Do not buy a dog irresponsibly! Buy a dog only if you are prepared to take on all its troubles, illnesses, and problems throughout its entire life, which is about 10-15 years.
A responsible decision is important!
Do not buy just because the child wants one; if you do buy, do so only when the child is mature enough to take responsibility for the dog, can care for it, look after it, feed it, give it water, walk it, train it, and love it!
A dog teaches responsibility and regularity!
A dog is a good educational tool; it teaches children to take responsibility and also teaches them regularity. If they come to like the dog and mutual love forms on both sides, it will accompany both of their lives and they will share many experiences during the years spent together. As children, what we experience and go through remains a defining experience for our entire future lives; much depends on what we saw at home and how we were raised. If love for animals is present in childhood, it does not fade in adulthood; on the contrary, it will be multiplied and present in adult life as well.
"The dog is the only one in the world who loves you more than he loves himself" – Charles Darwin's eternal saying. Through a dog's love, you can become a better person, and its friendship makes your life complete.
Choose a dog out of love and for the long term!
If you already have a breed in mind, inquire with breeders and do not choose a dog from online classified ads or markets. Purchasing a dog is a serious responsibility. Unfortunately, a small portion of purchased dogs end up in shelters because the family chose the wrong breed and cannot tolerate it.
Do not buy a puppy without a pedigree!
Many interested parties think that if the puppy does not come with a pedigree, the purchase price can be "much cheaper." This is certainly not the case! The pedigree itself is not expensive (between 5000 and 10,000 HUF); you have to pay for a puppy born from healthy and quality bloodlines (parents, grandparents). The breeder has many years of hard work behind this, which involved considerable effort and expense over the years. So the higher purchase price has nothing to do with the pedigree.
A responsible breeder does not sell dogs without pedigree and chip!
You should also know that a responsible breeder never sells puppies without pedigree and chip; pay attention to this when buying. If puppies are offered for sale without pedigree and chip, you can be sure that the person is not a "real" breeder but rather a puppy mill.
Many ask me why the pedigree is important, since they want the dog as a pet, not for breeding. Many think the vaccination book is enough for the puppy, as it contains the name and some details. The official "health book" proves (from birth to purchase and throughout life) whether the puppy received the legally required deworming treatments and vaccinations, which are essential for health protection. The vaccination book is not for proving origin.
Only the pedigree is the sole document that allows the owner to prove ownership of the dog. The breeder hands over the puppy's pedigree to the buyer at the time of purchase along with a completed and signed form for changing ownership. The new owner must submit or personally deliver the pedigree and ownership transfer form to the National Association of Hungarian Dog Breeders, where based on the presented documents, the puppy’s ownership will be transferred to their name. The pedigree certifies that we are the owner of the puppy. The vaccination book is not for proving origin.
Why is the pedigree important?
The pedigree certificate is the dog's birth registry extract and identity card at the same time. It contains all the important data about the dog. Its birth date, where and with whom it was born, under what number it was registered, and its unique identifier, the chip number. The latter is especially important if the dog gets lost for any reason. In addition, the pedigree contains data about the dog's parents as well as their ancestors going back 4 generations, meaning the names of the parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, and great-great-grandparents, important show results, health screening results, and pedigree numbers.
The pedigree certificate, the chip, and the presence of vaccinations are very important; pay attention to these when purchasing!
Get informed!
The next step is to get informed. From the first part of our article, we have already learned about the offerings of online advertising portals and market "sellers", never choose from there! Forget about sellers offering puppies on online portals and puppies sold at markets as potential family members! After all, we know that "a cheap dog is often more expensive than an expensive dog," because if the puppy gets sick, the new owner might have to spend many times the purchase price on treatment, and if unlucky, this can go on for many years.
From whom is it worth choosing or buying within a given breed?
