Buying a JA puppy online

edited August 2017 in Akita (秋田犬)
Hey everyone,

I have too many questions but I don't want to bore/spam you so I'm gonna take it slow and ask them one bye one :)

I'm planning to buy an JA puppy in the near future and I'm doing my research and preparing my place to house him. I know it would be best to pick a puppy from a local responsible breeder where I can see the puppy in person (and his parents) but unfortunately that is not possible .
I have to buy the puppy online from a different country and import him to my country as finding. Are there any hints/tips to choose a puppy online?

Comments

  • Which website are you buying from?

    There are definitely some I'd stay away from.
  • You can still establish a relationship with a breeder at a distance and learn about their dogs and what they advise. Some like to place their puppies close by or in-country but others will ship. I would be wary of breeders who will just ship puppies without much of a relationship to you, but by getting to know different breeders, their dogs and understanding why they do things the way they do (for example, it may be that to get a good dog you will have to fly to the breeder and meet them to pick up your pup- this is not unreasonable when you think of how much the breeder has cared for this puppy and wants to meet the person who take care of it, and know they can trust you to care for it well). Your breeder is your friend for the life of that puppy, and is invaluable as an expert advisor, so choose your breeder carefully and enjoy the process of learning as you do your research and meet people!
  • edited August 2017
    If the breeder doesn't have a wait list or doesn't scrutinize you closely and make it difficult for you to be approved for a pup from them, run.

    Demand to see documentation of the parents' health clearances. (Don't just take their word for it or "my vet says they're healthy.") JA should have hips, eyes, and (optionally) thyroid done before breeding.

    They should have a written contract that not only stipulates the care, purpose (pet vs show/breeding), and registration of the animal, but also includes a health warranty. (Note, nobody can provide a guarantee, only a warranty... just a bit of nitpicky language on my part, but there are no guarantees in health and biology.)

    Have a very long conversation with them about AI disorders in the pedigree of the dog. All JA have AI behind them, so if they say the lines are clean, they're either ignorant or lying. Find out what they're doing to minimize the risk of AI. Reflect critically whether the steps they've taken are "enough."

    Ask about allergies. There is a correlation between allergies and other autoimmune disorders within the breed. Allergies are a sign of a minorly dysfunctional immune system, and when two dogs with dysfunctional immune systems are bred together, you often get greater dysfunction (hypothyroid, VKH, SA, etc).

    They should be able to talk to you in detail about the conformation traits of the parents and why they matched them together, including the faults of their animals. No dog is perfect, they all have some faults.

    Ideally, they have had their dogs' conformation evaluated by a neutral third party expert (eg. a show judge) and the dogs have done very well (eg. have champion points or titles). However, the titles of any dog other than the parents of the puppy are irrelevant. Don't fall for "champion bloodlines" as a selling point.

    Don't buy from someone who breeds "just" for pets and knows nothing about conformation, temperament, structure, or health. There are plenty of "pet quality" dogs already out there, people don't need to be making more. Look for someone actively interested in preserving and protecting the breed.

    Look for someone who keeps in contact with the owners of their dogs, posting updates of their pups (whether pets or show dogs) in their new homes. This is someone more likely to be supportive and remain in contact with you after the initial transaction is complete, rather than just leaving you twisting in the wind.

    When you've found someone like that, look up owners of their pups and contact them to learn about their experiences with the breeder.

    Know that pedigree is not as important as the living flesh and blood animals. Find out as much as you can about the parents themselves, and not just the piece of paper.

    Ask about problems in past litters. Any breeder who has been around long enough has had a health issue, accident, or tragedy occur in the dogs they produced. If they claim to have no problems, they either haven't been around enough to be experienced or they're lying.

    Reflect critically on how they handled those problems when they occurred. Having an issue is not a sign of a bad breeder, but hiding it or failing to support the owner is a major red flag.

    Ask about the socialization and early neurological stimulation of the pups. Simply maintaining a clean environment and providing food and water for the puppies is not enough. Early mental and social development shapes the dog's entire life. Again if they're ignorant in this area, be very wary.

    This probably sounds like a lot to ask for... and it is. Be prepared to pay for the quality of care and service a good breeder provides. Note that this cost has nothing to do with the "quality" of the puppy itself.
  • Which website are you buying from?

    There are definitely some I'd stay away from.
    I have looked around but could not find one that I like. Plus since I live in Iran it is making it more difficult to find a breeder that ships here.
  • You can still establish a relationship with a breeder at a distance and learn about their dogs and what they advise. Some like to place their puppies close by or in-country but others will ship. I would be wary of breeders who will just ship puppies without much of a relationship to you, but by getting to know different breeders, their dogs and understanding why they do things the way they do (for example, it may be that to get a good dog you will have to fly to the breeder and meet them to pick up your pup- this is not unreasonable when you think of how much the breeder has cared for this puppy and wants to meet the person who take care of it, and know they can trust you to care for it well). Your breeder is your friend for the life of that puppy, and is invaluable as an expert advisor, so choose your breeder carefully and enjoy the process of learning as you do your research and meet people!
    That is definitely something I would like to do. I will look around and will try to find a breeder I can establish such relationship with. I'm also willing to travel to pick the puppy up and spend time with the puppy and the breeder before I take the puppy home.

