What does a maintenance dog mean?

What is a maintenance puppy?

Any experienced breeder knows that breeding any breed requires certain knowledge, patience and love for your charges.

The appearance and health of the dog, as well as its title, play a role here. It rarely happens that one owner has two suitable dogs for mating at once. More often than not, two dog owners take part in the process.

The birth of one dog leaves the owner of the dog without profit

To simplify the transaction process between owners, there are certain options for paying for the “services” of a male dog:

monetary reward;
as one or two from a litter;
mixed type of payment - money and puppy.

Moreover, most often the agreement is that he can choose the best baby from the entire litter.

The right to a maintenance puppy

Official matings to produce babies with a pedigree must be registered. Therefore, the owners make a deal among themselves. If this is an oral agreement, it is better to do it in the presence of outside witnesses (for example, representatives of a third-party nursery where the dogs will subsequently be registered).

This can be a full-fledged agreement or receipt drawn up by lawyers.

In the case of a monetary reward, it is written by the owner of the dog to confirm receipt of the agreed amount. However, this payment option is rarely welcomed by professional breeders. It is more profitable for both parties to agree on alimony (this way, the owner of the bitch will not owe anything in the event of an unsuccessful mating and the absence of offspring or too few, and the owner of a male dog can sell the alimony child for much more than he would receive in cash during mating).

If the dog is a rare breed, expensive, it is not so easy to find her a partner for intercourse

If there is an agreement to hand over a small dog, the owner of the bitch will write the letter of intent.

If we are talking about rare breeds that are especially valued on the market, then it is recommended to draw up a full-fledged agreement with a detailed description of all the responsibilities of the parties. Most often, nurseries provide a sample of this document, but in any case it is better to make sure that all possible situations and force majeure are indicated there. After all, we are talking about living organisms, so anything is possible. The agreement will protect both parties in any unforeseen situations.

How to correctly draw up a contract for child support so as not to be deceived?

This is an example of the document that needs to be completed. It has legal force, unlike an oral agreement.

If you want to have a guarantee that you will not be deceived, especially when it comes to an expensive breed, it is better to draw up an official contract in advance. Your rights can only be confirmed by a properly executed legal document:

direction for mating;
contract

The contents of these documents should be as follows:

Full name of each owner.
Dog names.
Mating time.
Form of remuneration for the participation of a male dog (money or offspring).
The right of the male owner to own one puppy from the intended litter is documented.
A deadline is set after which the baby can be picked up.
Data from an official examination by a veterinarian on the number and compliance with breed standards of babies (data is entered after birth).

Other issues that concern the parties are also discussed.

How to choose the right one

In order not to make a mistake in choosing the right dog, it is better for an inexperienced dog breeder to invite a professional who understands the characteristics of the breed to help. An experienced breeder will be able to make the choice independently. The dog is assessed on many external parameters, as well as on the manifestation of character.

To successfully select a male puppy, the owner must have experience

Appearance

In general, the puppy should not have any deviations from the breed standard and no physical defects (for example, crooked legs or coat problems).

But almost every breed has its own secrets, which professionals evaluate primarily:

In a Yorkshire Terrier litter, the fur is the first to be visible. It should be straight, long hair without a hint of any undercoat. The more shine, the healthier and better quality the baby is considered.
Three-colored beagles are valued higher than two-colored ones, so when choosing a maintenance puppy, you should definitely choose the brighter one.
Labradors are assessed for fatness, density and color of coat, as well as ear position. They should not stick out; in babies they are more saggy.
In the colors of pugs, a black pattern on the face is welcome. A diamond or star on the forehead is considered the hallmark of a good appearance.

When choosing, be sure to pay attention to the even, dense bone structure and the size of the head, which should be proportional to the baby’s torso.

In some breeds, for example, the Cane Corso, it is fully formed only by 7-8 months. This makes choosing a puppy very difficult.

The baby's coat should be dense, without bald patches, and as shiny as possible. You can stroke it to check if the hairs are falling off.

When choosing a baby, evaluate the color of the pet

In boys (especially if the baby is already grown up), it is important to check the descent of both testicles into the scrotum.

Character

It is better to observe the baby’s behavior for as long as possible. See how active he is and how he reacts to people and other puppies.

The baby should not be shy; on the contrary, it is better to choose the most active one. You can try to play with it, evaluate the reaction.

Receiving a maintenance puppy is the most convenient and profitable way to pay for breeding a pet. For a successful result, it is better to formalize the deal legally and wisely approach the process of choosing child support.

