# PICK OF THE LITTER ???



## redog (Oct 14, 2005)

After we had fun with RCK's funny thread, I noticed the bully breeder has different prices for each different picks of the litter. I wanted to know how this is determined. can they evaluate a pup for the way it will turn out when it gets older? My 2nd question about pick of the litter is who decides which 1 is 1st pick? the buyer? or the breeder?


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## Sadie (Jun 18, 2008)

Good Question Dave .. I have always noticed the 1st pick of the litter is always more expensive with a lot of the breeders I have seen .. And so on and so fourth ... I would be curious how a breeder determines 1st pick , 2nd pick, 3rd pick, ect ... What criteria are you breeder's using to determine the picks if the litter


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## BedlamBully (Jun 6, 2008)

The Breeder decides the picks. And a lot of breeders will have different prices for different picks. Pick 1 is supposed to be a better quality dog than say pick 5. Often the lower picks will be sold on pet contracts with a spay/neuter requirement.

Some breeders just charge a set amount for all the puppies regardless of the pick and don't require spay/neuters for the pet quality dogs.

Picks generally aren't made until somewhere between 6-8weeks so the breeder can get an idea of how the dog is developing. I don't know that there is a set way to evauluate I think it depends on what the breeder is breeding for, working dog or conformation. Or in the case of irresponsible breeders...they will pick based on color. IE first pick dog has the most blue on it.

So pretty much its up to the breeder to make the picks lol


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## American_Pit13 (Apr 23, 2007)

Pick of litter is the one you pick hehe. I had pick of my litter being Bumble Bee she has great conformation, beautiful color and very very nice attitude that being my pick of litter. We took Optimus Prime as Male pick of litter, and now that we may put him up for sale he is still the same price as everyone else. I have two prices Show-working price $550-$650 Depending on parents and Pet quality $100-$150 depending on why I consider it pet quality. You will see breeders charging more for "pick of litter" because it has the nicest color lol Blues this much, Less for black ect ect... But it can vary from breeder to breeder. To me pick of litter is your pick of litter nothing more nothing less.

For example Faith was Laura pick of litter. Out of the whole litter thats the one she saw as best.


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## redog (Oct 14, 2005)

Bedlam , Is 6 to 8 weeks old enough to determine it? my pups went thru so many changes and all turned out different than I thought..... looks and temp. or is it possible to be even sorta accurate?


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## los44 (Jun 1, 2008)

pick of the litter is decided by the buyer, a good breeder often times will try to steer you in the direction of the best pup but on the flip side you get dishonest breeders who mislead you so you can pick a pup of lesser quality so that they can keep the best pup. at the end of the day you are responsible for that pick after all you payed extra for it. no breeder should pick the pup for you, he/she should only make suggestion and ultimately you decide.


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## BedlamBully (Jun 6, 2008)

Its old enough to make a good guess. Personally I haven't had a litter or pits, my family used to breed Akitas and we always made picks right about 7 weeks. 

YOu can get a good gist of what the bite will looking like, how they will stand, wether they will be easty westy or not, but with Pit bulls you also breed for a working dog. So again it depends on what you are looking for.

Like with Combat I wanted a good pull dog, and while I liked the look of the other dog Steph turned me onto Combat because his drive was better and the other dog was sorta lazy and I couldn't be happier with him. Conformational wise he is a little easty westy and has a slight underbite but his canines still sissor (which is what ADBA looks for) but again...he's my pull dog


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## redog (Oct 14, 2005)

So having the parents on premisis would be a big part of the buyer being able to make a good choice based on the parents?


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## redsky (Feb 28, 2009)

I make pick of the litter as the breeder and what this means is this pup has the over all best structure of all the other pups (my pick of the litter is not usually a higher price it's usually staying here or being co owned out). What I use to base the prices of my litters is pedigree, titles, health testing etc. Dogs I have put more into I price pups higher (my pet price is always the same unless I drop the price). I have nor ever will sell a pup at more then I myself is willing to pay with that being said my prices top out at 1500 (most times that includes shipping and ear crop along with micro chipping). My average price though is usually 500, I'm not trying to get rich off my dogs and whatever I take in goes right back to them either up grading their living area, going to more shows etc... To this date I've giving away (even if they are co owned out) more pups then I've sold. I originally didn't charge a co own fee well since I've had at least 5 dogs have something unfortunate happen from either being screwed over on what the agreement was to them going missing or dying so over the years I screen a lot more and I also now charge a co own fee most of the time (you simply can't be nice to some people). I have a big heart and some times it tends to bite me in my butt...


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## los44 (Jun 1, 2008)

redsky said:


> I make pick of the litter as the breeder and what this means is this pup has the over all best structure of all the other pups


i dont agree with this simply because what i think the 1st pick is may be different from what you think it is. what you are looking for in pup may not be what the buyer is looking for. the way i am looking at it is, if im paying for a pup i will pick it, i would like your input but ultimately it is my choice. jmo


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## pitbullgirl22 (Jul 27, 2008)

I haven't had litter yet but the breeder we got our pups from charged everyone the same price even though he had a pick. He did have a pick though. He said it would have been the one he would have kept.