    The issue is that most of the breeders I find online are too far away from Iran. I found Ukraine has a lot of Akita breeders but there language barrier there. I found a couple of websites but they were all in Ukrainian.

    thanks for the help :)
  • If the breeder doesn't have a wait list or doesn't scrutinize you closely and make it difficult for you to be approved for a pup from them, run.

    Demand to see documentation of the parents' health clearances. (Don't just take their word for it or "my vet says they're healthy.") JA should have hips, eyes, and (optionally) thyroid done before breeding.

    They should have a written contract that not only stipulates the care, purpose (pet vs show/breeding), and registration of the animal, but also includes a health warranty. (Note, nobody can provide a guarantee, only a warranty... just a bit of nitpicky language on my part, but there are no guarantees in health and biology.)

    Have a very long conversation with them about AI disorders in the pedigree of the dog. All JA have AI behind them, so if they say the lines are clean, they're either ignorant or lying. Find out what they're doing to minimize the risk of AI. Reflect critically whether the steps they've taken are "enough."

    Ask about allergies. There is a correlation between allergies and other autoimmune disorders within the breed. Allergies are a sign of a minorly dysfunctional immune system, and when two dogs with dysfunctional immune systems are bred together, you often get greater dysfunction (hypothyroid, VKH, SA, etc).

    They should be able to talk to you in detail about the conformation traits of the parents and why they matched them together, including the faults of their animals. No dog is perfect, they all have some faults.

    Ideally, they have had their dogs' conformation evaluated by a neutral third party expert (eg. a show judge) and the dogs have done very well (eg. have champion points or titles). However, the titles of any dog other than the parents of the puppy are irrelevant. Don't fall for "champion bloodlines" as a selling point.

    Don't buy from someone who breeds "just" for pets and knows nothing about conformation, temperament, structure, or health. There are plenty of "pet quality" dogs already out there, people don't need to be making more. Look for someone actively interested in preserving and protecting the breed.

    Look for someone who keeps in contact with the owners of their dogs, posting updates of their pups (whether pets or show dogs) in their new homes. This is someone more likely to be supportive and remain in contact with you after the initial transaction is complete, rather than just leaving you twisting in the wind.

    When you've found someone like that, look up owners of their pups and contact them to learn about their experiences with the breeder.

    Know that pedigree is not as important as the living flesh and blood animals. Find out as much as you can about the parents themselves, and not just the piece of paper.

    Ask about problems in past litters. Any breeder who has been around long enough has had a health issue, accident, or tragedy occur in the dogs they produced. If they claim to have no problems, they either haven't been around enough to be experienced or they're lying.

    Reflect critically on how they handled those problems when they occurred. Having an issue is not a sign of a bad breeder, but hiding it or failing to support the owner is a major red flag.

    Ask about the socialization and early neurological stimulation of the pups. Simply maintaining a clean environment and providing food and water for the puppies is not enough. Early mental and social development shapes the dog's entire life. Again if they're ignorant in this area, be very wary.

    This probably sounds like a lot to ask for... and it is. Be prepared to pay for the quality of care and service a good breeder provides. Note that this cost has nothing to do with the "quality" of the puppy itself.

    Thank you so much for all the details. I will be more vigilant with my decision now. As I have nagged in my previous posts, due to my country of residence, I'm having a difficult time finding a breeder. There are a lot of dog importers here (middleman) that will show you a couple of pictures and if you like the way the puppy looks, they will import it for you. Unfortunately, majority of people here do not have enough knowledge about owning a dog. I am trying to do this right.

    For how long can a puppy be held in the cargo of a plane? I think I should limit my search to the countries that are close enough for the puppy to be shipped from.

    I'm a bit worried now, I don't think I have a chance of finding a breeder with the qualities you have explained here. I'm gonna try though :)
  • Pups are transported from literally the opposite side of the planet all the time and do just fine. I have imported from Japan, which is a 12 hour flight to California. But on top of that there are 2-3 hours before and after the flight going through check-in procedures and customs. Its a long time to hold their bladder and bowels, and usually the crate will be messy. But they have water attached and are otherwise fine.
  • edited August 2017
    On a related note I also plan on adding a female Akita to my family in a year (when my boy is about 3). I live in Istanbul and there are no reputable breeders in the country but I would be able to travel anywhere in Europe. Any suggestions on European AA breeders?
  • Hey everyone,

    I have too many questions but I don't want to bore/spam you so I'm gonna take it slow and ask them one bye one :)

    I'm planning to buy an JA puppy in the near future and I'm doing my research and preparing my place to house him. I know it would be best to pick a puppy from a local responsible breeder where I can see the puppy in person (and his parents) but unfortunately that is not possible .
    I have to buy the puppy online from a different country and import him to my country as finding. Are there any hints/tips to choose a puppy online?


    Look up "Karina Radziminskaya" on Facebook she is where I got my boy from. She is located in russia and I live in New York and the transport was fine.
  • Sakura no Sono is the kennel Karina used to breed at. They are operating in Poland, I believe.
  • Yep, she moved to Russia
  • Sakura No Sono kennel belong to me, im ex of Karina. And i breed under Sakura No Sono name.
  • Sakura No Sono is still in Poland... fundator of the kennel is Bartosz Galka. You can check us on FB
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