great danes.?

Question
QUESTION: hello, i was wondering if yhu knoe any great dane breeders in the sacromento area.? that sell their puppies for a low price.? my daughter kasadee has been wanting one for like ever.! and now that we lost our big dog emma, we think that she would like to have one to full in the space. she really likes big dogs, and we think that a great dane would be perfect for her..

thanks.:)

ANSWER: I do not personally know of any Great Dane breeders in the Sacromento area. However, puppies for a "low price" is generally not the greatest way to being a search for a Great Dane. If you do not have the money to buy a puppy from a good breeder, I highly encourage you to look into a different breed. Suppose that you do find a puppy for lets say $500, but you come to discover 2 years later that this said "low priced" puppy has hip dysplasia and a heart condition. He/she needs a $4,000 surgery to fix their hips, if they are even in a condition to be operated on. The heart condition can be managed with medication but cannot be treated, you have to spend $60-100 a month on heart medication and there is a prognosis that the dog will only live 2 more years...

Your $500 puppy just turned into a $5,000 puppy overnight. This could be well avoided if you go to a good breeder in the first place.

If you find a breeder who is selling puppies at this price. Ask yourself these questions...Do you want your daughter going through the pain of loosing a companion in just 4 short years? If the answer is no, then wait until you have the money to be able to go through a breeder that is worth while.

Great Danes as a breed have NUMEROUS amounts of health problems...many can be avoided with the right health testing. Some of the testing that you want your breeder to have done is HIPS, ELBOWS, HEART, THYROID, and HEARING if you are looking into a breeder who has white puppies. Yes, you may have to pay $1,200 to $2,000 up front, but these puppies are backed by a health guarantee and you will most certainly have a dog that can live up to and beyond 12 or 13 years.

If you want to find a good breeder in your area visit:

http://www.gdca.org/

or

http://www.gdca.org/breedermap.htm

or

http://www.gdca.org/california.htm

Please do not think that I am being hard on you. These dogs are great but if you buy from a back yard breeder, pet store or puppy mill, you will have a lifetime of health problems, heart break and financial burden on your family.

Make the right decision, the well informed decision and do your research...buy from a responsible breeder.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: oh no, i totally understand wat yhu mean... i had that problem with a boxer that we got a while ago.. we got her free... when she started growing up, we found out that she was allergic to stuff, she was the runt, and she had a hernia.. we had to get everything fixed.. costed alot. !! and i will look for those places... have yhu ever heard of the website kijiji. com.?

Answer
I have heard of the kijiji website....I do not think there are too many good breeders listed on there...

Like a said before, ask for proof of health testing, and more importantly, you want to go through a breeder who is actively showing in AKC sanctioned events such as conformation, obedience, performance or working events.

Good luck on your search. If you do find someone that you want to get a second opinion on. email me a private message with their contact information or website and I will take a look at it for you and let you know if they are a breeder worthwhile.