FAQ
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Q: How do deposits and puppy picking work?
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A: A deposit is a non-refundable $250 that goes towards the purchase price of the puppy. If the litter is not born yet, or still very young, then we do accept personal checks since we have more than two weeks for a check to clear. We also accept PayPal.
Puppies are chosen in order of deposits received. If you request a male with perfect ridge and crownes, and then when it is your turn to pick there are no males with perfect ridges or crownes, in that case the deposit IS refundable OR you may move it to the next litter. The deposit is also refundable if the female you put the deposit on is NOT pregnant.
Puppies are chosen around five to six weeks of age. Most people choose from the dozens of pictures of each pup that I post online. I do my best to answer any questions you might have about personality, etc. If you want to come pick out your puppy in person, That is okay as long as you are able to do it in a timely manner. Usually you will have to come before you might know which pups are chosen ahead of you, and we encourage you to pick out your top 2 or 3 favorites at that point. Picking your puppy needs to happen fairly quickly once we start the process. We encourage you to start thinking about your favorites BEFORE the picking starts, so that we can move quickly through the list. We often have 10 or more people waiting and it just takes too long if everyone decides to take several days to pick once it gets to be their turn to pick. Once you come to pick up your puppy, IF there are any other puppies available, you may switch at that point. Also, when it is your turn to pick, if you have decided to wait for a future litter for whatever reason, that is ok. You can just move your pick to the next litter. However, once you "pick" a certain puppy, you will lose your deposit if you back out after that.
Q: What do we need to bring when we pick up our puppy?
A: We prefer cash for the remainder owed when you pick up your puppy. However, we will also accept PayPal. We will not accept checks.
We recommend bringing some towels and/or baby wipes to clean up any messes if your pup gets car sick on the ride home (some do, but most outgrow it as they get older). You will probably want to hold your puppy on your lap (or your kid's lap) on the ride home. He/she will not be used to being alone and will probably cry when put in a crate by themselves for the first time. Trust me, you don't want to be stuck in the car with that for any length of time! However, it's a good idea to bring a crate to put the puppy in if you stop to eat or anything else where you might leave the puppy alone in the car.
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Q: Are RRs good with kids and other dogs?
A: Rhodesian Ridgebacks are great with children! My husband had one when we got married (over 14 years ago now!) and when we started looking into breeding and getting more Ridgebacks, that was one of my primary concerns. Now I’ve had quite a few RRs and several of them have come to me full grown–some of them with no experience with children–but every single one has been very good with my kids! I trust all 6 of my RRs with my kids. They’ve taken food out of their mouths, sat on them, and have never been harmed–other than the occasional getting knocked over by such a big dog!
If properly socialized, they are good with other dogs too. Especially if fixed. I have a pair of Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, a couple of toy poodles and one Golden Retriever here and I trust all my RRs with them except for one cranky female. But hormones have alot to do with her mood swings! I have a tiny 6 lb poodle that sleeps on top of my RRs and actually slept with one of my females and her puppies and the female didn’t mind at all. I was actually a little surprised by that one! Now the puppies think that the poodle is their smaller, fluffier sibling!
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Q: Are Rhodesian Ridgebacks good with cats or farm animals?
A: Rhodesian Ridgebacks were bred to be hunting dogs. They love to chase! They are chasers more than killers. However, once they learn to kill prey, it can be hard to break them of it. If you have cats or small farm animals, make sure you get a young puppy and train him well from the very beginning. Lots of Ridgebacks get along with cats and other small farm animals, but be aware of their tendencies and nip any potential bad habits in the bud. Rhodesian Ridgebacks are more likely to learn to kill if they are in a group. The group mentality gets them worked up and excited. So if you have cats or small farm animals, I don’t recommend owning a lot of Ridgebacks or other dogs with a high prey drive. We have horses, cows and calves on our farm and our Ridgebacks do fine with them. We have not had good luck with chickens! We have one very smart barn cat that knows which Ridgebacks she can trust and when. She’s outsmarted Ridgebacks for over ten years now!
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Q: What do your puppies come with?
