FAQ’s
What is a Guardian Home?
A Guardian Home is a permanent family home for one or two of our select puppies who show breeding and show potential. The puppy lives with you from approximately 8 weeks of age and becomes part of your family exactly like any other pet dog.
The difference is that Waltari Weimaraners has a shared ownership and retains breeding rights of the dog for a limited period while the dog matures and is evaluated for future breeding potential. We offer Guardian Homes to limited families who may be interested in having this involvement with the breeder.
Not every guardian puppy ultimately enters the breeding program. All breeding decisions are based on health, temperament, structure and suitability as the puppy develops. A puppy not fullfilling part of the program as they develop does not make the puppy any less special and if they are not suitable for the program, full owership is transfered to the Guardian Family as soon as that decision is made.
Why do we offer Guardian Homes?
I believe dogs deserves:
– Individual attention
– Meaningful family interaction
– Life as a household companion
– Training and socialisation outside of being a breeding prospect
– Live a life that allows them to be full-filled
Guardian Homes allow me to:
– Maintain a small home-based breeding program
– Preserve important bloodlines
– Evaluate promising dogs as they mature
– Ensure breeding dogs live full and enriching family lives outside of contributing to the breed.
Guardian Homes are common as it allows breeders to retain access to high quality dogs they have produced without comprimising the welfare of the dog by retaining more dog than you need. More breeders now understand that the more dogs you own, the less individual attention they each get. Guardian homes allow dogs to thrive with dedicated families while potentially still contributing to the future of the overall breed.
Benefits to Guardian Families
✔ A puppy selected which the breeder see’s potential in the future breeder’s program
✔ Ongoing breeder support and mentorship
✔ Opportunities to learn about showing and breeding
✔ Priority boarding and stays with the breeder when available
✔ Any breeding and health testing expenses related to breeding covered by breeder
✔ Full ownership at completion of the program
✔ The opportunity to play an important role in preserving the future of the breed
✔ Priority waitlist. If your dog becomes part of the program and goes on to have a litter, you will get priority on a waitlist for that litter.
Ownership
“Who Owns The Dog”? – one of the most common questions
One of the most common questions is:
“Who owns the dog?”
During the Guardian Home Program, the dog is owned jointly by:
Waltari Weimaraner’s & The Guardian Family in whats called “co-ownership” on their ANKC pedigree. This means both parties need to sign off on breeding and ownership related activities that effect the ANKC. This protects the Guardian Home from a Breeder using their dog without permission. It protects the Breeder’s lines from the puppy being onsold by the Guardian Home as a breeding dog and it protects the welfare of the dog. In co-ownership, the dog is legally owned by both the Guardian Home, and The Breeder, until The Breeder decides the dog had fullfilled their part in the program and full ownership is transffered over to the Guardian Home.
Do I need The Breeders permission for everything?
No, the above is only relating to activities like breeding and selling the dog under the ANKC. The Guardian Home treats the dog as they would any other dog. You do not need The Breeders permission for everyday life things.
What does the arrangement look like?
For the Guardian Home
✔ To raise the dog as their own
✔ To make day-to-day care decisions
✔ Choose activities, training and exercise as they wish
✔ Include the dog fully in family life
✔ Enjoy all the normal benefits of pet ownership
✔ Be included in future breeding / showing opportunities with the assistance of the breeder
The arrangement allows Waltari Weimaraners
✔ To retain breeding rights
✔ Organise health testing of their dogs
✔ Coordinate future breeding opportunities for the dog if suitable
✔ Protect their breeding lines
✔ Place puppies in safe, trusting homes
✔ Create longer term relationships and investments with puppy owners
✔ Have more of their dogs eligable for conformation shows and exhibitions where available.
✔ More breeders are moving toward Guardian Homes rather than keeping high numbers of dogs themselves, understanding that the more dogs you own, the less individual attention they each get. Guardian homes allow dogs to thrive with dedicated families while potentially still contributing to the future of the breed.
What if the dog isn’t suitable for breeding?
This is actually very common. Not every dog that is a part of the guardian home program becomes a breeding dog.
Breeding protocols are strict and even minor departures from the standard can make promising puppies ineligable as they grow. It does not make the puppy any less special, it is just a part of raising living animals. Just like humans, puppies grow and change with age, so we can only select puppies based on potential we see at 8 weeks and then wait to see how they develop. We cannot guarentee any puppy or dog will be successful in the program. It is all based on their development.
