These two articles were taken from the BMDCSEW website.This is the most important information we can give you to help you with your puppy experience. Please read this carefully and take it to heart!
1) FINDING THE RIGHT PUPPY FOR YOU
Your experiences with the breeder you choose has the potential to affect your life. The puppy you bring into your home will become a part of your family. The cautionary statements made on this page, when ignored, can result in real emotional and financial costs, costs you and your family may or may not be willing or able to bear.
Please read on. We are giving you this information to help you avoid heartache and to prevent the unecessary suffering of dogs in our beloved breed.
The information below isn't about just "showdogs" and "showdog owners"; it is about every Bernese and applies to all owners.
We want you to have the best possible chance for a positive experience with your Bernese, an experience that will make you happy to have the dog as a part of your life.
HELP YOURSELF!!!
Buy directly from a breeder...never a broker, pet store, or middleman.
Recently, Bernese have found their way into the hands of exploiters. Berners are now being offered at public auctions, whose patrons are usually puppy farmers. We also see an increase in owners breeding bitches that were sold with limited registrations (unsuitable breeding stock) and selling the pups as unregistered. Even if you never intend to show a dog, or to breed it, there are still significant risks in buying unregistered dogs! Some sellers ( dog brokers) import dogs for resale, without regard for the health, temperament, or quality of the dogs. These dogs are sold for the same price as a dog from a responsible breeder, but often "as is" without the guarantees or service a responsible breeder would give.
You should never buy a BMD when you will have no ongoing contact with the breeder.
A responsible breeder will provide actual copies (not just promises of copies) of the American Kennel Club (or Canadian Kennel Club) registration certificates of the parents. Further, you should expect to recieve information on hip dysplasia or other possibly inherited characteristics, before any money changes hands.
The reason that some dogs are designated unsuitable for breeding is that there is too great a likelihood that unsuitable characteristics will be passed on. Even if a dog may look good, it may be shy or snappish, and dangerous among children when anxious. Berners have wonderful temperaments as a rule, and are serious magnets for attention because of their good looks, but they are large dogs, and you would not want a toddler approaching your dog to give it a hug if you had even the slightest doubt about the dogs reaction.
Statements like "oh, he's from champion lines" are meaningless unless you have full information about all dogs in the pedigree, for even champions bred to poorly matched mates will get mediocre or poor quality dogs. Dog brokers or puppy farmers don't have the information or won't make the commitment required to make sound breeding decisions that insure the welfare of individual dogs and the breed as a whole.
The puppy mill industry has set up several registries to confuse and combat the challenges made by the AKC: these are unreliable registries:
FIC (federation of international canines)
CKC (continental kennel club)
APR (American pet registry) the most frequently used puppy mill registry
The first two are acronyms, which are often confused with legitimate registries, i.e.FCI (Federation Cynologique Internationale) and CKC (Canadian Kennel Club). Do Not Be Fooled. Make sure you're getting a purebred dog by requiring proof that the parents of the dog are registered with the AKC on full privilege registrations or that the dog, itself, if imported, is registered with the AKC before you pay for it. If an imported dog is to be registered with the AKC, the importer must do it.
BEWARE
ALL imported dogs MUST be registered by the importer to be registered with the AKC. Do NOT be victimized by exploitative importers. REQUIRE AKC registration BEFORE spending money on any imported dog. The dog may not be purebred if it is not registered with the AKC.
BEWARE
Of prices over $1800 - $2100.00 here in the southeast, and check out such breeders carefully to make sure you're getting more for your money than just a dog. Currently, prices for Bernese can be expected to be somewhat higher than that range in some geographical areas of the US or when the pup is coming from a breeder who has a consistent verifiable record of producing quality dogs and offering buyers exceptional support and service. Don't get ripped off by an exploiter who knows nothing about their dogs' backgrounds or someone who is price gouging. Make sure the breeder you choose is charging top prices because they are committed to producing and does offer quality dogs and service, not just because the demand for Bernese pups makes charging top dollar possible. Also, beware of the breeder who charges much less. There is likely a reason they only want $900 for a puppy, and heaven forbid you end up in a mess because the parents weren't properly health checked, and the history of health of the parents was not known.
BEWARE
Of anyone willing to sell you a breeding stock animal without first making sure you will be committed to becoming a responsible breeder and you are prepared to assume lifetime involvement with and responsibility for any offspring produced by your dog.
BEWARE
Do not send money to anyone without seeing information on the parents and their families including some sort of documentation that the dogs are AKC registered.
