As a parent we expect our children to ask for all sorts growing up, dolls action men, computers teddies and everything in between. However, most parents get asked one particular question at some stage in a Child’s life: “can we get a doggy“. Unfortunately, we recently lost our lovely family pet, Harvey. The lovable little soul with a cheeky personality was a crossbreed that lived to the ripe old age of 18; losing him left a void in the family, but his loss also posed the big question! Would we ever get a dog again?

As most pet owners know, having a dog is like having another child. Nothing is straightforward, and like kids, once you invite one of these four-legged friends into your home… Well; The world pretty much begins to revolve around them; I mean, let’s face it, you can take your children pretty much anywhere, but the same can’t be said for a dog.

So did all of the nagging and pleading from the kids work? Well, obviously, yes! So finally, Mummy and Daddy bent to the will of our children and began the life-changing quest for a doggy! This post will share our experience and the four things we learnt about choosing the right doggy for my family 🐾.

1. Know Your Audience

Before buying a puppy, think about your home and the dynamics of your family. Is it loud, fast-paced, chaotic, or calm and relaxed? Do you live in a flat, large, small house? There are so many things to consider – Do you want a dog to protect or look pretty, do you want a dog that can tolerate children who are full-on and demanding, do you want an athletic dog that requires a lot of exercise? These are all the factors we considered when choosing the right breed for us.

We decided to settle with an American Pocket Bully; other considerations were the English Bull Dog, The French Bull Dog and the American Bully XL, “which we nearly went for”. But after a lot of searching and visits to various homes to meet puppies and their parents, we settled with Keiko our Pocket Bully pictured above. She is just over six weeks at the time of writing this post and will be home with us in about two weeks 🙏 so around the 25th of August 2021, and believe me, my little family can’t wait.

We live in a mid-sized three-bedroom home 🏡 with two kids, a girl aged 9, and a boy aged 11. We have gardens front and back and are in very close proximity to some lovely rural walks. We are also about a 10-minute drive from the coast, meaning we live in an excellent place for long walks. So we wanted a dog that likes exercise but is equally happy being cosy in the house.

I spend time away from home frequently, so we didn’t want a dog that would be too large for Mummy to handle on her own with the kids. Although, which is why we changed our minds on the lovely Blue American Bully XL, we came very close to buying and bringing home and settled for a Pocket Bully Puppy.

Other factors we considered were things like the thickness of the coat as I can suffer from allergies; we didn’t want a dog with a long coat. Equally, we did not want dog hair everywhere and wanted a pup that would not need much grooming. We are also an affectionate family, so we needed a breed that likes to be cuddled and showered with love which pretty much all dog breeds do, but the American Bully was bred to be companion dogs and tick that box by nature.

2. Do Your Research

Before buying any dog 🐕‍🦺, do your research; it doesn’t hurt to become well studied in whichever breed you are drawn to. When it came to operation puppy, we did extensive research on the American Bully as breed and narrowed it down using these points for consideration:-

• Temperament
• Size
• Training
• Grooming
• Exercise
• Physical Traits

Once you’ve done your research, you can begin your search in confidence, as you know what you’re looking for and most likely have a list of questions and observations for prospective breeders.

3 Choosing The Right Puppy

It is important to be very clear on why you’re buying a puppy as this will determine the price and quality of the puppy you choose. Generally speaking, people buy puppies for three main reasons now. In my eyes, they should always be pets first, but some owners buy them to breed hoping to improve the overall quality of the American Bully as a breed. Whilst others are looking for show dogs or as mentioned above simply a loving pet.

Considering those factors I have split them into these three categories which should greatly change how you pick your puppy.

• Pets
• Breading
• Show dogs

First and foremost, you should always ensure you are buying a healthy puppy. By doing your research, you can familiarise yourself with health issues common to a particular type of breed. If you are buying a pet, then having a top-notch example of the breed may not be of great importance; in most cases, what pet owners are generally looking for is that special connection. That also means:- from a price standpoint, you can shop at the lower end of the market but never compromise on the health of your pup.

If you are looking for a dog to breed or show, you will need to look a little deeper into the pedigree history of your prospective pup and its linage. It would help if you were also looking for physical traits such as genetic defects and have sound knowledge of competition standards. In most cases, these buyers will see things that the average buyer won’t and will also have a more acute understanding of pricing and what a particular puppy is worth to them and their specific requirements.

4. Pedigree Matters In Some Cases

I am acutely aware that not all dogs are pedigree and make their owners and families incredibly happy all the same, but what I learned from the start is that when buy-in a particular type of breed, namely an American Bully it’s important to buy a pedigree. We first started our search looking for an American Bully XL. The first puppies we were drawn to got our attention due to the rare colours and lower price (Don’t get caught by these things!!!). We visited and were bowled over by the cuteness of the dogs and their loving and friendly nature.

However, on reflection. I had no idea what I was buying; yes, the seller said they were American Bully XL’s, but how could we tell? More importantly, how could I be sure that this unknown breed would grow to exhibit the traits we had been looking for. For that reason, we walked away even though mummy got emotionally attached to one of the pups. The seller even contacted us to say she had reduced the pups by 50%; again, we declined and walked away.

The American Bullies has been bred specifically to be a companion dog with aggressive traits that can sometimes be seen in the Pit Bull Terrier removed. This was the appealing thing about choosing the American Bully, as our family pet and something I was not prepared to compromise on due to price. Do your research on the pedigree, understand the breed you are purchasing, and find one that exhibits the traits and personality that ethical breeders strive to maintain and improve on.

Go see the parents, are they well socialised do the come from family homes are they good around children and importantly are the pedigree can you follow there linage?

If you are interested in following our life and experience raising Keiko, please frequently check out our blog; I will provide regular updates and offer any advice I can for other doggy lovers.

I hope you have enjoyed this post and found it useful.

Catch you in the next one @mypocketbullies