Female VS Male Guardian Homes
| Female Dogs | Male Dogs |
|---|---|
| Growing Up The puppy lives with the guardian family full-time as a normal household pet. | Growing Up The puppy lives with the guardian family full-time as a normal household pet. |
| Health Testing Once mature, the dog may undergo: ✔ Hip scoring ✔ Elbow scoring ✔ DNA testing ✔ Veterinary examinations ✔ Other breed-specific assessments | Health Testing Once mature, the dog may undergo: ✔ Hip scoring ✔ Elbow scoring ✔ DNA testing ✔ Veterinary examinations ✔ Sperm tests / other breed-specific assessments |
| Breeding If deemed suitable for breeding she would be needed for: | Breeding If deemed suitable for breeding she would be needed for: ✔ Stud duties ✔ Stud collection at the reproductive vet |
| Mating She will spend a short period with the breeder for mating + planning pregnancy. The owner can be involved in the process or leave her with The Breeder. Pregnancy She generally returns home throughout pregnancy to be with her family as this is her home. She continues her normal life until towards the end of her pregnancy. Whelping Approximately 1-2 weeks before whelping, she returns to the breeder. She remains with the breeder while giving birth to and to raise her puppies. This is often a period of 6-8 weeks. Returning Home Once the puppies are fully weaned, she returns home. Throughout the process, even while she resides with The Breeder, the Guardian Home Family can visit her as often as they wish. | |
| Female’s if eligable will only have a maximum of two litters while in the program. That does not commit them to having two litters, it means all going well, they would only ever have two litters. | For most eligable males, time away from home is minimal. Most visits are short and are arranged well in advance. |
Other FAQ’s
Conformation Shows
Guardian dogs may participate in conformation showing if their structure is sound.
Showing allows breeders to compare dogs against the breed standard and receive independent evaluations from qualified judges.
Invested breeders want their dogs out there being shown, it assists their kennel name and it is important that breeding dogs are actually assessed under the ANKC for the future of the breed. Breeders understand showing is a big time commitment and so it is common for The Breeder to show the dog if the Guardian Home has no interest and is happy for The Breeder to do so.
Participation can include:
✔ The breeder exhibiting the dog. This would include the breeder picking up and dropping home the dog to the Guardian Home.
✔ The Guardian Home exhibiting the dog, the opportunity is there if you would like to learn and also show every now and again
✔ A combination of both
No previous experience is required to show, and support is available for families interested in learning. Junior Handlers are also allowed to complete in the ring, as long as they hold their own Junior Membership with Dogs SA.
Who pays for what?
Guardian Family Responsibilities
✔ Food and treats
✔ Routine veterinary care
✔ Annual vaccinations and worming
✔ Grooming as normal
✔ Socialisation and training as normal
✔ Day to day expenses
✔ Day to day life care and activies
✔ General care and wellbeing as any normal pet
Waltari Weimaraners Responsibilities
✔ DNA testing and costs
✔ Hip and elbow scoring tests and costs
✔ Breeding-related veterinary expenses
✔ Showing expenses
✔ Stud fees and reproductive expenses
✔ Pregnancy and whelping expenses
✔ Raising litters
✔ Desexing costs at retirement from the program
✔ Ownership transfer costs at end of program
Q&A
Q: “Can I still take my dog on holidays”
A: Absolutely. Guardian dogs live normal family lives and enjoy the same freedoms as any other family pet. This is one of the main reasons behind Guardian Homes. We want our breeding dogs livng wholesome, fullfilled lives as this imapcts the physical and mental welfare of the dog.
Q: “I haven’t owned an entire dog before. How do I manage females in heat or entire males”
Owning entire dogs comes with some management, however simple things make life much easier. For example: when females are in heat, they are not walked off lead or around other dogs. When left home alone, they should be inside or located somewhere that wandering males can not get to them through a fence.
For males: Don’t leave gates or fences open. Do not allow them to wander and roam streets and find females in heat.
As a side note, dogs should not be de-sexed before physical maturity unless advised for medical reasons. This means whether or not the dog continues in the Guardian Home Program, they will likely be entire for the first few years of their life anyway.
Q: “Is the puppy still full price if co-owned? Am I reimbursed for sharing my dog?”
A: Yes, the puppy is full price. If the dog progresses through the program and has a successful litter.
For female dogs in the program, the guardians are offered either, cost of 1 puppy in return from their first litter (i.e.: reimbursement for their original puppy purchase) or a puppy from the litter at NIL cost.
For males in the program, the guardians are offered either, cost of 1 puppy in return from their first litter the dog sires (i.e.: reimbursement for their original puppy purchase) or a puppy from the litter at NIL cost.
In the case of male dogs There is no stud fee provided to the Guardian Home in the case of semen colection as this comes as an upfront cost to the breeder. Male guardians still have priority
