Page 48 - ShowSight - May 2020

PLACING PUPPIES IN THE AGE OF COVID-19: SAFETY ADVICE FOR BREEDERS
“Usually I carry the puppy out and put it in their crate in their car. But this time, I had the family meet me out- side. I placed the puppy down so they could pick him up,” Skou said. “Then I opened the gate so they could carry the puppy to their car. I also did not have them meet the mother and the rest of the litter.”
“The pandemic impacts dog breeders in every aspect from orchestrating the breeding to socializing puppies to getting the puppies to their new homes,” said Dr. Robert Gloster, a retired physician who headed up a busy emer- gency room in downtown Seattle, Washington.
Gloster is also a long-time dog fancier. He bred Samo- yeds and serves as Delegate to the Sammamish Kennel Club and an AKC Judge.
LIMIT CONTACT & MAKE USE OF TECHNOLOGY
Gloster advises breeders to eliminate contact with peo- ple outside the household as much as possible, and that includes visitors to see the puppies.
“News is coming out every single day on how little we know about this virus,” Gloster said.
For vetting future puppy owners, he recommends enhancing your questionnaire and having definite deal breakers. “For instance, if you do not have a fenced-in yard, you are not getting a Samoyed from me,” he said.
Breeders should make use of today’s technology that enables them to show puppies and meet puppy buyers without any personal contact.
“If there is any advantage to this time for a pandemic to strike, it is that we have so much social media, Internet and the ability to communicate with the use of Facetime, Zoom, Skype and more, and these give us excellent tools to deal with the difficulties presented by breeding today,” Gloster said.
Cavalier breeder Beasley is using technology to com- municate with puppy buyers.
“I plan to use all the tools available to me so I can see them and talk to them, can see their body language,” the North Carolina resident said. “If someone wants to see where the puppies were raised, we can do a virtual tour of my house.”
Breeders can ask that puppy buyers take them on a vir- tual tour of their home and yard so they can determine that it is safe and suitable. Paperwork and registrations can be achieved online, and even payment may be made online via PayPal or other programs.
Lab breeder Winn purchased a nursery cam for the first time for her pending litter. “Once they are past two weeks old, eyes are open and they are moving around, I will send passwords to puppy families and have set viewing times each day.”
VISITOR SAFETY PRECAUTIONS
If you decide to allow puppy visitors, take precautions to maintain distance, said Dr. Fred Askin, a patholo- gist at the University of North Carolina Medical Center, as well as an AKC Judge and breeder of West Highland White Terriers.
“People do not need to walk through your home. I suggest having a room or area with outside access where visitors can maintain distance while they meet you and see the puppies. It should be an area that is easy to clean and
46 | SHOWSIGHT MAGAZINE, MAY 2020