Choosing a puppy-become color blind


Good morning, the sun is shining already and I woke up thinking it was Friday. Well, its not Friday but its close to Friday. I'm heading down to San Diego this morning and hope to get some nice ocean/beach shots as well as some canine ones of course.

I do puppy consultation for alot of people and one of the least important items on the subject of choosing a puppy is color or at least it should be. Now, depending on the breed you choose there may not be that many different colors to choose from. But in my breed there are quite a few and now even partis and phantom combinations are growing more popular.

When I think about the addition of another dog (not that I'm thinking about it now, much anyway) the only thing I do know is that it cannot be black. Not that I don't like black dogs but living in Southern California to me is an obligation to work at keeping your dog cool. My dogs hike alot so keeping a black dog cool on a hike is quite a job. And being a trainer and photographer, black is not the best color to shoot or see eye communication.

What people typically tell me is that they want a white female or a dark red female or male. When you choose a puppy it should be for the puppy and not for what color or markings they have on them. The days of choosing a puppy because the kids love the one with the spot over its eye should be gone for good. That adorable looking puppy could be the worst dog for your family.

No matter what breed of dog you are choosing hopefully the breeder is doing some sort of temperament testing and giving you the option of a couple of puppies that would best suit your family needs. Because my breed is standard poodles I often hear the color remark and tell people that whatever color they end up with will soon be their favorite.

I recently did a really quick assessment of a mixed breed litter. At a quick glance there were two that stood out color wise and one whopping girl. I like to do the males first, don't know why but it is very interesting to compare the boys with the girls. In this litter the first two girls were very dominant, definitely not for the inexperienced and the very last and largest puppy was a dream.

What if you as an unexperienced canine guardian went in and picked one of the little different colored girls because they did look different from the others. You brought this little bundle home only to find out you were in for the fight of your life? She was not giving up her dream of being Alpha in the home and your kids did not get the dog they always wanted.

This is the type of thing that happens when you choose a puppy for exterior instead of interior. So, if you are going to look at a litter and the breeder does not give you any guidance with regards to who would be the best puppy for you go in color blind. Take each puppy out individually and meet the dog inside.

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