by Michal Jakubowsky
Nowadays we observe increasing amount of dobermann enthusiasts that purchased puppy abroad and remain unsatisfied as puppy that was delivered does not meet their expectations in terms of conformation, health and character.
In this brief article we are going to pay your attention to several aspects that play significant role when selecting dobermann breeder or even particular puppy.
Our goal is to raise awareness among doberman enthusiasts with the intention that dobermann puppies are purchased in understandable, transparent and mindful manner.
Due diligence – dobermann puppy purchase
Introduction
On the top of everything you have to ask yourself what do you want from your doberman puppy. Based on your expectations you will have to search for a breeder that offers through his breeding what you are looking for.
There are dobermann kennels that focus on working abilities of their dogs only and other that work with an aim to breed dogs that appearance comprehends the breed standard to highest level and simultaneously are trying not to compromise the breed character.
Best case scenario is when through breeding great looking dog comes with working abilities that allow him to compete at most important breeding and sport trials.
It is worth noting that dobermann character can be very different. For someone that has little to none experience with large breed dogs, dobermann pup with real working drive can be simply too much and there will be no happy ending for both the dog and the owner.
Be honest with yourself and know what you want when getting a dobermann as this breed like not many others has to be chosen with real awareness.
What makes dobermann breeder reputable?
- Does not breed dogs on large scale which means has no puppies constantly available
- Actively participates in dog shows, working trials and has his dogs health regularly tested
- His breeding has goal, breeding decisions and actions are orientated to obtain certain result
- Belongs to organization such as IDC member Club or Breed Club in country of origin
- Respects and breeds according to breed standard – FCI Dobermann no 143 – link
Dog’s character – importance of ZTP - essential breed evaluation standard of European Dobermann
ZTP is an international Breed Suitability Test for dobermann breed was developed in Germany and widely adopted by all members of the IDC (International Dobermann Club) and european dobermann community in general.
Detailed information about ZTP test can be found at link
There are more demanding breed tests than ZTP however it is considered as common and available breeding test for doberman breed in Europe.
Unlike other working trials and exams, ZTP test is judged by small and selected number of judges, it is organized by Breed Clubs according to carefully described rules and in a strict manner.
Passed ZTP test does not guarantee that your puppy will have good character but it does guarantee that breeder has serious approach towards his breeding and did his part to breed quality dogs.
Make sure that you get your puppy comes from parents where at least one of them has the ZTP test passed.
Health
It is known that doberman is not among the healthiest breeds and can become very costly when it comes to vet bills.
There are many different health tests for dobermann breed, we will focus only on those that are obligatory in most european countries.
- HD – hips dysplasia - only results A or B are considered as free from hips dysplasia, we need to emphasize that in order to pass the ZTP test each dog needs to have his hips x-ray photo evaluated not only in his country where photo was taken but in Germany by vet orthopaedist chosen for this specific task, demand from the breeder to show HD results of parents and ask from which country the result come from
- vWD – von Willebrand disease - demand from breeder to show vWD results of parents, never buy a puppy if vWD results of parents are unknown or when both parents are vWD-carriers, both parents should be vWD clear or only one can have result that defines the dog as carrier
- DCM – Dilated cardiomyopathy – there is no question that today DCM is the biggest challenge for dobermann breed as a whole, over the years different tests were developed to prevent DCM but with inadequate outcome, we have to face that there is no examination that gives any sort of guarantee that your pup will not develop DCM at some stage of his life, all available tests are not enough and only show that some breeders take more measures than others to test their dogs, DCM genetic tests against DCM 1 or 2 have reached high popularity and recognition especially in USA however recent findings show that they actually have no value for breeding, from all available examinations for DCM in dobermann the 24h Holter is known for being the best available diagnostic method to evaluate whether or not the dog has developed symptoms of DCM, 24h Holter has to be repeated once per year by vet cardiologist, demand from the breeder to show 24h Holter results of puppies parents and always question what there is behind phrase "DCM free"
When dog shows actually matter?
The number of doberman entried as participants to various dog-shows in Europe has decreased heavily.
Champion or even International Champion titles are no longer considered as achievement.
Dog shows where results for dobermans actually matter are: IDC World Dog Show, DV Show, AIAD Show and other such as EDTWS (European Dobermann Trophy Winner Show), HDK Club Show, local Club Shows held in Italy such as Trofeo Vesuvio, Trofeo Triveneto but also growing number of doberman specialty shows in Serbia - Doberman Cup in Becej or Galaxy Winner.
Unfortunately at FCI Dog Shows – both National and International dogs are often judged by judges who are not breed specialists and in very fast manner that gives no room for careful judgement.
We even observed dogs obtaining Champion titles with serious faults such as missing teeth or wrong bite that in fact should lead to disqualification.
Don’t be naïve thinking that since parents of your puppy are Champions or International Champions it guarantees quality of your puppy.
Parents of your puppy should have numerous results at real dobermann events mentioned above in bold to prove their high quality.
Results and Facts > Attention
Don’t be fooled by well prepared marketing content such us shorts, slow motion videos, photos in beautiful sceneries with thousands of likes in social media.
Always demand from the breeder to show health, show and work records. No respect for regulations and breed standard disqualifies one from being a a reputable dobermann breeder.
Don’t support people who treat doberman as a tool to make money.
How to choose doberman puppy?
Once you have selected a breeder and particular combination of sir and dam, the breeder should give you space to choose puppy by providing photos and videos at least once every two weeks.
Reputable breeder will provide you full support how to feed, train, bring up and have fun with your doberman puppy.
Cropping & dockings issue
Since breed standard has been changed, pure breed dobermann is only the one with natural ears and tail. If you insist on getting doberman cropped and docked, make sure that you purchase one in a country where cropping and docking is not forbidden by the law. Otherwise you support criminal activity and your puppy surely does not come from “reputable” breeder.
Breeder should provide you information such as links, instructions, generally speaking - know-how about taking care of cropped ears. It is process that can take months and its difficulty is often underestimated by new dobermann owners.
What paperwork should I get with doberman puppy?
Each puppy has to be delivered to new owner with number of documents such as EU Pet passports that shows vaccinations, deworming and chip number, puppy might have separated vet certificate that confirms that at the event of sale puppy is healthy and show no signs of any disease, export pedigree confirms that your puppy is pure breed dobermann, there is name of your dog, breeders name and list of dog parents up to 4 generations.
We hope that above information will help you when choosing dobermann breeder, if you have any comments, feel free to Contact the Author.
