Best way to advertise Puppies

Here's a link to reference how old a puppy has to be before it can be sold.  Click on the "printable version" - it's sort of hard to read, but you can see that most of the states listed say either 7 or 8 weeks - with additional provisions.  Only Nebraska says 6 weeks.

http://www.animallaw.info/articles/ovuspuppysaletable.htm

I know it isn't a complete list, because I can reference right in the NH laws from the same source that it's 8 weeks for resale in NH:

"IV. No person, firm or corporation shall ship or bring into the state of New Hampshire, to offer for sale or resale in the state of New Hampshire, any cat, dog, or ferret less than 8 weeks of age. No licensee shall offer for sale or resale any cat, dog, or ferret less than 8 weeks of age."

It has nothing to do with the health of the puppy at 6 weeks old. Of course a 6 week old weaned pup is healthy enough to be removed from the litter. However, aside from the fact that it is illegal - it is mentally unhealthy for a pup to be removed from the litter that young. Beginning at 5-6 weeks of age, pups learn from their litter mates how to play with other dogs. They learn bite inhibition and all sorts of things. Removing a pup from its littermates at 6 weeks of age creates an unstable adult dog. It is called irresponsible breeding.

 Here are the developmental stages of pups

http://www.diamondsintheruff.com/DevelopmentalStages.html
 

Note where it says this:

Puppies require plenty of playtime with littermates, so they can socialize.

Leaving the litter before 7 weeks can affect the puppy's ability to get along with other dogs later and they will likely have trouble learning to inhibit the force of their bite.

Since you seem to have your mind made up on the subject - at least consider that it is ILLEGAL. 

IMO, the best way to advertise puppies is to not.  I would never buy a puppy based on an add.  The first place I check is the national breed club.  Since they are AKC registered, contact the breed club and get your name on a breeder referral list.

I would also never buy a pup before 8 weeks, preferably 9 or 10.

I am going to assume this was a planned breeding......so, I don't understand the shotgun placements of these pups.....

You claim you have experience with dogs, litters.......and I am sure you claim that with breeding, also......so why, if you are such a responsible person didn't you think of placement before these pups turned 5 weeks old......see, hate me if you want....but, in my experience, responsible breeders have most of their pups sold ( not released until 8 weeks or older) by the time they hit 6 weeks of age.....

I know the pups won't die when released at the age of 6 weeks......but, is it the best situation for the pups? No......and that is what most of us are talking about......what's best for the pups and not how you feel.......

Oh wow.  Flyers would be the best way to go, and taking deposits NOW and homing the pups LATER is the best way to do this.

Way back when I bred cockers I never let a pup go before the age of 9 weeks, and that's before I knew what I know now.  Now I foster and I still don't place pups before the age of 10 weeks and really prefer to keep them until 12 weeks or older.  And these are not even MY pups.  I'm doing what is best for the pup long term by keeping them with the litter longer.

Let me tell you a story about the kind of folks you get when an ad is placed.  My first foster litter in this area the rescue placed an ad.  They screened folks before sharing my phone number and I screened them further before giving them an address.  But I got folks who thought it was absolutely fine to take a home raised german shepherd pup and make it live outside it's entire life, thought that letting a dog live on a chain and feeding it Old Roy was just fine and dandy.  One woman told me proudly that her husband raised DASHounds, and yes that's how she pronounced it, and that THEY lived in the barn, which is where her new pup would live.  Another told me that she didn't want her new doublewide ruined so she'd make the shed nice for a pup.  Training?  Forget about it.  Decent food?  Forget about it?  Living INSIDE?  Wasn't going to happen.  Oh, and probably my favorite was the guy who insisted that you don't NEED to train a gsd to be a guard dog......they come by that naturally.  Ummm, they come by HERDING naturally and still need to be trained to do THAT right.  Most of the calls I got were from folks that I wouldn't want to send a cow to live with.  The very few who actually came to SEE my pups and took one home, were the real animal lovers who had lost a gsd to old age or illness and felt that the time was right to share their lives with another pup.

To be blunt, IF you are breeding to supplement your income, you shouldn't be.  I'm sorry that your financial situation isn't good, but please don't expect your dogs to support you.

Pixie Princess

I have had dogs for 25 years and had several litters.  Worked in a vet clinic for 5 years under 5 veterinarians. 

Since you have such a vast background with dogs, you should already know that it is AGAINST THE LAW to sell, adopt, whichever, any animal under the age of 8 weeks. And there are people out there that will report you. Since you also have worked in a clinic, you understand the importance of the 3 sets of puppy vaccines, that do start at 6 weeks - and repeat every 3 weeks for 6 more weeks.