BEWARE
Do not send money before developing an understanding of who is selling the pups and what priorities and value system the breeder of the pup ascribes to.
BEWARE
Do not send money as a deposit before you've seen a sales contract. Conscientious breeders use sales contracts and want to keep track of ALL the dogs we produced to document how progeny from our programs fare through life. It's through this info that breeders can make informed breeding decisions.
BEWARE
Investigate fully any imports that may be offered to you. Imports can be great dogs but it is likely in the current market you'll be getting the culls from depressed countries The broker/importers are often purchasing these dogs for as little as $100.00 per pup. The pups are often shipped, several to a small carrier, can arrive sickly, malnourished and without a caring person at this end of their journey. The broker/importer has little or no useful knowledge about the breed or the families of dogs used to produce the pups. Instead an exploiter who will mark up the price to at or above an amount for pups sold by reputable caring breeders is just waiting to sell these puppies to unwitting buyers. The brokers who receive these imports care nothing for where the pups came from, and care nothing about who gets them or what the new owners end up doing with the dogs. Not only that but if something goes wrong with the dog, lack of support for owners facing serious problems is often lacking. Get references and check them! Do not believe for one second the stories concocted to sell you on the idea that imports are healthier, longer-lived, and are always raised under the best of conditions if you have no way to verify what is being told to you has any truth to it.
2) FIND OUT A LITTLE...
The Bernese Mountain Dog was developed as a companion dog and does best when integrated into a family's home and lifestyle.
These dogs are often very dependent on their owners and some can be come difficult to manage if left unattended for long hours everyday. Puppies require several months of extensive attention to housebreak and train. An owner can count on about six to twelve months of time to be devoted to house breaking and teaching a puppy basic dog manners.
BMD pups can be very destructive if left to their own devices. Safe toys should be provided to accommodate the puppy's desire to chew during the teething stage. The use of a good sized dog crate will prevent destructive habits from developing and potentially can save a dog's life. Puppies should not be left unattended for long hours. The early development of a good working relationship and trust between dog and owner will lead to a rewarding life together.
The Bernese Mountain Dog is a large dog. The breed is not well suited to environments or owners where exercise is not possible or convenient. These dogs were developed as working farm dogs, not as lap dogs. Even so, most BMDs will be delighted to make a visit to their owner's lap when invited. Exercise requirements for the breed are somewhat variable, depending on the BMD's temperament and energy level. A minimum of 30 minutes of exercise per day will keep most BMDs in good physical condition. Some dogs will require three times that amount of exercise to be satisfied and kept in shape. BMDs need exercise throughout their lifetimes. Puppies should never be forced to exercise for long periods nor should they be kept from walking or running under safe, supervised conditions. Puppies should NEVER he allowed to roughhouse with older dogs, as permanent injury to growing bones, joints, muscles and ligaments may occur.
Bernese Mountain Dogs are generally good-natured. Some BMDs can be reserved and even fearful of strangers. Some BMDs can be dog aggressive which makes them unsuitable for multiple dog households. The BMD is one of the most enjoyable of the large breeds. The devoted loyalty, sense of humor, easygoing, quiet natured, strong will to serve and affectionate qualities make the breed a good family pet. BMDs are typically excellent with children, as they tend to recognize a child and immediately quiet all actions. While some BMDs may be aloof with strangers, this should not be confused with shyness. When company visits your home, many BMDs will watch the situation for a little while before coming to accept a visitor with a quiet approach followed by leaning into the visitor's leg. This is how Bernese became know as 'leaners', which is especially true of the males. A must for all Bernese is socialization and training. Attending puppy socialization classes, and at a minimum beginning obedience classes at a local kennel club or private dog training facility are highly recommended to maximize a BMD's chances of becoming a canine good citizen.
Many Bernese do very well in advanced obedience courses, conformation, drafting, tracking, agility, etc. Owners should look forward to a lifetime of training and working with their BMD. Most Bernese do best when trained with enthusiasm and a kind but firm hand. Most are very willing to please but some can be quite stubborn. Some Bernese are very smart and want to do things their own way which provides their owners with training challenges.
Hard hands and harsh training methods can easily break the spirit of many BMDs.
The Bernese Mountain Dog carries a heavy coat requiring considerable grooming. When Bernese cast off their coats, daily brushing may be required to keep hair to a minimum in a home environment. Removal of hair coat as it is being shed is also necessary for the dog to maintain healthy skin condition. Count on grooming and vacuuming often (daily) to keep floors, furniture and the children free of BMD fur.