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## redsky (Feb 28, 2009)

los44 said:


> i dont agree with this simply because what i think the 1st pick is may be different from what you think it is. what you are looking for in pup may not be what the buyer is looking for. the way i am looking at it is, if im paying for a pup i will pick it, i would like your input but ultimately it is my choice. jmo


Just because I deem a pup pick of the litter doesn't mean who ever is buying a pup has to pick that pup lol that is why i said as the breeder that is how "I" pick my pup now if I sold first pick or whatever pick that person picks what he/she likes (which you will most likely never see my first pick sold it is usually co-owned or kept here) different people interpret things differently I think you just misunderstood what I was. When a person is buying a pup they get to pick what depending on which pick they do have. For instance I usually reserve first through fourth picks so if you buy third pick then you get to pick from what is left after the first two picks have chosen their pups.


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## BedlamBully (Jun 6, 2008)

Okay let me explain this a little better.

When Pulldawg had their litter They had first pick male, I had second pick, MadBood had third, ect ect.

This meant Pulldawg got to pick their pup first and decide which one they wanted, Then I got to pick WHICHEVER male pup I wanted second, there wasn't a particular pup prenamed 'pick 2' it just meant I got second pick of all the males, then MadBood got third pick, ect ect

I definatly relied on Steph to help me out since they know what to look for in a pulling dog as you should be able to with ANY reputable breeder. Since a reputable breeder will have had a clear picture of what they want from a breeding they should know what to look for.


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## redsky (Feb 28, 2009)

BedlamBully said:


> Okay let me explain this a little better.
> 
> When Pulldawg had their litter They had first pick male, I had second pick, MadBood had third, ect ect.
> 
> ...


EXACTLY I so suck at explaining things lol glad you came back with that. :hammer:


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## los44 (Jun 1, 2008)

redsky said:


> EXACTLY I so suck at explaining things lol glad you came back with that. :hammer:


yes you do! lol! it seemed like "YOU" made the pick for the buyer from the way you worded it.

BEDLAM - thats the way it should be, thank you.


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## redsky (Feb 28, 2009)

Interpretations differ from person to person lol that's why it's so hard to communicate via the net and things are always misunderstood......


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## rosesandthorns (Nov 1, 2008)

I always choose a pup to keep out of each litter. Just my personal preference for what I like in the litter. I generally keep a pretty close watch on their personalities and try to pair a pup with the right family. A family that is active needs an active pup so I wouldn't place a shy puppy with them or a lazy puppy with them. I score each pup based on different factors and try to make sure they have good homes. I stay in touch with the new owners and I always take the pup back if something happens and then either keep it or rehome it.


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## redsky (Feb 28, 2009)

We do stimulation and temperament testing prior to the pups leaving anyone else do this?


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## LiiL_L0cz_Red_N0se (Sep 15, 2008)

my breeder charged a little more for the first pick. he had alot of nice dogs, but he was showing me the best on based on confirmation standards. i told him i needed a dog with drive and very energetic and wat not since she would be going into a job with me, and he showed me kenyas brother. He was a handsome devil, but i feel in love with kenya. from when she was 2wks old, i was in love with her, so i already had my eyes stuck onher.. she happend to be perfect for me. i had first pick, which im glad, becuase a few people behind me had their eye on kenya as well


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## Nizmo (Jan 15, 2009)

LiiL_L0cz_Red_N0se said:


> my breeder charged a little more for the first pick. he had alot of nice dogs, but he was showing me the best on based on confirmation standards. i told him i needed a dog with drive and very energetic and wat not since she would be going into a job with me, and he showed me kenyas brother. He was a handsome devil, but i feel in love with kenya. from when she was 2wks old, i was in love with her, so i already had my eyes stuck onher.. she happend to be perfect for me. i had first pick, which im glad, becuase a few people behind me had their eye on kenya as well


So kenya will be going to work with you as a cop doggie? lol


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## redsky (Feb 28, 2009)

That's awesome!


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## LiiL_L0cz_Red_N0se (Sep 15, 2008)

Nizmo357 said:


> So kenya will be going to work with you as a cop doggie? lol


yeah man u didnt know that????  she is training right now in sch1 and when she passes that she will (pretty soon actually) she will move up to both sch2 and then k9 training with the pd 

SORRY FOR THE HIJAK REDOG!:hammer:


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## redog (Oct 14, 2005)

Its ok I dont mind a good hijak once in a while. thanks you guys for explaining it all. I only picked one pup from a litter of springers once. I knew what I wanted and got exactly that. the best bird dog in the world. apbts are so different though with alot of different traits and temp. so I think input from the breeder would be an important aspect, but not the only reason to pick a pup.


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## Indica (Sep 23, 2008)

This is a great thread.


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## MY MIKADO (Apr 7, 2006)

Very heplful and informative thread Thnaks Dave for starting it.


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## dan'sgrizz (Oct 22, 2008)

I like the first pick because then you have your choice of pups and usually the choice to even trandfer your deposit to another litter. You can really get what your looking for. This is a very informative thread thanks again DAVE!


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## OldFortKennels (Mar 10, 2006)

I see it this way. In all my litters I have 1st pick of litter. Say I have 1st Pick of Litter Males and customer X has 1st pick of the litter female. To me this means NO ONE else gets to pick their males until I decided which one I want. No one get to pick the females until "X" makes their pick and so forth. I may or may not charge more for pick of the litter as you get the first pick, then second pics and so forth. I will not make the pick for you, but after talking to the person and finding out their needs I will recommend a pup to them but ultimately its up to them. 

Also I think 6-9 weeks is impossible to determine a pups value and character, you can just get an idea based on performance thus far. Ideally I would keep a litter until 9 months of age and then you have a good idea. This however is usually not feasable as people want to sell the pups while they can.


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