A: Our puppies all come with a two year genetic health guarantee, first shots, worming, dew claws removed, thorough vet check, limited registry AKC papers and puppy starter items (leash, collar, food). Our starter pack also includes information about the vitamins. We also use and highly recommend NuVet Plus immune boosting wafers or powder. NuVet helps build whole body wellness. It contains human grade amino acids, vitamins, enzymes and antioxidants that work together to fill in the nutritional gap that exists in virtually all pets. Puppies especially are stressed and vulnerable as their immune system is ‘under construction’. They offer a 60 day money back guarantee and have never been recalled during their 20 years of business. You may order at www.nuvet.com/42997 or call 800-474-7044 and speak to their knowledgeable customer service representative.
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Q: How old are your puppies when they leave?
A: Our puppies can leave at 8 weeks of age. If you need a puppy held for longer than that, we are usually able to do so. We generally charge $10 a week to hold a puppy after 9 weeks of age, but that is to help cover costs of food, shots and worming that we keep up to date.
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Q: Farm Parasites
A: Sometimes our puppies pick up parasites that are perfectly normal to farm living such as worms, coccidia and giarrdia. The latter two parasites can be difficult to detect and are normal to find in any farm dog. They do not cause a problem in a dog unless the dog becomes stressed and then it activates the parasite which can cause diarrhea which can be severe. There are inexpensive medicines to clear this up. That being said, we treat ALL our puppies repeatedly for these parasites. However, occasionally a puppy will pick something up again after treatment and before it goes to it's new home. We are always working harder to find ways to prevent this, but we want you to know that it is normal and we consider it to be a minor downside to puppies and Mamas that truly get to enjoy life and are NOT kept constantly on wire or in kennels. Our dogs are healthy and happy and your puppy will be too. We just like to give people an honest head's up so you know what to expect just in case. The majority of our puppies do not have parasites when they go to their new homes. No, your kids are not going to get these parasites from your puppies. I've never had to worm my kids and they live with these farm dogs and are constantly barefoot. The giarrdia that I am referring to is not the same that humans get.
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Q: How are your Puppies raised?
A: My puppies are born in my home and are raised in my home until they are old enough and the weather is nice enough for them to go outside or to the kennel (large runs with doggie doors to go outside). I believe that puppies that are raised outdoors with lots of room are healthier, happier and easier to train in general. We have a grassy yard behind the kennel for the puppies to play in when they are big enough. Whether the pups are inside or outside, our kids love playing with the pups, and you can often find them reading or watching tv with a puppy on their lap. When our puppies are in the house, our Mama dogs are in with them and let outside to go potty. Our mothers have free run of the farm during this time and enjoy all the things that farm dogs love to do. (You probably don't want to know! ;) )
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Q: Do you potty train your puppies?
A: I get asked this a lot, and I answer that I have kids I still need to potty train! No, I don't start potty training, though we do encourage puppies to go outside when possible and discourage older puppies from messing in the home. I move the puppies outside or to the kennel at the point when Mom stops cleaning the poo up for them. Puppies that are raised outside generally potty train quicker because they don't develop bad habits. In the kennel, they have a doggie door to go outside, and they get the idea of going potty outside, and not in their indoor space. As they get older, we open the door to the yard and then they start choosing to go potty out in the grass and not in the kennel at all.
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Q: Can I breed my new puppy someday?
A: All of our registered puppies are sold with limited registry papers, unless negotiated otherwise. This means you agree NOT to breed your dog. Usually a full registry puppy costs more. If you are planning to breed your puppy someday, we expect you to be honest and upfront with us. If we should decide to sell you a puppy with full breeding rights, we want to make sure we help you choose a healthy puppy that meets breed standards. We also want to work with people that will have the same standards and policies of honesty that we think are very important when it comes to breeding. We do NOT require you to get your puppy fixed since we know that some people have strong feelings about this for one reason or another. However, we strongly recommend it. A dog that is going to be bred should be chosen carefully with certain things in mind. When we have decided to sell a dog with breeding rights, we like to work with the person to give them any needed advice and guidance for as long as they should need or want it. We learned plenty of things the hard way and we don't want anyone else to have to do that!
