But how do you go about finding one?

Eurasiers are considered a rare breed in the UK, and thankfully, rescue/rehome cases are uncommon. Finding a responsible breeder to source a puppy can be just as tough. While I’m here, let’s be clear: “responsible” is not the same as “reputable”.

“Reputable” depends entirely on your definition of the word… Whereas “responsible” is putting the needs of the dogs first and breeding purely to better the future of those dogs.

This synopsis focuses purely on finding a puppy for a family home and ultimately a responsible breeder, rather than a rescue/rehome, and I hope that the information herein may make your search a little easier. Granted, I am not a breeder myself, and what I have written here is merely my own opinion. But, I have learnt my fair share over the years, and thereby know your side of the story very well. Hope it helps!

Health Tests

First and foremost, a responsible breeder will be health-testing ALL their breeding dogs. And that means all of the health tests. By health testing potential breeding dogs, and only breeding those with good results, one cannot guarantee that puppies will be born with a clean bill of health… But we are giving those puppies the best shot at one that they could possibly have. To help evaluate the breeding potential of a dog it is also of great value to know the health results of closely related dogs.

Each breed has its own set of health tests, some of which for life-threatening conditions, and some to help ensure a high quality of life and a long life. Thankfully, Eurasiers are a healthy breed overall, and the health tests are there to keep it that way. Prevention is better than cure, after all.

·       Hips (the lower the score, the better)

·       Elbows (we’re looking for a score at or near 0/0)

·       Patella (should not luxate, score of ideally 0/0)

·       Hypothyroidism – test includes a full/large thyroid panel, including TgAA; with a negative result; test not older than 12 months

·       Dandy Walker-Like Malformation (DWLM) – a genetic condition that affects movement in puppies from birth, inherited in an autosomal recessive manner (if the dog’s parents both tested clear, this can be enough)

·       BVA eye testing, which includes the following three conditions, all of which the dog should be free of:

o   Distichiasis – extra eyelashes

o   Entropion – where the eyelid grows inwards, causing the eyelashes to irritate the eyeball

o   Ectropion – where the eyelid turns outward, leaving it exposed and prone to irritation

For detailed information on health testing in Eurasiers, take a look at the Health page on the SEA website, or get in touch with our Chair and UK Breed Health Coordinator, Brigitte. She also maintains a Facebook page dedicated to Eurasier Health in the UK  , which is an open forum to ask questions/advice and discuss health concerns in our breed.

Genetic Diversity

The inbreeding coefficient (CoI) of a dog is something that’s a little bit more mind-boggling and can lead to misleading results, as the Kennel Club often only has evidence of very few generations, which dramatically skews the results – for the better. In principle it allows us to see how similar, genetically, a dog is to a common ancestor, and can be determined through looking at a dog’s pedigree.

The consensus in Eurasiers is that genetic diversity is the best way forward. These days genetic profiling (e.g. Embark as the most widely-used test in Eurasiers at present) is a more accurate way to assess genetic diversity than the traditional CoI, and can yield surprising results.

The aim is to avoid breeding very closely related dogs, not over-breeding the same dogs, and avoiding “popular sires” (i.e. a male being mated many times, reducing the overall gene pool in the population). You can see how many and how often certain dogs have had litters on the UK Kennel Club website.

Health Deposits

Health deposits are not unusual in Eurasiers. Note, a health deposit is very different to a down-payment, non-refundable deposit; the latter of which is not something we encourage at the Southern Eurasier Association. The point of a health deposit is to act as an incentive to get your dog health-checked; you pay the health deposit at the time of paying for your puppy, and you get this back in full once all the health tests have been completed. In a lot of cases (as stated in the SEA Code of Ethics, which follows the Eurasier Philosophy set out by the German founders), a dog will only be allowed to have more than two litters once the offspring have been health-tested and they themselves have good results, hence proving that the paired dogs produce healthy offspring, and therefore help to secure the future of the breed.

