Just wondered how more experienced breeders manage their lists. I am in a breed which are relatively sought after and relatively difficult to come by. I have one bitch so do not have puppies very often, but get loads of enquiries (mainly e mail).

I will always tell people when I am planning on having a litter and like to meet people way ahead of that. Then I can decide if they are suitable and the same for them.

Just recently, I have had one person not turn up to an appointment and when I contacted them they tell me they thought they had let me know. One family who I had met and stayed in touch, then heard nothing so e mailed them and they inform me they are picking up a puppy at the weekend, but hadn't bothered to let me know prior. Another who has had an appointment arranged for ages, but I found out from someone else he has already booked a puppy from them. i contacted him and he said he still wanted to visit, I have said no, because he has made a committment to someone else (he admitted he had booked one with the other breeder).

I find it difficult enough as I never know for sure how many puppies there will be or what sex they will be and so don't like to keep people hanging on unnecessarily. I have suggested another breeder to two people already this week as I thought I had enough, now I'm not so sure.

I guess this sort of thing happens all the time.

To me all this sounds very hard on the breeder as well as being somewhat inconsiderate of the prospective buyers. As a recent puppy buyer (and several times in the past), I was very upfront to breeders that I had contacted other people when I was making enquiries as I was very worried about putting all my eggs in one basket and not getting a puppy at the end of it for some reason. As it happened, I did precisely that over a litter which through awful circumstances didnt happen and I was suddenly on the search again. I did contact a number of breeders again who had litters due before finally finding the ideal puppy who was five weeks old. Once we had decided that was the pup for us, I quickly contacted the other breeders to let them know. Although someone did ring me up out of the blue who I hadn't contacted at all, but had heard that I was looking for a puppy of their breed!!

I would leave an entry on my website saying " hope to have a litter Autumn 2013", this means folk can keep checking back for mating announcement and scan confirmation of pregnancy around 39 days and possible numbers if the scanner is very skilful, vets don't normally commit themselves just that she is in whelp.

I don't start a list till after the mating has taken place, I then only have 4 on the list as my litters were only 3 or 4 pups and I would hopefully be keeping one, I also tell them that there is no guarantee of a pup and that if there are any show breed potential pups they will go to those type of owners, also they will be endorsed against export and being bred from unless certain criteria has been met.

My breed has so many colour/pattern combinations they may not get their first choice, this is normally obvious at birth so prospective buyers who are set on one colour/pattern can back out early.

Many puppy buyers want a puppy right away and despite putting their name down with you will continue travelling around other breeders till they find one ready for home and fail to let you know, I send out weekly pics and if I don't get a reply back then check if they really still want a pup.

Good Luck finding the right buyers.

With me I accept people on my waiting list, after initial vetting, and then I email everyone at various stages, making it clear if I don't hear back that I will assume they are no longer interested.

I say, something on the lines of, if I do not hear back from you I will assume you have changed your mind, or found your canine companion elsewhere.

I do this when the bitch comes in season, again after mating, and once I am sure she is pregnant.

That then deals with the ones that have dropped out, like you have found.

Once pups are born I decide how pups are to be allocated based on the order I decided, (largely based on length of time on list, but also what pup is required for, if more than a pet) sexes wanted.

At this point I do ask for a deposit (around 10% of puppy price), to confirm they are going ahead.

I do have a numerically small breed so both puppies and suitable owners tend to be feast or famine.  Puppies are all same colour so preferences re coat markings and colour do not apply.

I steer people to the most suitable pup having got to know the pups and the new owners, and it is rare that it is not the puppy they have taken to.

I do not have a waiting list, I have learned through experience that there are so many timewasters out there that it just isn't worth it. I had 1 lady tell me she was setting off to pick a puppy from me but she never arrived. I rang her mobile as I got quite worried. The phone was not answered until I used my husbands phone to call her (she knew my number). She then stated that she had not decided. That was the last I heard.

I now ask people to phone after the due date so that I am not chasing round after people who wanted a puppy right away and do not have the manners to let me know they got one elsewhere.

I'd never mate a bitch without having a waiting list -unless it is a toybreed where litters will be small. Without a waiting list, in my breed the risk is you'd end up having to keep ten puppies. I currently have six people waiting for a bitch that is due to be mated in 3 months time. There are exceptions of course, but I  find the majority of the right homes for my breed are those prepared to wait, those that get in touch at the very least a few months in advance, often a year or two. Those that plan and take it slowly. Those that get in touch wanting a puppy sooner are seldom suitable. Then my breed is pretty specialist and certainly cannot go to just anyone. I've never not had enough pups but I don't tell my buyers how many are on the list or if there is x number before them, because if I should be lucky enough to end up with more buyers than pups, I want to be able to cherry pick the buyers as I want the very best for my pups. I will add people to the list once I've found out enough about them, then let them know when the bitch has been mated, then when pups are born, then updates on my website with photos about twice a week. Those no longer interested I usually find out at time of mating. Should I ever not have enough pups, or come across the odd buyer that doesn't want to wait very long but seems perfectly suitable anyway, then I pass them on to another breeder.

>because if I should be lucky enough to end up with more buyers than pups, I want to be able to cherry pick the buyers as I want the very best for my pups.

100% in agreement.  It shouldn't matter who waited the longest, you have to pick the best person to deserve one of your dogs.

I have already started my list for my next litter in 2 years time. (Just had a litter in June) I keep note of names but do not actually have a list as such. I will contact them nearer the time (am in touch regularly anyway) just to see if they are still interested. Quite often I will pass the names on to someone else in the breed who will have a litter before me. I know that those breeders will pass names back to me when it is my turn. I only really have a list for those people who want a pup from my bitch, or the lines I am using. So many people over the years have sworn blind that they want one but when the time comes I find they have gone elsewhere. Not always the same breed.

> xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Quite often I will pass the names on to someone else in the breed who will have a litter before me. I know that those breeders will pass names back to me when it is my turn.

On that note Linda, you are due me 5 names back backdated to 2002! 

> It shouldn't matter who waited the longest, you have to pick the best person to deserve one of your dogs.

But it is often those prepared to wait a long time that meet this criteria.

But you haven't bred in ages Christine :-)