when owning a co owned dog what is themain agreement that is arranged ? as i have been wondering is it mainly to do with shows i have been thinking abou doing something like this (if it what i think it is ) i would like to get in to dog showing but i have had no experiance if i was to co -  own the breeder would be able to help me out (tips)  i also have not much experiance in keeping the coat in show condition
do any one think that co-owning would be a better way to beging or do you think it would be better just to get a pup and lean as i go along (of course doing a lot of resarch into it aswell and speaking to the breeder)

IMO the co-ownership agreement is so complicated and far reaching that it should be drawn up by a solicitor. If you buy a show quality pup from a showing breeder they will/should offer you all the help you will need and there should be no need for a co-ownership agreement.

IMO, I agree, partnerships can be difficult and I have heard of a lot of people falling out over them. I owned my first two Beardies outright, but at the present time, I am extremely lucky, in that my current 3 Beardies are owned in partnership with their breeders, and the relationship/ agreement has been (and still is) great. Although we are good friends, we do have written agreements, so we all know where we stand. This partnership has gone on for almost 7 years and we have never had a disagreement over the dogs. We discuss things thoroughly. We also knew each other quite well before entering in to any agreement.
But, I realise that this can be the exception rather than the rule. I know of a quite a few people who have had major bust up's, landed in court, not been able to show their dogs etc. Also of other people who get tied up with "breeding" agreements which have been messy. So if someone is just starting out, I would certainly recommend owning a dog on their own. You realy need to "know" the person(s) you enter in to a partnership with, and if someone is just starting out in a breed, I don't see how they could really "know" someone well enough.

Just my opinion anyway.

Kay

Think the trouble is people forget to cover all eventualities, unexpected things like one of the partners being taken ill and the dog requiring long term kennelling or re-homing all together, marriage or other type of problems, cost of vet bill when the treatment is caused by the actions or inactions of one of the partners. Then what are the rules on breeding and who decides on when, what stud, who pays the bills, who has what rights and is the bitch allowed to be shown once served. And so it goes on, each and every probable and possible eventuality needs to be covered even to what food will be fed or one of the partners could think the dog is not doing as well as it might if it were fed on something different. So yes you need to take every care and know the other member(s) very well.

There are so many variations on what a breeder may wish from you as a co-owner that it's impossible to cover them all ;-)  As others have said there may be future issues that have nothing to do with your enjoyment of showing such as breeding terms etc.  Even just from a show point of view, the breeder's expectations (or yours of the breeder) could be totally in conflict - even over feeding, coat care and general condition before you get to perhaps simply not wanting to travel to certain shows etc.

If you really want to show, do a lot of research on the breed, attend some shows and chat to exhibitors, contact the breed club and get list of available litters and get acquainted with those you may be interested in getting a show puppy from.   Then, when something suitable is available, buy the puppy outright and your carefully chosen breeder should be more than happy to assist in any way with getting you started in showing.   That way if circumstances change in the future and you can't or don't want to continue with the hobby it is only your own feelings that need be taken into consideration. 

Personally, I would not co-own a dog - mine are always pets first and foremost so it's only what suits our family that dictates what we do with them.   Just my opinion of course - but hope whatever you decide works out :-)

Teri