qustions for those of you who own a kennel and breed dogs.

[dodgegirl]

Alright so here's the deal my pops breeds dogos & I see all the money he brings in and I figured why don't I do the same thing. I'm 18 I just got my my first job at Macys and I figured it would be the perfect side business. Im planning on buying to two dogos directly from Argentina and getting them shipped to me. But my dad and I sometimes don't see eye to eye and was hoping you guys could help me out with some tips. Like ways to get my name out there, what I should expect, should I stud my male, just some stuff like that.

[MrsLouisianaHogDog]

Just remember to do right by the dogs first and foremost. Aside from that, litters aren't cheap. You have to deworm them on schedule, and vaccinate them all before they are ready to be sold. Some folks who will be paying a high price for a pup may want  a health certificate done by a Veterinarian. Are you going to offer a health guarantee? Also, are you planning on selling them to pet or show homes? Or working homes? The main way I would imagine you getting your name out there in regards to your dogs depends on what genre of buyers you are targeting. Show or pet homes, show the hell out of the parents and have them earn as many accolades as you can. If you're targeting folks who will want them as catch dogs, you gotta get out there and work them two parents and they'd better prove themselves to be bonafide hog catching machines. Especially when there are a decent amount of proven Dogos out there that are well established as hog dogs already. If I want a pup for a working purpose, I'm gonna go to they guy/girl that has proven working parents, not a random person that is breeding just to sell pups. Hopefully something in my post will help you out with what you are seeking advice on.

[magnuml]

If you are getting into it to make money, Don't. Alot more to it than you think and ALOT of cost and risk. Good luck.

[HOGDOGGERSPC]

if your gonna do that i would suggest just using your dog as a stud.  you probably dont have the money to build your own kennels and it is alot of work to keep up with.  if you stud the dog you wont make as much but you dont have the cost, time and money out waiting on people to buy your dogs when you dont have a name for yourself.  ps listen to your old man, dont confuse the term we dont see eye to eye for him giving you solid advice you dont want to hear.  good luck.

[halfbreed]

ha ha i been doing this long as i can remember . got a pretty good name in it  [ i think ] and the best i ever did in my life was BREAK EVEN  . unless you gonna run a puppy mill it's a hard row to hoe  . listen to your elders we ain't all dumb as dirt lol. and good luck in whatever you decide .

[trapperchick87]

remember potential buyers are extremely fickle! like it was said above figure out your nook your shooting for an then PROVE the parents are outstanding before you try to market them! And cost is a BIG issue..if you advertise your pups for a good bit of money the buyers are going to want some perks like worming, first round of shots( an they range from $8.00-25.00-if a vet does it), dewclaws removed(or tails depending on the breed) it all adds up!  

[dodgegirl]

I'm planning on having show/working dogs. We have extra kennels so I wouldn't have to worry about that. As for it costing a lot of money I have no bills as of now so I will have money to spend to do everything the right way. I'm not just in it for the money, I know its a lot of work and it isn't easy.I've been helping my dad clean pens and care for dogs since I was able to walk lol. Thank you for responding so quick, you all have very good advice.

[ked]

If ya dad is successful in it the best advise I can give see "eye to eye" with him.

[T-Bob Parker]

If you wanna make money at it, small dogs are way easier to sell and care for. Less space/feed per animal+ higher volume capability = more potential for profit.

Don't think for a minute you can't make money selling dogs. There's a few folks right here in Texas who produce at least a litter per month and at roughly 1000 dollars per pup let's say they sell 8 pups a month, that's $96,000 dollars by years end.

[jimco]

You sure can sell show/working dogs but they better perform in the show ring and in the field. Here is some links to a few folks I know that are very successful at it. They use the same dogs for working and hunting then show them at trials and conformation shows. Now, this didn't happen over night. These folks worked on these lines for quite awhile.

          http://jcrosscatahoulas.com/
          http://www.crosscheckcatahoulas.com/
          http://floridacatahoula.com/
       

[hogaholicswife]

"A pedigree is a piece of paper. Not a guarantee of quality. Not a slam-dunk that you get what you want. Health clearances  are a bunch of letters behind a name. Champions are somebody else's idea of what a dog should be.  Is the DOG what YOU want it to be? That's the only question worth answering." - Craig Reid

^^^ that is an awesome quote from Cross Check Catahoulas!!

[dodgegirl]

Thanks guys, for all of your feedback. With your guys advice as well as my dads advice I'm very confident. The dogs will be hunted just like my pops dogs & I will also take them to the shows where he brings his dogs. I know this isn't going to happen over night, but since I'm starting young I hope to be able to create great dogs in the future. But you have to start somewhere right ? (:

[t.wilbanks]

If your pop already has a good line going, why not just get a couple pups from him?? It may end up being cheaper and easier to just keep what he has going instead of importing and hoping they work out... Just my opinion..

[Easttex91]

If you want to make money go with a small pet breed. (i hate ankle biters don't get me wrong) but I just paid $350 for my gf's chihuahua. The lady had all 5 sold when they were 3 or 4 weeks old and there's very minimal upkeep. Get you a male and 3 or 4 females your rich. Best thing is they're all going to meet buyers expectations cause nobody expects them to do anything.