Please take the time to familiarize yourself with BMD health issues..
1) FINDING THE RIGHT PUPPY FOR YOU
Your experiences with the breeder you choose has the potential to affect your life. The puppy you bring into your home will become a part of your family. The cautionary statements made on this page, when ignored, can result in real emotional and financial costs, costs you and your family may or may not be willing or able to bear.
Please read on. We are giving you this information to help you avoid heartache and to prevent the unecessary suffering of dogs in our beloved breed.
The information below isn't about just "showdogs" and "showdog owners"; it is about every Bernese and applies to all owners.
We want you to have the best possible chance for a positive experience with your Bernese, an experience that will make you happy to have the dog as a part of your life.
HELP YOURSELF!!!
Buy directly from a breeder...never a broker, pet store, or middleman.
Recently, Bernese have found their way into the hands of exploiters. Berners are now being offered at public auctions, whose patrons are usually puppy farmers. We also see an increase in owners breeding bitches that were sold with limited registrations (unsuitable breeding stock) and selling the pups as unregistered. Even if you never intend to show a dog, or to breed it, there are still significant risks in buying unregistered dogs! Some sellers ( dog brokers) import dogs for resale, without regard for the health, temperament, or quality of the dogs. These dogs are sold for the same price as a dog from a responsible breeder, but often "as is" without the guarantees or service a responsible breeder would give.
You should never buy a BMD when you will have no ongoing contact with the breeder.
A responsible breeder will provide actual copies (not just promises of copies) of the American Kennel Club (or Canadian Kennel Club) registration certificates of the parents. Further, you should expect to recieve information on hip dysplasia or other possibly inherited characteristics, before any money changes hands.
The reason that some dogs are designated unsuitable for breeding is that there is too great a likelihood that unsuitable characteristics will be passed on. Even if a dog may look good, it may be shy or snappish, and dangerous among children when anxious. Berners have wonderful temperaments as a rule, and are serious magnets for attention because of their good looks, but they are large dogs, and you would not want a toddler approaching your dog to give it a hug if you had even the slightest doubt about the dogs reaction.
Statements like "oh, he's from champion lines" are meaningless unless you have full information about all dogs in the pedigree, for even champions bred to poorly matched mates will get mediocre or poor quality dogs. Dog brokers or puppy farmers don't have the information or won't make the commitment required to make sound breeding decisions that insure the welfare of individual dogs and the breed as a whole.
The puppy mill industry has set up several registries to confuse and combat the challenges made by the AKC: these are unreliable registries:
FIC (federation of international canines)
CKC (continental kennel club)
APR (American pet registry) the most frequently used puppy mill registry
The first two are acronyms, which are often confused with legitimate registries, i.e.FCI (Federation Cynologique Internationale) and CKC (Canadian Kennel Club). Do Not Be Fooled. Make sure you're getting a purebred dog by requiring proof that the parents of the dog are registered with the AKC on full privilege registrations or that the dog, itself, if imported, is registered with the AKC before you pay for it. If an imported dog is to be registered with the AKC, the importer must do it.
BEWARE
ALL imported dogs MUST be registered by the importer to be registered with the AKC. Do NOT be victimized by exploitative importers. REQUIRE AKC registration BEFORE spending money on any imported dog. The dog may not be purebred if it is not registered with the AKC.
BEWARE
Of prices over $1800 - $2100.00 here in the southeast, and check out such breeders carefully to make sure you're getting more for your money than just a dog. Currently, prices for Bernese can be expected to be somewhat higher than that range in some geographical areas of the US or when the pup is coming from a breeder who has a consistent verifiable record of producing quality dogs and offering buyers exceptional support and service. Don't get ripped off by an exploiter who knows nothing about their dogs' backgrounds or someone who is price gouging. Make sure the breeder you choose is charging top prices because they are committed to producing and does offer quality dogs and service, not just because the demand for Bernese pups makes charging top dollar possible. Also, beware of the breeder who charges much less. There is likely a reason they only want $900 for a puppy, and heaven forbid you end up in a mess because the parents weren't properly health checked, and the history of health of the parents was not known.
BEWARE
Of anyone willing to sell you a breeding stock animal without first making sure you will be committed to becoming a responsible breeder and you are prepared to assume lifetime involvement with and responsibility for any offspring produced by your dog.
BEWARE
Do not send money to anyone without seeing information on the parents and their families including some sort of documentation that the dogs are AKC registered.
BEWARE
Do not send money before developing an understanding of who is selling the pups and what priorities and value system the breeder of the pup ascribes to.
