Know anything about these breeders?

[KJS3639]

http://www.guardiangermanshepherds.com

http://www.ttsgermanshepherds.com

They are possiblities for breeders to work with in Michigan, anyone heard anything one way or the other, or see anything from looking at the sites one way or the other? Thanks!

[DianaM]

TTS does not appear to work or title their dogs. They try to capitalize on famous dogs in the pedigree. That they list their dogs as traceable to Horand Grafrath is kind of funny since ALL GSDs are traceable to him one way or another.

Guardian also does not appear to work nor title their dogs. They also sell pups cheaper on limited than on full registration which is a red flag for me. A good breeder does not accept more money for breeding rights, a good breeder sells all pups on limited (except for extenuating circumstances) and lifts the limit to full registration upon working title and hip clearance.

Just by my quick glance on the website, I would pass on both.

If you're in Michigan, contact Chris Wild: http://www.wildhauskennels.com/ She is an admin on this board and is absolutely brimming with knowledge and experience in the breed. If you want working lines, you cannot go wrong with her. There are several puppy owners of her dogs on this board and they're all thrilled. Just offhand, some have their schutzhund titles and one is the #18 GSD in the country for agility.

[Liesje]

Hi, I'm in Michigan. What type of GSD are you looking for?

[MaggieRoseLee]

KJS3639, make sure you read the following sites so it will be easier to kind of weed out the best breeders from all those you may run into.

http://www.geocities.com/petsburgh/fair/1901/chart.html

http://www.dogplay.com/Breeding/ethics.html

http://www.woodhavenlabs.com/breeder.html

And I agree with Chris Wild being a great breeder, but even more important then if you got a puppy from her, is if you go to her website. Cause it's an example of what I look for, not just talking about cash, not about tons of litters born each year. But about having a specific breeding goal. Keeping track of and being responsible for ALL her puppies no matter where they end up or how long ago, bragging about all of them, keeping tabs and caring about them. And all that's so she can see how the health and temperment of the dogs turn out, is her breeding program on track, where are the strengths, where are the weaknesses, how can it be improved................

Here's examples of the kinds of websites responsible breeders put up:

http://wildhauskennels.com/

http://www.wolfstraum.net/

http://www.adlerstein.com/

[Chris Wild]

Thanks Jenn and Diana, but at this point it looks like all pups in our upcoming litter are reserved and we won't have more pups until fall. Also, judging by a post by the OP in her other thread, we'd be outside her price range of $1000 or less. Unfortunately, the several other good breeders I can recommend in Michigan would also be outside that price range.


KJS3639,
I'm not familiar with either of the breeders you listed. Which isn't surprising as it looks like from the lack of titles on their breeding stock that they aren't involved in training or titling their dogs in any venue. IMO, to me this is a negative as I feel a breeder should be involved the breed beyond just owning them as pets and producing puppies. Though it is a good sign that they seem to OFA their breeding stock. I didn't spend much time on those websites, but just glancing at them overall I'd say not horrible, but not great either.

You may find this article helpful when it comes to determining what to look for in a breeder and how to tell a good breeder from a questionable one:

Finding a Good Breeder

[DianaM]

Quote:we'd be outside her price range of $1000 or less.

OP, you will be VERY hard pressed to find quality GSDs at that price range. For the most part, they start at $1000 and usually for the working lines. This is not a cheap breed, unfortunately, and often when you see a cheaper price, you do pay for what you get, so be careful. Have you considered breed rescue?

[BowWowMeow]

I know nothing about buying from a breeder but I have adopted puppies and adult dogs and think that a young adult rescue who has been tested (or lives with) small dogs might be ideal for your situation. I adopted a 1 yo last year and he is excellent with my 16yo cat and older dog. His foster home had cats and another dog so I was able to see for myself that he was good with smaller animals.

It seems that quite a few nice dogs come through the Michigan rescues.

[Chris Wild]

I would second the recommendation to check out rescue!

[wolfstraum]

I glanced at these quickly, the TTS site has some info that is blatantly incorrect on it right off the bat.

They list a dog as a "VA1" who has only a BH! I met this dog a few times, he is not titled to my knowledge, and certainly not VA rated....

Lines are really a mix up of stuff...all the red flags that everyone else has already brought up.

Lee

[vcroft0313]

Yes there are currently some gorgeous dogs in the Urgent section up north!!