[rawatts]

Good morning,
I decided to get another puppy. The breeder is having me choose the pup at 2.5 weeks. I picked my first two at 8 weeks and the other was very young but I can't recall exactly what age (4 weeks or less I think). Thanks to covid I am unable to meet the litter to choose but have first pick. Is there anything I can tell about the pups at such a young age? Obviously sex and markings will be different but I feel like there isn't much else outside of that. Any questions I can ask the breeder to help choose a pup out of such a young litter? Thanks!

 

[Kaco Boxers]

That’s far to young to choose a puppy. Their eyes have just opened and you have no sense of temperament or personality. They are barely starting to walk by that age.

The breeder you have placed your deposit with, have they provided you proof of health testing? Are the parents registered? Why do they need picks done so early?

 

[rawatts]

The parents are registered and I can see the pedigree as well. They also show some of their dogs and import from Europe. I believe they "fill up" quickly on litters but not quite sure why they pick so early. I'd prefer to wait and they said normally they do it at 14 days and they would push it out so the pups can open their eyes and extra health screenings/monitoring can be accomplished. Survival rate is more definitive a few days later is what I was told. I assumed there isn't much you can tell so young but if there is, what could it possibly be?

 

[Rick_503]

Hello and welcome in rawatts!
The breeder we found only let's 2 people choose their pups early, luckily we are one of the two upcoming very soon (fingers crossed). I believe we will have to choose around 3.5-4 weeks. Take home at 7 weeks. She is super health conscious, I have a ton of different tests from both parents (recommended by folks on this forum too). I guess the rest of the litter is sold per the order of the pick after the first 2 pick. She never knows how many puppies for sure will be born and how many will be healthy after birth. 2.5 weeks seems really early to me as well. Good luck with everything!
Rick

 

[rawatts]

Thanks for responding. I'm going to ask more about the parents health and such in a couple days and request more pictures of the parents and puppies. I do have 1st pick of the males from the litter and there are only 3 so I may ask them if the other buyers are willing to push back the date. It would seem reasonable if the others involved are willing to push back as well. I hope that will be the case. I feel pretty confident about the breeder and the lineage as I've done a good amount of research but I would like to get a better feeling of temperament. The pups have to stay until 8 weeks so that is reassuring and they said they will be potty training before I pick him up. I'm essentially waiting until Thursday to ask for more pictures and their opinions on the pups so far.

 

[[email protected]]

8 weeks is the law in most states I know it is in ours. I don't think you can tell a lot about a personality at this stage and most breeders will let you chose a little later. I would make sure the health testing is done and most breeders have a money back guarantee or they will replace the puppy if health related issues arise.

 

[Lindar51]

Good luck with your puppy. Personally over the past few years I've changed my outlook on picking a pup. My pup would be male or female but thats as far as I would go at 2 weeks. I don't care what color or markings the pup has. Even the best breeder does not know the personality of their pups at such a young age. To me it sounds more like this breeder is more into selling pups . Be sure you can see the health testing on the parents.
American Boxer Club: Recommendations For Health Screening Of Boxers In Breeding Program
Many buyer get fooled by a seller saying their dogs were health tested, and you just see a vet report saying the dogs are healthy, be sure you see that the proper tests were done and at the correct interval of time.
I spend good money for a good healthy pup and I spend even more money on care, training and time. I want to have the best possible long lived healthy dog, even though, I know there are things that can develop that cannot be controlled.