# Questions from a soon to be a Vizsla owner!



## Grangeristhename (Jan 20, 2011)

Hello all! 
My name is Calvin and after 2+ years of wanting a Vizsla, my family and I are getting one in the next couple of months. As I am searching for Vizsla puppies, I see that the average price of a Vizsla in Southern California is around $1200. Three days ago, I found some puppies that are not from a breeder, but a Visla owner who owns both a girl and a boy. Their price for the puppies are $500. I e-mailed the owners some questions and these are the information I got.
1) the Vizsla mom is one year old and the Vizsla dad is a year and a month old. It was not a planned pregnancy
2)The Vizlsa mom had ten puppies - 4 females and 6 males
3)It is the mom's first litter.
4)The parents are both AKC registered

My questions are:
Given the information, what do you guys think of the age of the mother and if it has any health effects for the puppies?
Are there other information I should seek?

The owners has put up some pictures on a blog http://roxyandsanson.blogspot.com/. 
Do these Vizslas puppies look pure bred?

Thank you so much in advanced for your help. I've been wanting a Vizsla for two years and I am looking forward to owning such an incredible dog.


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## Linescreamer (Sep 28, 2010)

Are those recent pics of the parents? If so, they don't look full grown. I would like to see more pics to be certain. My main concern was the puppy's health and family medical history. I also wanted my pup's parents to be OFA certified good to excellent. Again, they look like V's but, can't be sure without better pics. You will spend allot of money on the dog over the next few years so, the extra 2-500 dollars now could be money well spent. A $500 V is very cheap by any standards.


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## Kailua (Feb 12, 2009)

The parents look pure Vizsla. My only concerns would be getting hip scores...etc...and the age of the parents (quite young)


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## Mischa (Feb 17, 2010)

If I found a steal of a deal like that, I'd go visit the folks. As long as everything seemed good, they'd get my cash.
That is less than half what we paid for our girl. 

If you do go that route, try to get some kind of health guarantee in writing. 
It is a little more risky than going through a breeder, but I'd go for it at that price. 


My lady might not feel the same way, as I'm the cheap skate in the house...but I'd try to trick her!! hahahaha


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## DarDog (Aug 15, 2010)

I'm a bit particular about certain things, so a lot of people may not agree. 

My perspective is, I would not want to support any irresponsible breeding, and that includes giving someone money that bred two dogs that are much too young to have puppies.

I second all of the health concerns as well, regarding hips. If you do get one of these dogs, you should want to get a pedigree as well to make sure they didn't inbreed on top of having young Vizsla parents.

Good luck finding a Vizsla pup!


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## Mischa (Feb 17, 2010)

I didn't even think about the age of the dogs. 
How old are they suppose to be, before mating?


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## DarDog (Aug 15, 2010)

I think the standard is 2 years of age. I probably read this on the Vizsla Society of Ontario website


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## Grangeristhename (Jan 20, 2011)

Thank you all for your responses and input. They are appreciated. I am setting up an appointment to see the puppies as well as the parents. Are there anything I should be looking for specifically (or general)?


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## JillandDan (Sep 8, 2010)

I also would be hesitant due to age of parents and that the people had an unplanned litter. We paid alot more then $500 for Holley but felt safe in knowing her full history and that the breeder has been doing this for years and is very responsible. We not only met her parents but also met her grandmother. And she was older but still frisky and so sweet. That said alot about the dogs from there to us. 
Good luck in your search.


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## kellygh (Oct 25, 2010)

Regardless of what the "breeders" tell you, or how the pups/parents look, I would never buy a puppy from someone who has been negligient in breeding, and most important, the care & concern for their dogs. I don't mean to sound harsh, but an unplanned litter from dogs who are essentially still puppies is inexcusable. It should never be supported. Please don't take offense  Money should never be a guiding decision in purchasing a dog; in addition, if these pups end up having any health/genetic issues, $500 will be a drop in the bucket. Please look elsewhere.


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## BamBam (Feb 14, 2010)

I agree with the above. 
The dam is way way too young to have a litter - she will not be fully developed mentally or physically at that age - the owners cannot care too much for her health and welfare to have let this happen?!
Also as the litter was not planned breeding lines won't have been looked into etc - which could lead to potential health problems - the dogs wont have been hip scored - infact I think they are too young to even have it done.
I would definitelely only buy from a reputable breeder.


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## Tulip (Feb 14, 2010)

A pretty stupid mistake by the owners, 10 pups when she isn't fully grown herself, poor girl. I agree with the others that the upfront investment in a Vizsla is nothing compared to what you'll be spending over the coming years, try not to let the price influence your decision, you'll be sharing your life with this dog for years and years. That said, they're born now, so they need to go somewhere, so your home might be a great result for one of those pups as you have done your Vizsla homework. Good luck with whatever you decide.


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## haefen (Jan 5, 2011)

Wow, this is the first time I've really felt like I HAD to make a post. That dog is WAY to young to have had a litter of puppies. There are very real reasons why breeding dogs under two years of age is strongly discouraged and why reputable breeders don't do it:

* The puppies will most likely be poorly socialized since the mother is too young to really be in touch with her maternal feelings. This is the equivalent of a 12 year old human having babies. Not only is it bad for the mother dog, it's also bad for the puppies
* The "breeders" are very inexperienced -- if they weren't they wouldn't have let this pregnancy progress. Further reasons to believe that they could have problems socializing the puppies correctly.
* The parents of the litter could have all kinds of problems that haven't presented themselves yet since they are still so young. 

Go with a repuatable breeder instead. Remember that you're going to have this dog for at least 10 years, with all the costs of food, insurance etc, the cost of buying the puppy is the least of the expense in the long term. And especially considering Vizslas are prone to being a bit nervous and neurotic under the best of circumstances, I wouldn't risk exacerbating that by buying a poorly socialized puppy.


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## satellitebeach (Nov 16, 2010)

I have had show quality dogs, rescue dogs, and boxers that were going to be put down because more than a third of their body was white and that was outside of the breed standard. What do you intend to do with the dog? Bottom line is, if you plan on breeding it or showing it, then sure go the extra mile but if you are just looking for a great companion then pretty much any dog will work. I currently have a pure bred vizsla and a basenji. Both are great but the best dog I ever had was a little mutt. He lived to be 17 years old, was smart, cute, funny, and didn't have an aggressive bone in his body.


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## viszlaluv (Mar 16, 2011)

Well, as an owner of two wonderful AKC registered Vizsla pets, I would definitely say that the owner that let this happen was irresponsible. 

We decided to breed our V's as our female has a great tempermant and champion lines, and our male has a great coat to complement hers and a beautiful color. However, to adhere to AKC guidelines, we waited until after they were 2 years old and had their hips and elbows tested and certified to be free from hip & elbow displasia. We also had all vaccines up to date prior to breeding and a clean bill of health from the vet. This will be our first litter, but I have the help of our girl's breeder along with a vet that specializes in canine reproductive services to guide and assist us in the process. 

Technically, I'm not a "reputable breeder" but we are trying to establish ourselves and have lots of help. I'm guessing that since these owners you have talked to did not prevent the pregnancy from happening and the parents were too young to have their hips & elbows certified, they probably did not take other actions necessary to ensure that these pups are free from worms, ect. Also, since they did not breed according to AKC guidelines, you won't be able to register this pup either.


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