Q: Do You ship puppies? How Does shipping Work?
A: Yes, we ship puppies anywhere in the continental US for $300-400. We have been shipping puppies for 8 years now. We ship out of Tulsa, OK which is 1.5 hours south of us. We prefer to use American Airlines and we have always had good experiences with shipping our puppies with them. (And they are the $300 price.) To ship your puppy, we would pick an airport near you that AA flies into. We would pick a shipping date that works for both of us and I book the flight on my end and send you all the information as soon as the flight is confirmed. The puppy gets a special vet visit to get his health certificate he needs to fly. You would pick up your puppy at the airport by showing your photo ID. Your puppy will come in a crate, with a leash and collar and bag of food on top. Sometimes AA doesn't fly close enough to a customer, or their temperature requirements make it so we can't use them. Then I will fly with either United ($350) or my last choice, Delta ($400). When you pick up your puppy at the airport, you will get it either at cargo, or at the baggage claim office, depending on the airport. NO, the pups are not put on the baggage carousels. Yes, the area of the plane where the pups ride IS climate controlled. No, puppies do not enjoy being shipped, but I have never had one harmed or traumatized by being shipped. Shipping my puppies is the best way for me to get them to loving homes all over the United States. The puppy will be awfully glad to see you at the other end and is ready to be comforted and loved on after their long day! Payment for the puppy, including shipping, is due in full (via PayPal) at least 24 hours before the shipment day. Most people send the payment after I send the flight information and they call and confirm it. If you are not using PayPal, then the payment is due at least two weeks before the flight to give it time to clear before shipping
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Q: What are dew claws?
A: Dew claws are the extra toes and claws that a dog has on his front and sometimes back feet. These toes do not touch the ground and so the toe nail is not natural worn down in any way. Sometimes these toes can be snagged on something and get ripped off an adult dog. We easily remove these extra toes during the puppy’s first week of life.
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Q: What do you mean by crownes?
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A: A Rhodesian Ridgeback with a perfect ridge, has a ridge topped by two crownes, or swirls, at the top. These crownes are just swirls of hair, like you have on the back of your head. They should be evenly spaced across from each other. Sometimes a Rhodesian Ridgeback is born with crooked crownes, just one crowne, or 3 or more crownes. These are just cosmetic flaws, but the puppy would not be considered show material.
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Q: Do you show your Rhodesian Ridgebacks?
A: No, at this time we do not show our Rhodesian Ridgebacks. We are located several hours from any cities (where shows are held) and we have small children. However, we feel confident that our Rhodesian Ridgebacks would hold their own easily in a ring! (We have attended AKC shows when we lived in Wichita.) We have taken some of our dogs to some smaller, local dog shows and were quite pleased when Jasira took Best in Show at one of them! We hope to show someday when our children are older.
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Q: I see you breed other breeds of dogs. Are you a puppy mill?
A: We are certainly not a puppy mill. If I were, I wouldn’t be smelling the fragrant aroma of Ridgeback puppies in my living room right now! We do breed some small breeds of dogs on our farm. Namely Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Yorkies and some Toy Poodle crosses. All our puppies are born in our home, regardless of breed. All our pups are handled and played with by our children as well as by my husband and I. Our dogs are important to us and we think it is important for them to be able to run around and not always be kenneled. I know the name and personality of every dog here. They are contributing members of our family and we value and love them as such! You will frequently be greeted by a group of very large dogs and very tiny dogs when you come to our place! We have been breeding Ridgebacks the longest and they are our first love. Another Ridgeback breeder introduced us to the Cavaliers, and we sort of grew from there! Lynn’s Animal Science degree is put to good use! And what better use of a farm in the middle of nowhere, than to fill it with healthy, happy dogs? We never have any coyote problems…
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Other Details
I am happy to be a resource for you for the life of your puppy. Feel free to call me with questions or concerns even if it is months or years after you get your puppy. I want each puppy to go to a special home and I want each person to get that special puppy