 Wow I didnt know it was illegal to sell or give up pups at 6 weeks old. I got Cheyanne, Kujo, and Jayde at 6 weeks old. Now I know why the breeders of Ginger wouldnt give her to me till she was 12 weeks old. Lillie breeder didnt put her litter up till they where 4 months old and she had gotten all 15 of them all their shots. I only had to take her to get a checkup to make sure she was healthy.

kle1986

Wow I didnt know it was illegal to sell or give up pups at 6 weeks old.

It depends on the state.

kle1986

I didnt know it was illegal to sell or give up pups at 6 weeks old

At 8 weeks, a puppy will have completed his first set of shots, and can be spayed/neutered (mostly for shelters, but does apply to breeders as well). At 8 weeks the puppy should be fully weaned from his mother and is eating and drinking on his own. His personality is starting to really take place, and he is ready to be 'on his own'. He has learned his bite inhibition from his mother - which IMO - is one of the most important things a puppy could ever need.

Neither I or my vet start vaccines before 9 weeks of age.

Pixie Princess

They will be 6 weeks in 1 week and are already eating softened Puppy food.  I'm sure that they will all be placed, but they are awesome AKC registered labs, I had to quit my job due to some health reasons and just don't have much money for ads. ( didnt want to go into it all) As soon as one of them is sold I can use the money to place a good ad.  Just wondering if anyone knows of any web sites that are reasonable. I know that there is some good sites just need some more info.  Thanks.

Contact your local breed rescue.  There are always people trying to find puppies through rescues.   

Pixie Princess

They will be 6 weeks in 1 week and are already eating softened Puppy food. 

 I would suggest that you keep them until at least 8 weeks.

Jewlieee

Of course a 6 week old weaned pup is healthy enough to be removed from the litter. However, aside from the fact that it is illegal - it is mentally unhealthy for a pup to be removed from the litter that young. Beginning at 5-6 weeks of age, pups learn from their litter mates how to play with other dogs. They learn bite inhibition and all sorts of things. Removing a pup from its littermates at 6 weeks of age creates an unstable adult dog.

 I don't think it is illegal to remove them at 6 weeks, but I agree with you on the health issues. Someone with a lot of experience and adult dogs in the home already can take a 6 week old pup and do just fine with it, but your average pet owner would be better off waiting to 12 weeks (IMO) and to me the minimum age would be 8 weeks.

as someone who has acquired pups at ages ranging from 8 weeks to 4 months, I think 12 weeks is by far the best time to send puppies to their new home, both for the puppies mental health and the new owners mental health.

Why the rush? most legit breeders have puppy buyers lined up before conception and don't actually expect to make much if any profit on their puppies. Has the mother had her hips certified and earned some kind of title attesting to her worth as a mother? who would buy puppies from "just another lab", AKC papers mean nothing. Are you concerned AT ALL about whether the pups go to a good home? 

 I suggest you contact a rescue who can help you find good homes for your puppies instead of selling them to anyone with cash as if they were inanimate objects.

Something to keep in mind is just because someone has churned out litters in over 25 years or works in a vet's office does not make them knowledgeable about responsible breeding practices. After all, puppymillers can be considered knowlegeable about breeding but if you ask them in depth questions about congenital defects in a particular breed and/or about a breed standard, you'll be met with a blank stare.

With that said, I find the reason most people let puppies go that early is not because they have the puppies well being in mind, it's because it's getting more expensive and tedious to take care of them. They're at the stage where they're due for another vet visit that can include shots/worming and that can be expensive when it's a litter of puppies, they are probably going through a lot of food and they probably aren't housebroken yet.

One thing to keep in mind as well as we're talking about Lab's here. These dogs are a dime a dozen ESPECIALLY dogs that come from pet quality lines with no health testing(OFA especially) done. You can adopt one of those from a shelter for about $50. According to pet finder there are 17497 Labs available for adoption. I don't know how much you can expect to sell them for but I can tell you that if a person has done research about responsible breeding practices and about Labradors, they aren't going to beat down your door for a puppy. So guess who you may be attracting? People who probably don't need a dog, who may not have done research about dogs and who would have no qualms about dumping said dog in a shelter when the tough gets going.

Right now, it looks like your best bet for placing these dogs is to place them on a spay/neuter contract. That means, the new owner picks the vet, you drop the puppy off to be spayed/neutered and the new owner pays the vet and picks up the puppy. That way, you'll know these puppies will not be irresponsibly bred. As far as trying to make some money back, good luck. Even responsible breeders are lucky to break even. What's more important than making money is making sure these puppies are properly placed in loving homes and that they'll never be used in a way that will contribute to the pet overpopulation or they themselves become a shelter statistic.