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Puppy Contract

Below is the puppy contract. Most of it is simply advice that we want you to take very seriously. We have dedicated our lives to researching nutrition and raising dogs to be the best they can be. Our dogs are not perfect, but we do what we can to make sure they are as close to it as possible. Please read it and take it into consideration before contacting us. We will always be available for help and advice, but it will ultimately be your dog and you must make the final decision about what to feed, activities, spaying/neutering, etc.

There are extra stipulations on the contract for our goldens. As reputable breeders is it our responsibility to eliminate as many health problems in the breed as we can. Therefore, if you are wanting to breed a dog from us then your golden puppy just for this first generation must be health tested to ensure they are not a carrier of Ichthyosis. None of our dogs or puppies will be affected with it, but Sol is a carrier and we wish to stop the genetic carrying with him. Therefore if you want a puppy for breeding please let us know up front so we can get the litter genetically tested. All other genetic maladies have already been eliminated in our lines and there will not be any carriers. Our newfies have also been genetically tested for urinary and heart defects and are clear.

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Contract

Rehoming
 

In the event that you must rehome a dog that you have purchased from us then the dog must come back to our kennel so we can find the new home. The only exception is if you have someone in mind and ask us to approve them as the new owners. NO EXCEPTIONS. We take this very seriously and if we learn of one of our dogs in a shelter or in an unapproved home we retain all rights to take the dog back under our own care.

Spaying and Neutering

Research shows that if you keep your puppy intact until they are fully grown they will be less likely to develop hip dysplasia and other associated diseases related to sex-hormones and growth hormones. We urge you to delay spaying and neutering for the health of your new family member: for goldens until they are 18 months old, and 24 months old for Newfoundlands. This will ensure that their growth plates and bones are adequately formed before removing their hormones. Many veterinarians will recommend doing it at 6 months, and sometimes sooner. Please DO NOT do this.

Nutrition and Feeding Your New Puppy

Please do not feed any food containing corn, wheat, soy, or by-products. These are inferior ingredients and contain very little nutritional value. These ingredients are included in grocery store foods, such as Purina, Kibbles 'n Bits, President's Choice, Beneful, Ol' Roy, etc, as well as Veterinary foods such as Hill's and Royal Canin. Foods that we will recommend and will send you home with include Valens and Nutram. Happy Tails, Acana and Orijen are also highly recommended by us. These are the foods that we give to our own dogs and have trust in their ingredients from experience, analyzing the label, and by talking to the owners of these companies directly. If you are considering raw food, please ensure it is a balanced diet. Balanced raw food MUST contain vegetables and greens in it, and typically needs 10-20 ingredients each day to ensure the proper nutrition is being met. This is only to be fed as their entire diet when they are adults if you are choosing to do this. Please when feeding puppies raw food give them kibble or a multi-vitamin, fish oil, and lots of bones to chew on to give them proper nutrient balances. If dogs are given plain meat as their sole diet their bodies become too acidic and quickly develop pancreatitis, which can be deadly. When deciding on a food to feed we urge you to ask our opinion on it. We have seen every label trick, recall, and lawsuit that goes into the pet food industry and would love to spread that knowledge.

Chew Toys and Treats

We never recommend giving a dog (or puppy) a toy to chew on made of rubber or plastic. In some cases the dog will chew off and eat pieces, which can be dangerous since those items are not digestible and can cause intestinal blockages. We recommend a good quality digestible treat, such as a water buffalo horn, antler, or yak cheese. They may be pricey at times but will last a long time. Antlers also contain compounds in them that help regulate joint and bone growth, which are very beneficial to your new puppy. On a similar note, NEVER give your puppy or dog rawhide. It is not digestible and is incredibly dangerous to their digestive tract and teeth. Please look for alternatives, such as pizzles and dehydrated chicken feet. Nutritious, delicious, and completely digestible! No treats from the grocery store are ok to give to your dog. This includes Milkbone, Dentastix, and Beggin strips, etc. They contain horrible ingredients that are carcinogenic. Look for alternatives from pet food stores that are only meat, such as freeze-dried chicken or beef liver.

Grooming

Both Goldens and Newfies are double coated breeds, meaning they have a topcoat and an undercoat. As you can imagine, that means there is quite a bit of brushing involved. However, if they receive the correct nutrition from a young age along with lots of omega-3's (usually from fish oils) then you can drastically reduce the amount of shedding. Our personal dogs only shed twice a year (at the beginning of summer, and at the beginning of winter) when they go through a coat change. This is referred to as "Blowing coat." The undercoat will start coming out in tufts, so you will need to sit down and brush them thoroughly or bring them to a groomer a few times during this period. Aside from these times we get very little hair from them when brushing, including the Newfoundlands.  Please be warned!!! DO NOT SHAVE either of these breeds. Double coated breeds should never, ever be shaved unless for medical procedures. Their coat does not grow back the same and it will become more prone to shedding, hotspots, matting, etc. You may think you are doing them a favour shaving them in the summer time, but the hair actually protects their skin from the sun. Instead, take them for a swim to cool off, they will love you for it! Also, never use human shampoo on any dog, only use dog-specific shampoo. Their fur needs the natural oils to stay healthy, and human shampoo strips all of these away. Tropiclean is our personal favourite due to their natural ingredients.

Conditional Non-Breeding Contract on Golden Retrievers

If you have adopted a golden retriever from Deity Kennel and one of the parents is a carrier of Ichthyosis, your puppy MUST be tested before being allowed to be bred. If the genetic test returns with a double negative (All Clear, Not a Carrier) then you will be permitted to breed said puppy. This test will be done at your expense and the cost will be added to the cost of the puppy. As prices for this test fluctuate we can discuss this at the appropriate time. The test will be carried out and mailed in by us, the breeders, to ensure the results are received in a timely manner.

If you are breeding your puppy (Newfoundland or Golden) please consider putting our kennel name (Deity) in their CKC registered name. This will ensure our lines are easily traceable.

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