BEWARE
Do not send money as a deposit before you've seen a sales contract. Conscientious breeders use sales contracts and want to keep track of ALL the dogs we produced to document how progeny from our programs fare through life. It's through this info that breeders can make informed breeding decisions.
BEWARE
Investigate fully any imports that may be offered to you. Imports can be great dogs but it is likely in the current market you'll be getting the culls from depressed countries The broker/importers are often purchasing these dogs for as little as $100.00 per pup. The pups are often shipped, several to a small carrier, can arrive sickly, malnourished and without a caring person at this end of their journey. The broker/importer has little or no useful knowledge about the breed or the families of dogs used to produce the pups. Instead an exploiter who will mark up the price to at or above an amount for pups sold by reputable caring breeders is just waiting to sell these puppies to unwitting buyers. The brokers who receive these imports care nothing for where the pups came from, and care nothing about who gets them or what the new owners end up doing with the dogs. Not only that but if something goes wrong with the dog, lack of support for owners facing serious problems is often lacking. Get references and check them! Do not believe for one second the stories concocted to sell you on the idea that imports are healthier, longer-lived, and are always raised under the best of conditions if you have no way to verify what is being told to you has any truth to it.
2) FIND OUT A LITTLE...
The Bernese Mountain Dog was developed as a companion dog and does best when integrated into a family's home and lifestyle.
These dogs are often very dependent on their owners and some can be come difficult to manage if left unattended for long hours everyday. Puppies require several months of extensive attention to housebreak and train. An owner can count on about six to twelve months of time to be devoted to house breaking and teaching a puppy basic dog manners.
BMD pups can be very destructive if left to their own devices. Safe toys should be provided to accommodate the puppy's desire to chew during the teething stage. The use of a good sized dog crate will prevent destructive habits from developing and potentially can save a dog's life. Puppies should not be left unattended for long hours. The early development of a good working relationship and trust between dog and owner will lead to a rewarding life together.
The Bernese Mountain Dog is a large dog. The breed is not well suited to environments or owners where exercise is not possible or convenient. These dogs were developed as working farm dogs, not as lap dogs. Even so, most BMDs will be delighted to make a visit to their owner's lap when invited. Exercise requirements for the breed are somewhat variable, depending on the BMD's temperament and energy level. A minimum of 30 minutes of exercise per day will keep most BMDs in good physical condition. Some dogs will require three times that amount of exercise to be satisfied and kept in shape. BMDs need exercise throughout their lifetimes. Puppies should never be forced to exercise for long periods nor should they be kept from walking or running under safe, supervised conditions. Puppies should NEVER he allowed to roughhouse with older dogs, as permanent injury to growing bones, joints, muscles and ligaments may occur.
Bernese Mountain Dogs are generally good-natured. Some BMDs can be reserved and even fearful of strangers. Some BMDs can be dog aggressive which makes them unsuitable for multiple dog households. The BMD is one of the most enjoyable of the large breeds. The devoted loyalty, sense of humor, easygoing, quiet natured, strong will to serve and affectionate qualities make the breed a good family pet. BMDs are typically excellent with children, as they tend to recognize a child and immediately quiet all actions. While some BMDs may be aloof with strangers, this should not be confused with shyness. When company visits your home, many BMDs will watch the situation for a little while before coming to accept a visitor with a quiet approach followed by leaning into the visitor's leg. This is how Bernese became know as 'leaners', which is especially true of the males. A must for all Bernese is socialization and training. Attending puppy socialization classes, and at a minimum beginning obedience classes at a local kennel club or private dog training facility are highly recommended to maximize a BMD's chances of becoming a canine good citizen.
Many Bernese do very well in advanced obedience courses, conformation, drafting, tracking, agility, etc. Owners should look forward to a lifetime of training and working with their BMD. Most Bernese do best when trained with enthusiasm and a kind but firm hand. Most are very willing to please but some can be quite stubborn. Some Bernese are very smart and want to do things their own way which provides their owners with training challenges.
Hard hands and harsh training methods can easily break the spirit of many BMDs.
The Bernese Mountain Dog carries a heavy coat requiring considerable grooming. When Bernese cast off their coats, daily brushing may be required to keep hair to a minimum in a home environment. Removal of hair coat as it is being shed is also necessary for the dog to maintain healthy skin condition. Count on grooming and vacuuming often (daily) to keep floors, furniture and the children free of BMD fur.
Please take the time to familiarize yourself with BMD health issues..