Even if you do not plan to breed your own dogs, doing those health tests, or at least some of them, helps to keep a good eye on the health of certain families/pedigree lines, helps your breeder make sound breeding choices in the future, as well as helping the general state of health of the breed.

Julius Wipfel’s vision for our breed was for it to be a healthy, good-natured and long-lived, family companion, and the majority of breeders feel the same way and make breeding choices to maintain this vision. We are lucky in this community to have the International Federation for Eurasier Breeding (IFEZ), a collaboration between Eurasier clubs around the world to keep records of the state of health in our breed that helps to plan suitable matches for breeding pairs. This includes the recording, storing and sharing of published health data. This is quite unique, and something that should be cherished. We are also very lucky that The Kennel Club and our Breed Health Coordinator, Dr Brigitte Mordan-Grimm, have compiled a document outlining the present state of breed health in the UK, the ‘Eurasier Breed Health and Conservation Plan’. You can request a copy here.

Temperament

Generally, as adults, Eurasiers should be calm and even-tempered. They should be reserved with strangers, but not overly nervous or aggressive. It is worth reading through the breed standard (a guideline for ideal characteristics of that specific breed), both UK and FCI, the latter of which states that Eurasiers should have a “high resistance to any provocation”. Any Eurasier that shows unprovoked levels of nerves or aggression should be a red flag when searching for a puppy, even if an “explanation” is offered.

A responsible breeder will take temperament into account in their breeding choices, choosing a pair that complement each other, to produce confident, well-rounded puppies. If your breeder does not have results of a specific temperament test, ask them instead what both parents-to-be are like. If you can see them, or at least the Dam (Mum), in different situations, and observe how they interact with other dogs and people, that is even better. Think about what kind of temperament you would like in your own dog, and how it would best fit in with your family. If you are a very active family, you may wish for a more energetic dog, for example. These are all things you can discuss with your breeder, to help find the best puppy for you.

Eurasiers form incredibly strong bonds with their families. While the dog’s genetics will largely impact its behaviour, training and socialisation, especially early socialisation, will also play a role. I personally believe that the best way to love a dog is to provide it with the means to live a full and enriched life that it can enjoy with its family with no fear, through teaching it to manage and be comfortable in any situation. Your breeder should be readily available for socialisation and training advice, promoting positive reinforcement methods only.

Kennel Club Registration

A Kennel Club registration (and therefore, a dog’s registered name), is a means of keeping track of pedigrees, breeding dogs, and litters. Without this, it is more difficult to monitor health and pedigrees. 

A Kennel Club registration should not be an opportunity for a breeder to charge more for a puppy. It should come as standard, for any purebred dog. One part of the registered name of the dog will likely have the kennel name of the breeder (they will only have one), and the other part will be unique to that dog. The latter may be the only part of the dog’s registered name, and that’s okay; in addition, a registered name may contain two kennel names, indicating which kennel the dog originally came from, and which kennel the dog is now staying at.

Your Breeder’s Ethics

This one is personal to you, but generally, we find that everyone wanting a Eurasier feels the same way. As members of the Southern Eurasier Association, we all agree to our Code of Ethics, which has some information on responsible breeding ethics (points 19–53). These, I feel, are a very good place to start.

Another good starting point is the Kennel Club Assured Breeders Scheme, which, as a club we do support. This is a scheme dedicated to highlighting those individuals within a breed who prioritise the health and welfare of their animals and do not mind being inspected at regular intervals by the KC.

A lot of breeders have their own websites and/or Facebook pages, but it is worth asking your own questions rather than taking what’s written online as gospel (this spiel included!). This will also demonstrate your interest and enthusiasm to/for the breeder and their dogs, and show that you are not just blindly looking for the next available puppy. There is more to the dogs and their breeders than titles and ribbons; doing your own research, for the right puppy, is crucial.

A breeder should also be asking questions about you and your lifestyle; they should want to know what kind of life their puppy is going to. Breeders either help you pick your puppy or pick a puppy for you, based on your lifestyle and what kind of companion you are hoping for. It is therefore very important that the breeder gets to know you, to match you with the perfect pup. Equally, they should be open and happy to answer any questions that you have, too. Always bear in mind that they know their puppies best, and will have good advice for you to consider when discussing your wishes.

