and of bringing smiles to their family's faces!

Jack is from the Akido Sans Kennel and is sired by CH Wizard de Akido San, runner up at the 2007 Eukanuba World Challenge.  He has an outstanding pedigree and is four times CH Nello's Lex Luthor.  We imported Jack from Argentina as a 6 month old puppy.  He is now a year and a half.  He was rated SG1 recently at a IABCA dog show and will be headed for the AKC ring in the fall of 2009.  You can find out more information on his lines and see pictures and videos of his sire at www.akidosan.com

The puppies are born in our living room with our family quietly watching.  We try to have the house as dark and calm as possible so that mom and babies are not stressed in any way.  We let mom do all the work and we are just close by to look out for problems.  We don't interfere much with a new puppy.  After birth the pup remains with mom until the next pup is born at which time we weigh and mark the first pup as quickly as possible and then return him to his mom and siblings.  We weigh each pup every 12 hours until they reach 4 pounds so that we can monitor weight gain, which is the best indication of health.  Pups are normally between 1 pound and 1 pound 2 ounces at birth and they double their birth weight in about 10 days!  Dobermans grow so quickly- it's hard to believe that the new 1 pound babies will be around 15 pounds when they leave us in just 8 short weeks.

Twice a day when we clean the whelping box and weigh the puppies we handle and hold each puppy and our daughters spend some time in the box with them.  After their eyes open around 10 days we handle and play with them much more often.  After the pups are 3 weeks old we allow visitors to start coming over to see them and we encourage others to handle them so they are exposed to plenty of different people before they leave us.  Pups leave us well socialized and with excellent puppy manners- they know that jumping and mouthing is NOT allowed, please don't allow them to develop these horrible habits! 

Puppies start spending time outside around 5 weeks of age- this is important for their physical and mental development.  They need to see more of the world than the inside of our house and they need to be able to run and play and roughhouse with their litter mates and our other dogs.  We also start introducing them to the dog door and to the idea of going potty outside and not in the box.  When they leave us they have the 'idea' of house training and finishing the job will be easy for you.  If you are consistent, most of our puppies are house trained within a week of leaving us. 

Puppies are started on solid food when they start showing an interest in mama's food bowl- this is usually around 3 weeks old.  Raw hamburger is their first food.  Then around 5 weeks they are started on Canine Caviar Chicken and Pearl Millet Adult formula which is perfectly balanced for large breed puppies.  We are very pleased with the results we've gotten using this food.  It is made with human grade ingredients, has no corn, wheat or soy and the main ingredient of chicken has been dehydrated, not cooked, which leaves more nutrients.  Go to  www.caninecaviar.com to find a dealer near you- also most feed stores will order it for you if you ask.  And if you are within their delivery zone gooberpetexpress.com will deliver it to your door for no extra charge.  We highly recommend that you feed Canine Caviar throughout your dogs life along with a partial raw diet.

You may come and see the puppies after they are 3 weeks old.  And you will be allowed to pick your puppy according to your place on our waiting list.  If you are first on the list you may pick out your puppy any time you wish and as soon as you have chosen we will allow the next person to pick, etc, etc...

Some people like to bring a blanket or toy to leave with the puppies in their box when they first come to see them until the time they come to get their puppy.  This object will then smell like the puppies and their mother and can be a familiar comfort to your pup when you take them home.

We don't accept deposits before the pups are born.  After they are born we will contact everyone on our list and let them know what we ended up with in the litter (colors, genders, etc).  We then ask for a $150 deposit before the pups are 2 weeks old to hold your place on the list.

Puppies are $1250 (uncropped) and payments are broken down like this.... $150 deposit before 2 weeks and the remaining $1100 is due when you pick up your puppy. 

Ear cropping cost an additional $400-550.

We will take a check for deposits, but we ask for the final payment to be made in cash just for simplicity sake.  Unless of course we are shipping your puppy to you, then we will take a check for the final payment and shipping costs as well.  In the case of shipping, we will need the puppy and shipping costs to be paid in full before the puppy is 6 weeks old so that we can make arrangements for shipping which will be done between 8-10 weeks.

All pups are sold with full AKC registration.

We love to see our pups prance around the show ring or compete in other events and they are more than worthy to compete, but our number one priority will always be to find our pups wonderful, loving, forever homes where they will be true members of the family and not left forgotten in the back yard, or ignored in a kennel until it is time to compete. 

We only breed from lines that we are 100% confident are healthy.  Hip Dysplasia is basically non existent in Dobermans.  I have a list of over 1200 of our dogs' closest relatives that have been tested and not one of them has bad or even questionable hips.  VWD is very over hyped in Dobermans and we do not believe in testing for it.  A dog that is found to be 'effected' genetically may never show any signs of the disorder.  There are actually over a dozen bleeding disorders in Dobermans and so why test for just one?  Many other countries won't test for VWD because they believe that any puppy that makes it through the cropping will be fine.  Dr. Soltero is a 'doberman specialist' in Scottsdale and has been dealing with the breed for decades.  He has only lost ONE doberman to bleeding and he says he has no idea whether it was VWD or not.  He also has NEVER seen a Doberman with Hip Dysplasia.  There have been no bleeding issues in our lines.  Cardiomyopathy is a hot topic in the doberman world but the test is worthless.  All the test tells you is that right at that moment your dog does not have it.  But it can be developed at any time and your dog could die from it a month after having a clear test!  Some believe that the condition has genetic roots, but from the research we've done we tend to agree more with the side that believes it is related to a virus, although we do agree that some lines may be more susceptible to the virus than others.  There has been one great grandmother and one great great grandfather that died of CDM in our lines- obviously not a pattern.  The lines are also free of cancer, wobblers and thyroid issues.  The average life span of these lines is 12 years with a number of dogs making it to the ripe old age of 15!