Mating as a legal transaction

The relationship between the owner of the bitch and the owner of the dog is formalized in the form of a transaction in which each of them is an interested party. Most often, such a transaction is formalized in the form of an oral agreement, according to which the owner of a male dog has the right to receive a so-called “alimony” puppy in the form of payment for the use of his dog’s seed material. According to the existing standard rules, he has the right to independently choose any puppy from the litter, but, however, only second, after the first choice is made by the owner of the bitch. If desired, he can refuse the puppy and receive its value in money.

What rights does each party to the agreement have?

The mating contract specifies all the conditions on the basis of which the owner of the male dog will receive a guaranteed reward for participation:

Type of payment.
Confirmation by the veterinarian of an official inspection report of the number of individuals in the litter (with the exception of culled ones).
Agreed dates for when the male owner can pick up the puppy.

In this case, it is not at all necessary to pick up the crumbs. The owner of the male dog has every right to refuse the reward.

Sometimes the question arises: if one puppy is born, is it given away as alimony? Owners of the “dad” must understand that the financial costs of caring for a pregnant dog and raising offspring fall entirely on the shoulders of the owners of the “mama”. It is also important to respect their interests.

If there are less than 5 individuals in the litter, then giving away one of them is too unprofitable. But the participation of the male dog cannot be ignored either. In such difficult situations, they decide to pay part of the cost of one puppy. The percentage of payment depends on the number of individuals in the litter:

The parties discuss the possibility of having one child in advance. Such a result may well be considered an unsuccessful mating or you can pay a minimal percentage of its cost.

Alimony puppy or money

This does not always depend only on the wishes of the owner of the manufacturer. Since the main costs of maintaining a pregnant bitch, giving birth and postpartum care, and caring for the dog and puppies fall on the shoulders of its owner, it is important that his interests are respected. It is fair to assume that when the bitch has produced less than 5 puppies, giving one of them as payment is too high a price, taking into account the fact that the male is also “to blame” for the low number of offspring.

Therefore, in some cases, if a bitch brings 4 puppies, the owner of the male dog may receive only 75% of the cost of the puppy, if 3 – 50% of the cost, if 2 – 25%, for one he will receive nothing. But, of course, all this must be agreed upon in advance.

Child support: obligation or right?

Owners of a purebred male must take into account the fact that the entire financial burden related to raising puppies and caring for a pregnant and giving birth dog falls directly on the shoulders of the owners of the bitch. This means that it is also necessary to respect their interests in the question of whether you are entitled to a puppy.

If no more than five puppies were born, giving one to the owner of a male dog is not profitable from the point of view of the financial costs of the owners of the female dog.

So, if the bitch gave birth to fewer than five puppies, then giving away one of the members of the litter is too unfair. However, the fact that without the participation of the male dog nothing would have worked out cannot be ignored. In such situations, proceed as follows:

upon the birth of four puppies, the owner of the male takes 75% of the cost of one animal;
for the birth of three puppies – 50% of the cost;
for the birth of two puppies - 25% of the cost.

Please note an important point: all these nuances and percentages must be discussed in writing immediately before mating. If both parties agree, the agreements entered into in writing are included in the executed papers.

Is the owner of a male dog required by law to take one puppy? Of course no.

If you are on friendly terms with the owners of the female, refusing to receive alimony is your right

What is a foster puppy?

Any professional dog breeder can say that breeding our four-legged friends requires special knowledge, extensive experience and, most importantly, love for your pets and patience. Moreover, if you breed purebred dogs, then this business may require a lot of money. Obviously, in dog breeding, the first place in importance is the mating of females and males. Thus, different dog owners often take part in this matter. The only exceptions in this case are special kennels where all dogs belong to the same owner. Of course, each owner has the right to a certain number of puppies from the future litter. It is customary that the owner of a male dog has the right to choose the best puppy of all. Such a puppy is called alimony.

An oral agreement or a legally formalized transaction.

The owners of the male and female participating in the mating enter into a deal. Often, such a deal is a simple oral agreement between interested parties that the owner of the dog has the right to take from the future litter the puppy he wants. Such relationships are quite reasonable if the parties agree on common breeds of puppies. However, if we are talking about rather rare breeds of animals that can cost a lot of money, then it is often necessary to draw up a real civil contract drawn up in compliance with all legal norms. In this case, the document must spell out all the nuances and the occurrence of unexpected situations (after all, this is a biological process). And if something does not go as expected when concluding the contract, these lines should be a guarantee that both parties will be completely satisfied. Still, in most cases, the owners of a dog and a bitch simply agree in advance on who will have the right to choose the best puppy from the litter. It also happens that they agree that the owner of the bitch will take the maintenance puppy. Some owners of bitches never give up a puppy at all, preferring in return to pay the owner of a male dog a certain amount of money for providing his dog for mating.