You should be able to meet the Dam at the very minimum, and see her with the puppies; but the breeder should be able to tell you who the Sire (Dad) is, provide images (and maybe videos), and provide the health test results of both parents on request.

Once the foundation work choosing the right pairing has been done and the litter is born, the breeder should have a solid socialisation plan for the puppies in place to ensure they are well-rounded and have been exposed to as many different situations as possible to help build their confidence. They should never let a puppy go to their new home younger than 8 weeks of age, as that will have a negative impact on the development of its personality.

Generally, responsible breeders have waiting lists, as they tend to find homes for puppies before the mating even takes place. If a breeder readily has puppies available, it is worth asking the question why. Part of the Southern Eurasier Association’s Code of Ethics is that we do not condone volume breeding, which is often the main reason for puppies being readily available (not just for Eurasiers). There could be a genuine reason though, so don’t be too quick to judge. By and large, you should expect to wait at least a year for a Eurasier puppy.

Puppies should be sold with a puppy contract, which contains information about the puppy and its breeding, your information, and the breeder’s information. It is personal to you what you see as reasonable to include in a puppy contract, and you should discuss this with your breeder prior to agreeing to having a puppy from them, and well before you pick up your puppy. There is helpful information available on the Kennel Club website, which goes into detail on what could be included in a puppy contract.  

In addition to the puppy contract, your breeder should send you home with a puppy pack. You can find information on what is recommended to include in a puppy pack on the Kennel Club website.

How to Approach a Breeder

Breeders are busy people, who often have very full inboxes, so trying to make contact can seem difficult. Top two tips: 1) Don’t be disheartened if you don’t get a reply straight away; 2) Don’t dive in by only asking “How much?” or “Do you have puppies available?”.

Number 2 is pretty much guaranteed to land you no response.

A responsible breeder pours their heart and soul into their dogs, and will want to know that their puppies are going to the best homes. Equally, you should want to know who your puppy is coming from, the kind of life it’s being born into, and how it’s being brought up in the first weeks of its life.

Tell the breeder about yourself and your lifestyle (though, the breeder may have their own interview process). Honesty is the best policy, here. Why do you want a dog? Why a Eurasier? Do you have experience with dogs? What’s your work schedule? What’s your home residence like, do you have an enclosed garden? Any other pets? Children? Ask the breeder about price and their breeding timelines when you have demonstrated your interest and shown that you’re willing to make an effort.

Be willing to and take the opportunity to travel, meet dogs in person (preferably outside of shows or any “Discover Dogs”-type events where the dogs can be stressed, but rather at a walk or in their home, where the dogs are better able to be themselves), and build a relationship with your breeder. Your breeder should want to be available whenever you need them throughout the entirety of the puppy’s life; be that training, general advice, any health concerns, overall care, etc. Keep in touch with your breeder prior to a litter being born, to show the breeder you are still hoping to have a puppy from them, and to maintain that good relationship. A breeder who has done all of the above, and maybe even more, to ensure the puppies have the best start in life, will appreciate you keeping in touch once you take yours home. They will be fully invested in that puppy’s life, and you will hopefully have a good relationship with that breeder for life.

At the Southern Eurasier Association (SEA) we are very happy to provide advice for finding a responsible breeder and the right puppy for you, but I hope this gives you a good foundation to begin your research. Remember: there is no such thing as the perfect dog! Define your personal values, be prepared to not fall for the puppy eyes, and turn down any offers that do not feel right for you and your family. Don’t let anybody rush you into making a decision; take your time! You are adding a new member to your family. Waiting for the right breeder who is responsible and focuses on the health and wellbeing of a dog will save you a lot of heartache down the line. After all, these dogs become a monumental part of our lives, and in a lot of cases, the core of our families; we only want the best for them. Ensuring they have the best start in life is the very least that they deserve.

by Harriet Lacey, with Pippa, Luca and Faela