We do not worm our pups unless they need it.  We don't believe in giving them harsh medicines for no reason.  We have a stool sample checked for parasites at 6 weeks of age and will worm at that time if necessary.  So far we have never wormed any of our litters because they have never needed it!

We do not vaccinate the puppies before they leave us.  There are many studies out now that are pushing vets to change the current vaccination schedule.  Few people realize that over vaccinating can have many negative consequences.  Puppies are protected by their mother's antibodies until between 8-13 weeks of age.  Vaccinations given while their mother's antibodies are still present are attacked and eliminated by the mother's antibodies and so have no effect on the puppy.  For this reason we do not believe in vaccinating until at LEAST 8 weeks of age.  We also feel that introducing a foreign substance such as a vaccination into a puppy's system is stressful on their bodies and that vaccinating at the same time as cropping is a double blow to their systems and is a lot to ask a young puppy to deal with.  So, we suggest vaccinating at least 1 week AFTER ear cropping- 2 weeks is even better, and we personally don't vaccinate puppies we keep for ourselves until 5-6 months old.  We do not give vaccinations before puppies leave us- we feel it would do more harm than good.  If you like, when it is time for vaccinations you may purchase them at a local feed store for about $6 and bring the pup to us and we will give them for you or show you how to give them yourself- it will save you tons on vet visits!

The decision to spay or neuter is up to you, but we ask that you do not have your puppy altered until after females have had at least one heat cycle (usually around 9 months of age) or until males have reached 10 months of age.  They need to reach sexual maturity and all of the hormones and changes that come with that mile stone in order for them to fully develop into the beautiful dogs they are meant to be.  We have personally seen how altering at a younger age can effect their growth.

Tails and dews are done at 4-6 days of age at our local vet in Coolidge.  She does a beautiful job and we have been really pleased with her consistency in length and quality.

We can have the ears cropped for you before you pick up your puppy, but we recommend that you pick up the puppy before they are cropped because we believe it is nice for your pup to have a day or two with you in their new home before the stress of cropping.  Also, freshly cropped puppies are better off in their new homes with one on one attention and WITHOUT their littermates around to chew on their ears and mess with their stitches.  Our dogs are house pets and we are not set up to keep puppies in individual crates/runs like large scale breeders.  If you are coming from out of state to pick up your puppy or if you have another reason you don't want to pick the puppy up before it is cropped, then we can arrange to have your puppy cropped before you pick them up, but we really do believe it is best for the puppy to be settled in their new home before they are cropped.

We recommend that you schedule ear cropping with Dr. Soltero or Dr. Hunt as soon after the pups' 8 week birthday as possible.  8-9 Weeks is the ideal age for cropping.

We want the puppies ears to be the way YOU want them- after all, this is YOUR puppy.  We prefer that all of our puppies have a long 'show' cut, but if you want something else you may of course request it of the veterinarian. 

We are also willing to leave a pup with floppy ears if you prefer.  We do not require any one to crop their puppy.

Dr. Soltero and Dr. Hunt are wonderfully skilled croppers.  Dr. Soltero has monopolized the show cropping market on Dobermans in this area for many, many years and he trained Dr. Hunt.  Cropping is not something just any vet can do well- and we discourage you from going to anyone other than Soltero or Hunt.  Not only do they make such a beautiful cut, but their methods leave the pups with very little discomfort and they heal quickly and beautifully when cared for correctly.  The pups will leave the vet feeling a little droopy and sore and they are usually a little whiny the first night home, but by the next day they are back to their rambunctious selves.  Stitches are removed between 10-14 days and wrapping begins soon after that.  You may take the pup to the vet for stitch removal and for a lesson in ear wrapping or you may bring the puppy to us and we will take out the stitches and show you how to wrap- we believe our method is a bit more comfortable than the one the vet uses. 

Plan on wrapping your puppies ears until they are anywhere from 5 months to 1 year old- each puppy is different.  And it's important not to stop wrapping too soon, it's always better to wrap to long that not long enough.  It's worth the effort in the end when your dog has beautiful erect ears.  The wraps will have to be redone about once a week.  Sooner if they have been playing rough or scratching and the wraps have shifted or come loose.

We use and recommend a Dremmel to keep your dogs nails in shape.  A quick grinding with the Dremmel once a week will keep them an ideal length.  We recommend the 7.2 V cordless dremmel which can be bought at Walmart with extra accessories for about $45.

Dobermans can have sensitive skin so we recommend bathing as rarely as possible.  Often even when a bath is needed you can skip using shampoo and simply suds them up with an all natural conditioner.  Better yet is a diluted mixture of 2 tablespoons conditioner and one table spoon of fruit oil (such as apricot) in a bottle of warm water.  Only use shampoo when absolutely necessary.  When we do shampoo, we mix 1 tablespoon of Mane and Tail with half a gallon of water and then add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice to the rinse water to restore the ph balance of the skin and coat- this results in a beautifully shiny and flake free coat.

Ryan's Pet Supply Warehouse in Phoenix is a great place to buy puppy supplies.  It's easiest to shop at the warehouse, but you can order over the phone from the catalog or online.  www.ryanspet.com  They have quality products at great prices.  The large crates we use for our dogs cost about $125 at Petco, but are only $70 at Ryans.

Dobermans are rough on toys and can destroy even some of the toughest toys fairly quickly.  For our older pups and adults we keep lots of marrow bones around to satisfy their need to chew.  These can be bought for about $5 for a pack of three in your grocery stores meat section.  The dogs never tire of them and will chew on the same ones for up to a year before they finally start to break it into pieces.

And please remember, we will be here for the life of your dog and we hope that you will always come to us for advice and we hope that you will always remain in touch and send us updates and pictures as often as possible- we love watching our puppies grow!