[Amokabs]

Your dad may have  puppy $$ in his pocket but ask him how much he spends on his dogs. And just my opinion, if you are just wanting dogs to make $$, u are in it for the wrong reasons. If you dont have a passion for the dogs, or the hunting, or anything else you do, well, it'll be tough to stick with it esp when you get home from work at Macy's your friends are all out havin fun that evening, but you gotta head home to tend to dogs and or a litter of pups. It's a big responsability and each pup u bring into this world is a living critter that has to be tended to. if you love Dogos and think you can produce nice ones, (and i like you are willing to import from Argentina, that sez alot right there, ), and make some good Dogos , best of luck. But like everyone's pretty much said, you better really like fooling with them , gettin dirty And worse, and not making much if any $$ . If u do go that route, again, good luck.

[dodgegirl]

It's not just for the money. I love the breed, I've grown up with them my whole life. I could get some pups from my pops, but I would rather just get some imported straight from Argentina. I've done my research and have found in my opinion one of the best breeders who also had a great price. If any of you are interested in his website just pm me. I understand it going to cost a lot of money, but you have to start somewhere. And trust me I know how much work it is. My pops has a bad back so I do most of the tending to the dogs we have now. I could never get a small breed dog, I wouldn't enjoy that, sure you make money with them, but you can't take them hunting or rough house with them.

[TColt]

You can count on not making any money for a several years. For what you are looking for, you need to find a breeder that breeds nice show dogs but also hunts and proves their dogs in the field (and very few do both). If you have been raised around the breed then you know what you are looking for, so you really should go to wherever you are going to get pups from and hand pick them. Getting nice dogo pups here from out of country, you are looking at several thousand dollars.

If you are going to be a responsible breeder, then you need to consider if the dogs don't turn out, you need to cull them and start over. In fact, when you buy a dog like this and are wanting something that will EARN the right to be bred, you should count on culling them because only the best should be bred. You should really count on not breeding or plan on culling if you do not go hand pick your pup.

Once you find a dog that you think will work out, it will take a few years to prove them in the field/show ring. The way this breed is, you will be lucky to get a dog that excels enough in the field or the show ring, let alone both. When I say excels in the field, they should be able to handle big boars by themselves, and be able to stand in their own guts while doing it, they should be dead game. Are you ready to do what it takes to prove that in a dog?

Lets say you hunt the dogs a few times a month as most do, they may be proven in three or four years. So your four years in, $5k in the pair (if the original two pups both work out, which both probably won't), another $2k in vet care/emergencies (to be on the safe side). Thats $7k plus dog food for two dogs pushing 1oo lbs. Then you can add all your fuel and time hunting, all your fuel and fees for dog shows, add in paying a handler if you haven't shown dogs before (I can't really put numbers on that since Im not a dog show person). After all that, we will say $10k (to be conservative), plus cost of dog food, plus time.

 Now its time to breed and everything goes well. Your bitch has 8 pups. The runt dies, now you have 7. You keep 7 healthy for eight weeks and get them BAER (hearing) test done for however much that costs. Two are deaf (so you have to cull them), now you have five pups. You do a vet check and give a health guarantee, one person brings a pup back for allergies. When it is all said and done you have sold four (if you don't keep one) pups for $1000 a pop, so after two litters of this, your still not close to you investment.

That is just a conservative scenario of what could happen. When it comes to breeding working dogs, money should be the last thing on your mind. Breedings should be for your personal use and for the breed itself. If your not breeding top dogs, you doing the breed and everyone in the breed a disservice. If your old man has been in the breed this long and his is in it for the right reasons, he probably knows what he is talking about. I would listen to him and soak up every ounce of knowledge you can from him, then one day he may pass down his dogs to you and you can carry on his line.

My advice to you would be to adopt a dogo, hunt the paws off of it, and just learn what it is like to have sole financial, physical, and mental responsibility of a working dog, especially a dog of this size. Its not all about just cleaning the kennels and feeding them. I sent you a pm, just wondering who your old man is. I can point you in the right direction to adopt a dogo as well. I love the Dogo and own two full blood and one dogoXab at the moment. My male is has probably caught close to 100 hogs and many of them good boars and he is only 16 mo old, and I wouldn't consider him proven, just an idea of what it takes to really work on proving a dog.

[dodgegirl]

The dogs I'm getting are from a great breeder in Córdoba Argentina where the top of the line dogos come from. He hunts them, he has videos on youtube as well as pictures on his website. I will pm you guys his website if anyone is interested. I guess the way I said it I made it look like I was only in it for the money, but that's not the case. I know its going to cost a lot of money, and that its going to be a lot of hard work. I see all the money/ hard work my pops puts into his dogs. But like I keep saying, I have to start somewhere. One again thank you for all the tips and advice

[Reuben]

the average hog hunter won't pay much for a proven catch dog...and a lot less for a pup...but I think there are enough hog hunters that will pay for a Dogo pup as well as non hunters...good luck and you will have to learn how to physically judge a dogo for show purposes...also you will have to learn how to bring out the best from the dog in the show ring if you are to win...

[dodgegirl]

I certainly have a lot to learn. But I have high expectations for the future, and hopefully I will be able to create a dog that people will think highly of.