Briarlea Bouviers des Flandres Guarantee and FAQ

No sales to third party resellers, brokers, pet stores or individuals acquiring puppies for resale.

Briarlea Bouvier des Flandres Guarantee

has been offered since 1979. This guarantee was first developed by the Minnesota Purebred Dog Breeders Association and we have continued to use it's basic form ever since. It is designed to provide a structure for responsibility between us and the new puppy owner. If you have questions about this guarantee or would like to modify it for your own use, please feel welcome to contact us. We work hard to breed high quality Bouviers who reflect our understand of a complete and correct dog. While we choose individuals for breeding who we feel can be competitive in sport or on the farm at home, we simply can't keep all the puppies even a very small kennel such as ours produces. Therefore we have the pups from our limited breedings available to the public.

We do our best to ensure that the puppies are healthy and well adjusted at the time they leave home. Because we breed responsibly, we health test our adults before breeding them. These health tests are always available to prospective puppy homes. However, we have come to realize that once we have done the health testing we feel is necessary and appropriate, we can not determine what nature decides for our puppies once they leave home and are in an environment over which we have no control. Sometimes puppies (like humans) can have problems even though their parents are healthy. This is a fact that it is important that the prospective puppy home realizes and is comfortable taking responsibility for.

Prices for Companion quality puppies begin at $1200 and range up to $1500 depending on the costs incurred with the breeding. This price is based on the puppy being picked up at our home at 8 weeks. If you require that the puppy stay with us for longer than 8 weeks, please contact us at least a month beforehand so that we can make plans to care for him/her. While our dogs are a huge part of our lives, we do have lives outside of our dog activities! Any costs incurred with transportation of the puppy to your home are your responsibility. These would generally include a health certificate, shipping kennel and airline cost.

Our breeding quality and working puppies are sold under private treaty.

Companion Dog Guarantee and Sales Contract

This purebred Bouvier puppy is registerable with the AKC with a Limited Registration. This means that this dog can NOT be entered in AKC conformation shows and any progeny from this dog can NOT be registered with the AKC. However, this dog CAN compete in obedience, agility, herding and other performance sports hosted by the AKC.

If you are picking up your puppy at our home: For this sales agreement/health guarantee to stay in effect, the dog/bitch must be taken to a veterinarian of the buyer's choice and at the buyer's expense within 5 days of the date of sale for a health check. A signed statement from the veterinarian concerning the Bouvier's condition must reach the seller within 7 days of the examination and must be sent in a method that requires a signature when delivered as proof of time of delivery and proof of person receiving the letter containing the document. Failure to do so will cancel this entire contract and relieve the seller of all liability.
For all buyers that are having their puppy shipped by airfreight, whether you live in-state, out-of-state or out-of-country, we take your puppy to a licensed Vet and send the puppy with an official Health Certificate certifying that the puppy was healthy when he left our care.
Buyer agrees to: Annual veterinary checkups, keeping all immunizations current according to AVMA guidelines; to provide adequate housing according to state law; to confine the dog in a fenced yard or kennel run, or walk on a leash but not restrain (tie-out) on a rope or chain.
Buyer agrees to enroll and attend no fewer than two complete obedience classes with this dog before the dog is two years old.
If the buyer wishes to return the dog at any time within six months from the date of its sale, the seller will refund the purchase price of the puppy minus any out of pocket costs associated with re-homing the puppy if the puppy is brought back with all health records and AKC registration papers and only after the seller places the dog in a new home.
At any time during the lifetime of this Bouvier, the buyer decides to sell or otherwise dispose of this dog, seller must be informed and always retains the right of first refusal. If the dog is returned to our kennel, we retain the right to rehome the dog at our discretion.
Failure to have this dog altered within one year of purchase voids all guarantees
If buyer has requested ear cropping on their puppy, they assume all responsibility for after-care of the ears. Seller is not responsible for ears standing, infections that may result from the procedure, or any other problems resulting from the decision of the buyer to have the amputation performed.
Failure to enroll and attend no fewer than one complete group obedience class before this dog is one year old voids all guarantees.
No other guarantees, assumed or implied are covered by this contract.

Companion puppy...Working puppy...breeding quality puppy... What's the difference?

Companion quality dogs come from the same litters as our breeding, working, and sport prospects, and therefore are placed only in good family homes. Spaying or neutering your companion will stop many future problems for you and may give your pet a longer and healthier life.

These pups are selected for family homes based on a general good nature, lower prey drive and good sociability. We like to see some interest in retrieving and a desire to interact with people as well. In most litters we have had, the majority of the puppies are suitable as companions. Keep in mind always however, that the Bouvier, by nature, is a strong-willed dog. If you are not prepared for the struggles of managing an adolescent Bouvier which may include mouthing, jumping, "acting out" and other challenges of authority, beware!

The "working" puppies we choose are generally ones that are highly trainable, have a strong pack drive, greater than average prey drive and are social. Because my first love is obedience, I will look for a puppy who shows eye contact early on and a desire to be "with" me. Additionally I will look for a pup who is highly aware of life and is more active than a "companion" pup. This might not be the ideal puppy for many family homes. In some of our litters we will have puppies that we consider good working prospects.

The puppies we consider breeding prospects are those we would like to keep for our own breeding program. They are the crème de la creme of puppies and are valued as such. If you are considering a serious breeding program, we are happy to visit with you and perhaps direct you to other breeders if we don't have an available prospect for you. We wish that all of our litters produced puppies that we feel are of this quality; but in an honest world, we can't say it's so. It's very difficult to breed dogs that have the character, structure and trainability we hope for.

FAQ

Shipping? We're experienced shippers and can have your puppy fly from Minneapolis/St.Paul International Airport. Shipping costs vary depending on the size of the crate the pup is shipped in but generally run about $200 in the continental U.S. for 8 week old puppies.
Stress? Any time a puppy is taken from it's environment, mother, siblings and original people, it undergoes stress. Keep your pup quiet and isolated from large gatherings of people for the first week or so.
Vaccinations? We vaccinate our pups with Distemper and Parvo vaccines before they leave home and routinely worm with Pyrantel Pamoate. You will want to be aware that there is quite a bit of discussion in the dog breeding community about the vaccinating of puppies and it's relationship to auto-immune disease.
Neutering? Look here for some thoughtful advice.
Ear cropping? We do not recommend ear cropping for companion dogs. If you choose to have your pup's ears cropped, we can arrange to have it done here or you can have it done at your local veterinarian. The cost varies considerably and can range between $250 - $450 in our area. This cost is assumed by the buyer of the pup. Natural eared Bouviers are not more prone to ear problems than cropped dogs. Cropping is done for cosmetic purposes only and is a painful, stressful procedure for pups. Often ears will end up uneven in size/shape. It is the buyer's responsibility to be sure the ears are cared for properly since this is an elective and unnecessary surgery. Look here for some information to help you make a decision about cropping. For pictures of natural-eared Bouviers click on the logo: