Seen how pups turn out to be hot adults, some made the cut some didnt. The biggest change i've noticed of anything isnt the dogs or the attitude but the people that had them. Seems like people i seen have success, regardless if their dog was hot, laid back, skittish or anything they always seemed to be able to bring out the best in that dog.
Originally Posted by CrazyRed
so true, u hit the nail on the head. i feel as if a good dog man always brings out the best in his hounds regarless. whats funny is that when i was first starting and building my yard, when i went and got the pups i was looking for i never seemed to get the one i wanted,but the one i least wanted and payed no attention to. my mentor always told me "its the man behind that dogs, not the dogs behind the man" and i took it and ran with. as time went on and it was time to show, all my hounds made me proud, and only had one that didnt work out.
now that i have my own breedings and yard, and i dont sell dogs, but they go to my buddies or stay on my yard, i just keep the ones am left with, and hope all make us proud.
I like the playful ones myself. I figure conditioning is a huge role so I want one that's easy to work. I also like the smaller ones just cause for a whike I had larger dogs. But with selective breeding to smaller males and linebreeding on top of that. It didnt take long to get the size I was after.
Watching the litter grow and picking from something you have only seen for 10 minutes is make a big difference. I remember when I picked up the male I now keep as my main stud, their were only three pups in the litter and I got to look at all three. Only for maybe 45 minutes, but it helped. My pick was based on confidence, the pup was very confident and comfortable in his pen, on the ground, and something I was most impressed with was in the car. This 6 week old pup was walking from the front seat to the back seat and jumping without hesitation. Of course I couldn't see these things on the yard, but the confidence played a huge role in helping me mold the animal I have today. Start with a solid pup and you should have a solid adult.
there is no known way to pick the best pup in a litter at 6-8 weeks , its pure luck, why have some of the top breeders in the world sold there best pups and kept some pup them self's that did not work out. if you want to keep the best pup from the litter then keep the whole litter.
First, you should have some type of idea of what to expect, based on the parents. You should know what you are investing in before the breeding.
Second, I look for fundamentals, like soundness of structure, movement/fluidity, attitude about toys/food. That "look" in their eye of being smart, or not and if you have the advantage of watching the litter as they develop, you can find out who is a problem solver and who is not.
Just some things I consider.
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