Interested in an American Dancer's puppy?

Choice:

In case you are interested in a Portuguese waterdog puppy we invite you to come by to meet us and our dogs or give us a call if you are living abroad. That way we can get an impression of your family situation to see if our puppies will have a good life. That way we can also get a better understanding about what you know about- and expect from the breed, to see if this breed fits with you. Depending the outcome you can be put on our waiting list. We are very protective for our puppies and bloodline. 

As with this breed there is not only a choice between male and female, but also coat type and potentially colour, it is difficult to say how long the waiting list is. Potential puppy buyers express their preferences and when the litter is born we contact the people in the order of the list to see if they stay with their preference and/or wait till the next litter. At the age of 6 to 7 weeks, when something more about the character is known, WE make a judgement which dog best fits with which new owner, taking into account as much as possible of their preferences. Until now this has always worked out and people are very satisfied. For example: in a busy family with small children we won't place the most outgoing puppy. Or for people with little or no dog experience, it requires an easy character and not a very dominant puppy. The pups will go to their new homes at around 9 weeks.

Health:

With regard to breeding, we mainly breed for health, character and type. We test our dogs on HD, Cardio, PRA, GM-1 and improper coat.

(for more information about diseases please go to the main menu and select breed and then health)

A pedigree only tells something about the purity of the line but not always everything about the health. Only by testing hereditary diseases can be discovered.  Cardio, PRA, GM-1 and improper coat are tested by us using DNA tests. The hips are X-rayed. Also we avoid riskful breedings, such as curly x curly breedings, which potentially can produce hairloss. Furthermore we closely work with other breeders to find out as much as possible from the bloodlines, to prevent other diseases as much as  possible.

Colours:

We breed with both wavies and curlies and therefore most of the time we have both hairtypes in a litter. Also we normally have different colours, like black, black-white, white-black and brown-white. Elsewhere on the site you can see pictures of our dogs and from a number of litters that we have raised.

In the family:

The Portuguese waterdog can be a good family member together with other animals and/or children. This is just a matter a proper socialisation and having the puppy grow up together. Our puppies are living with families having children, other dogs, cats, horses etc. and this all works out very well.

Care:

With regard to care, one has to think about yearly vaccinations, deworming, flea treatment, proper food and a visit to the grooming salon every 6 to 8 weeks.

Character:

The Portuguese waterdog has a very friendly character and loves to be close to people (wants to be your buddy). Because they are very intelligent, they are constantly trying you out and therefore one has to be very consistent. We highly recommend a minimum of 3 obedience courses including the puppy training. This is a small investment in time and money, from which you will reap the fruits when they are older. Just in daily life or as a basis for other courses like agility or waterwork. It takes a while before a PWD is grown up. Most of them act like a puppy until 3 and then become a bit more quiet. If they have enough exercise you can leave them alone for a couple of hours. This also depends whether there are other dogs. If they are alone then you will have to give them the exercise otherwise the dog can use up his energy while playing with is friend(s).

Contract:

We work with contracts: either a pet/non breeding contract or a show/breed contract.

This includes: 1st shot, deworming, pedigree, puppy information leaflet, puppy pack including leash, brush, food, and a toy with the mothers smell. Before they leave they will be washed and dried and put in the preferred model. This is already a good experience for when visiting a grooming salon later on.

For us it is no problem if our puppies are going to live abroad. Only we insist for the new owner to personally pick up the puppy. It is not just a parcel that you put in the post.!!!

American Dancer's family:

Once a year we normally organise a beach walk for all American Dancer’s PWDs. In case you would come to this event you can meet not only our dogs, but also other American Dancer's dogs and their owners and you can ask them about their experiences.

As a breeder we find it very important that we always stay some kind of mentor. That means that you can always call us for advice or with any type of question. We also have our own e-mail list so everybody can share his or her experience or ask questions.