The very first step may be to use an internet search engine to type in the breed and check the websites of breeding kennels that appear in the search results. It is worth knowing that the order of results is based on popularity—those kennel websites that come first in search engines are the most visited and viewed, so they are the most popular. In today's world, almost every recognized breeder and kennel passionate about a breed has a functioning website. Browse through the websites, look at the introductions, their dogs, puppies, their own photos in galleries, videos, show results, and take time to read the breed standard and breed description as well. All of these are very important! Get in touch with the breeders you find this way, arrange a personal meeting with them! A conscientious breeder working devotedly for the breed is happy to talk with breed enthusiasts for hours, sharing all important information with prospective interested parties/buyers about the breed and about their own breeding and dogs. In a responsibly managed kennel, puppies go to new families all pedigree-registered, chipped, vaccinated, and have undergone several rounds of worming; the breeder tells the new owner everything they need to know about the breed, the puppy, and its pedigree, and also puts this in writing for everyone. Pay attention to this too! If you are offered a puppy for sale without a pedigree certificate and chip, you can know that this person is not a "real" breeder, but rather a puppy mill operator.
Getting to know breeders at dog shows is a good opportunity!
Visit a dog show where you can meet recognized and genuine breeders of the breed, because, let's admit, puppy mills do not attend shows. Meeting breeders at dog shows seems to be one of the most reliable options. Moreover, most exhibitors there are happy to talk about the breed they handle. And this way, you can get to know their dogs as well, with whom they compete. You can chat with many kind and breed-enthusiastic breeders, receive answers to questions that interest you about the breed, see many beautiful dogs, and return home with lovely experiences.
International CACIB and national CAC dog shows are often organized by Dog Breeding Organizations. You can check the list of dog shows held in Hungary on our Portal>>.
Recommendations and reports of various dog shows held in Hungary and abroad can be viewed on our Portal's Dog Show page>>.
We can ask for help from the MEOE Federation, as well as from the Club of the given breed!
A third option is to ask for help by phone. The Hungarian National Association of Dog Breeders, abbreviated MEOESZ, is a long-established organization dealing with dog breeding. We can also ask for help from them, let’s call them on the phone. The Association can recommend recognized breeders of the breed for us by region, so in this way we can also get in touch with breeders and not with puppy mills, because puppy mills are not registered in the Dog Breeders Association, only breeders are! You can find phone numbers and contacts on the MEOESZ official website>>.
On the MEOESZ website you can find the official breed clubs>>, together with information and contact details. You can inquire from them by email or phone about puppies. Since 2016, the breed clubs handle the registration, and if you inquire there, they will directly refer you to the breeder who currently has a registered and chipped puppy available.
How did I choose a puppy?
In the following sentences you can read about the breed choice and puppy search experiences of a family who recently bought a puppy, how and in what way they managed to find the family’s puppy at a recognized kennels, and learn what experiences they gained as well as what advice they give to families wishing to choose and buy a puppy in the future, and also their opinion about dog advertisements on online platforms and the Hungarian puppy buying “practice”:
“The hardest task was the decision: yes, we definitely want a dog. Our little daughter was born recently, we live in an apartment (without a garden), we work… On the other hand, there was everything a dog can give to the family: stress relief, encouragement to exercise, teaching our daughter responsibility and last but not least the selfless LOVE a dog can give. Taking everything into account, we decided that yes, we want a dog. In addition to the living conditions already mentioned, we considered that practically I myself will raise the dog as the head of the family, so the breed choice must fit my temperament. I work sitting quite a lot, but precisely for that, I need to relax sometimes, so we tried to find a breed that loves to move but can quietly lie down for 2-3 hours if needed. After a lot of research and gathering information, we chose the breed: Miniature Schnauzer. We looked at many ads on the internet; the strangest thing was that there are huge differences in price and appearance as well. We were confused, so we thought it best to consult a professional; luckily, in our place of residence, Miskolc, there was a reputable breeder, the Hejőligeti kennel. We met the breeder several times, talked, and finally brought home Terminator at 12 weeks. Terminator is now 5 months old, quite dominant in temperament, but adorable, loyal, and extremely intelligent; we can no longer imagine the family without him. We are still in daily contact with the breeder, who gives advice and asks how the training is progressing. That is what I call aftercare and responsible breeding.”
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