sure of the people. It would haunt you forever if you made a mistake. But do have it in writing that you reserve the right to take back a pup, no refund if you deem the situation unfit. Do have a contract. Show them the test results that you have done. You might even find one online or your breed club. So, yes, be careful. Don't let them take over the initial phone conversation. Have the attitude that you're in charge of this interview, but with a jovial, friendly manner. Also, with your contract or your dealings in general, make sure that the whole transaction ends up in a win-win situation, that both parties of the transaction get what they want, and are happy. Hope this helps a little.

Carrie

Ps. I would be very careful about letting people come to your home at first when the pups are so young. They can bring in all kinds of diseases. They have to wait till the pups are older.

<<<<<<<<Is there house orderly?>>>>>>>>>
Hands up ...mines not...doesn't mean I'm not a good owner though!!
Archer

<<<<<<<<Is there house orderly?>>>>>>>>>

Even if it is - it soon wont be when pups there :D :D :D

LOL, yes pups have a way of turning a house upside down....sorry. I guess I don't mean that exactly, a little disarray isn't what I was thinking of. I would worry about them if they look super careless or have an excessively trashed house because for one, puppies get into things, get poisoned, choke etc. Yes, maybe they will get it together before the pup comes, but probably not if it's really bad when you go to visit. What would be my gut feeling I guess is what I'm getting at. Is their yard littered with years and years worth of stuff, rusty nails, old 2x4s, sheet metal scraps, anything poisonous? You know.....the redneck thing? Maybe you have regulations or laws about those kind of places and don't have such a thing. I wouldn't leave a pup in an extremely unhealthy or dangerous enviornment or one I had a bad gut feeling about. But that's just me. Sorry to offend you.

I would be more worried if the prospective owners seemed particularly house-proud and finicky about doghair etc! Dirt and dogs are a matched pair!
;)

Well.....I keep a very clean house. It's very small 924 sq,ft. and I have four dogs, two larger ones and two toy size. I wash their bedding and the covers on the couches that they go on once or twice a week. I vacuum about every other day and wash my vinyl floors with mild pine sol once or twice weekly. I have a carpet shampooer that I use as needed to keep it smelling fresh. I wash their food bowls twice a day, after they eat with hot, soapy water and their water dishes once a day. Bonnie, the Lab swims, so you can imagine..... I love my dogs, am terribly affectionate and playful with them, spend the entire day with them most always, and love to have them snuggle with me on the couch in the evenings. They have free roam of the entire house and hang out with me a lot in my den. They go in and out of doors as they please. (I feel like I need a professional door man) There are toys all over the floor. Someone came in and said it looked like a daycare center. They have a rather structured life, walks at about the same time, meals aprox. the same time, nap time and training or playtime with me outside in the afternoons. Does liking order and cleanliness make me a bad dog owner?

There are other important things to be careful about when handing over one's cherished puppies, which come into play also, which was the point of my post, not to take out one single item and build upon it without taking picture as a whole into view.

i too keep a very orderly and clean house.  i am also very accepting of my dog's muddy feet and dirty tenis balls.  i just clean up after him a lot.  i don't want my house looking like a bunch of animals live here, but i still offer my dog and 2 cats a loving environment full of play and cuddling.  i think the point is a happy medium.  i would certainly not leave a pup in a  house littered with years of garbage.  i wouldn't even put myself in a house like that.  on the other hand, i wouldn't leave my pup in a home that was furnished with spotless white couches and white carpet!  i wouldn't want a slob or an anal retentive person taking one of my pups.
someone in the middle.  a regular person that doesn't always pick up or do laundry, but lives in a basically clean and organized house.  afterall, i want that puppy to have it's shots on time and other things and if the prospective buyer's house in in complete disaray, i would have to assume that they might not keep appointments straight either.  perhaps that isn't fair, but with my pups, i would be all too careful.
anyhow, sometimes on this forum i see a tendency to take one part of someone's post and tear it apart.  if one reads a whole post, like carrie's, they will hopefully be sharp enough to "get" the jist of it, and not just center on one sentence.

and back to the original question at hand:  i would not worry about what the prospective buyers think about you having to meet them.  if they don't like it, they don't get a puppy.  i am glad you are responsibly housing your pups.  any buyer worthy of your pups should be more than glad to meet with you and show you where your puppy will spend his/her days. 

Hi Karen i have to agree, it is over 10 years ago since i whelped a litter, and my hubby used to laugh when people came to the house, they where given the third degree and i know it sounds awful but if they were easily put off by what i used to say they where not for my pups, i used to show people the size of dish the dog used to eat from, how much food a fully grown dog would eat, and how much grooming and exercise would be required when the gsd was fully grown, i also expected them to take the pups to training classes,i had to know who the main carer was and if they had children they had to bring the children with them so i could see how they interacted with pups and adult dogs, also if the parents could not control the child i doubted they would be able to control a dog, i also turned people down, and if they got offended sorry but my pups where everything to me.
My Pups are all oldies now some have passed on, out of the 7 in a litter 5 of the people came back to me and asked if i had more pups in the last few years but sadly don't breed any dogs now. well not at the moment.
Carol

Is it common practice in the UK/USA for breeders to carry out house checks before allowing purchase of their puppies?

well, hopefully, if you are breeding dogs, you are a dog lover, in which case,  you would be careful of where your pups ended up.  checking homes certainly isn't a requirement, but responsible breeders should make sure their pups are going to safe and loving environments.

Don't know if it would work but worth a try. In the conditions of sale include something like " I reserve the right to check on the puppy within a (time scale) and failure of the new owners to provide and care for the puppy in the correct manner will result in reclaiming the puppy and returning the purchase price"

Point this out as a main condition and judge the prospective new owners reaction.
Bazza