Occasionally you may see puppies for sale that are unregistered, we strongly advise against buying an unregistered puppy. This usually means that the owner has been unable to register their litter with the Kennel Club or to increase their profit by saving the registration fees/health tests. There are a number of reasons why this may be the case, most of which relate to the health and welfare of the mother, father and puppies.
Examples include:
- The “breeder” is only interested in making a huge profit – an unregistered litter should be sold for A LOT LESS than the current breed average price for a registered puppy (£1,000-£1,400 for a Registered Health Tested puppy).
- Close matings which are no longer allowed by the KC.
- The mother is too young or too old to have puppies. A female Spinone should not be mated until they are at least 2 years old as they are slow to mature and physically not ready for a litter.
- The mother has had a previous litter of puppies within the last 12 months.
- This would be the mother’s 5th (or 6th, 7th, 8th, etc) litter.
- The breeder doesn’t know the name of the father or one/both parents are unregistered themselves.
- The original breeder of the mother or father has placed a breeding restriction, called an endorsement, on the dog and has chosen not to remove it, usually for a good reason (see Endorsements below).
- The minimum health tests have not been carried out (see Spinone Health Checks below).
- We strongly advise against purchasing an unregistered puppy as it will be unregistered for a reason. With around 500 spinone puppies registered each year there are plenty of reputable breeders who you can go to. If you require assistance or further information about the breed, please contact Alix Johnson, our puppy register co-ordinator on 01264 781913 or email puppies@italianspinone.co.uk .
ENDORSEMENTS
It is quite normal for a reputable breeder to endorse their puppies in this way to help prevent unsuitable dogs being bred from when they are older. A breeder can lift this restriction if they are satisfied that all the necessary health tests/checks have been done, the proposed pedigrees are compatible and the sire and dam are good examples of the breed and are in good health.
SPINONE HEALTH CHECKS
The MINIMUM health checks for a Spinone are:
- Hip Scoring for BOTH PARENTS. The current breed average is a total of 9 when the left and right scores are added together. The lowest possible score is 0 and the highest is 106. The higher the score, the greater the degree of hip dysplasia. Visit the BVA (www.bva.co.uk) for more information on hip dysplasia.
- CA (Cerebellar Ataxia) Testing for BOTH PARENTS. The CA status of both parents must be known and 2 carriers should NEVER be bred together as the litter will result in CA affected puppies who will not live past 7-8 months of age.
- The possible statuses are:
CA Clear (Tested) – a DNA test has shown that the dog does not carry the gene for CA.
CA Carrier – the dog is a carrier of the gene for CA.If both parents are Carriers, then the litter will result in CA affected puppies who will not live past 7-8 months of age. If the parents are not CA tested they could easily be carriers for this dreadful disease.
OPTIONAL health checks for a Spinone are:
Elbow Scoring and Eye Testing.
Find out as much as you can about the Spinone before purchasing your puppy. It is a long term commitment and a little time spent now is well invested to help ensure you are getting a healthy, well bred puppy at a fair price.