Questions About Sparkles & Spurs Dachshunds:
Here at Sparkles & Spurs Miniature Dachshunds, we aren't just breeding dogs for fun - we're focused on building excellent family companions. We have over 13 years of experience breeding, whelping, and raising some of the best puppies around. From day one we are committed to doing everything we can to ensure our puppies get the best start possible. We start Early Neurological Stimulation protocols at just 3 days old. ENS was developed by the United States military to improve the performance of working military service dogs. ENS has been proven to not only increase a pup's learning abilities as they grow, desensitize them to handling, but also improves their response to day to day life stressors. On top of ENS, we try to expose puppies to as many sights, sounds, smells and surfaces as we can from the time they start moving around on their own and gaining their senses. We believe that this early socialization is crucial to raising stable puppies that will become the best family pets they can be. Which is why all of our puppies are born and raised right in our home, in the middle of our family, We do not own a kennel building, all of our dogs are our family pets first and puppies are raised the same way until they leave us.
We are in North Central Texas, about 1 1/2 hours from DFW, Abilene and Wichita Falls. However, over the last 13 years we have had puppies go to live in 17 states so far. We are always happy to meet, within reason, and can often help find transportation options for families that are further than a day trip away.
Yes! We try to keep our social media up to date so that everyone is informed on our plans and puppies. Our Facebook Group has over 5,000 members, several of which have already gotten puppies from us and give 'pupdates' frequently with pictures and stories about their pups! Facebook Group: www.facebook.com/groups/northtexasminidachshunds Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/sparklesandspursminidachshunds We also just started an Instagram: Sparkles & Spurs Mini Dachshunds
We get this question a lot! And honestly it depends on what you're wanting out of your relationship with a dog, and your individual family. While every puppy/dog has their own personality and we see a trend in a vast majority of our pups. Our Females are typically more one person dogs. They attach themselves to 'their person' and will do anything for them. They are typically more 'moody' and would rather follow their person around than roughhouse in the living room. Males on the other hand tend to be more 'happy go lucky'. They don't care who's giving them attention, as long as they're being loved on. We often recommend males for families who are wanting a pup to grow up with their kids. Males are usually the best fetch players, love belly rubs, and are content to just go around visiting anyone who will show them some love. Of course there are exceptions where there are more social energetic females and more reserved males. But in general this is a good guideline. Every one of our male Dachshunds we have owned and raised has had the happy fun personality, while our females are a mixed bag.
Most people who are looking for a pet for their family don't understand what all goes into raising dogs the correct way. Vet care has almost doubled from what it was pre-covid. Our dog food alone is now over $100 a bag, many of the preventions and medications that we keep on hand have at least doubled in price. Before we ever breed a prospective pair we have them registered and genetically tested. Our most expensive parent dogs that we've raised were $3,500 and $4,000. All of our parents are kept on heartworm prevention, flea and tick prevention, routine fecals and parasite deworming. If all goes well the bulk of our costs are whelping supplies, whelping boxes, whelping pads, vet bedding, puppy pads, everything that goes into our puppy go-home packs, vet exams, treats, toys, any medications that happen to be needed like probiotics. Ultrasounds and Xrays, as well as prenatal care, vitamins, more calorie dense puppy food, everything to support our mom's through their pregnancy. We go through a ton of sanitizers that are $40-$80 per bottle. That's if all goes perfectly. But sometimes things don't go as planned. In the event of an emergency, the 24 hour E.R. hospitals are around 4-5 times the cost of our normal vet. Emergency after-hours cesarean sections can run upwards of $4,400-$4,500. In which its always possible to lose all the puppies, mom, or both. We do everything we can on the front side to minimize risks, but sometimes emergencies happen. Another cost factor that we have that some breeders do not, is that we retire our momma dogs early. We do not start breeding on their first heat and have them continue producing for 5-8 years. We retire our girls young so that they can have many years left of being a great family pet rather than continuously being bred. Their health and wellbeing is our number one priority. We get a lot of messages asking for 'puppies under $300' or people who have sent money to scammers, for those too good to be true fake puppies. Or even worse picked up a cheap puppy and within a few days it has started showing symptoms of parvovirus. As heartbreaking as it is, breeding isn't a cheap hobby at all. We pour all of our time and energy (not including money) into every single one of our puppies to give them the best start possible. All of that said, we do try to keep our puppies as reasonable as possible without cutting corners. We aren't charging $3,000+ like many breeders have gone up to the last few years due to rising expenses. Our target is and has always been those looking for an amazing family pet that will live a long and healthy life.
After many requests over the years, we have now implemented a Waitlist. We do not allow deposits on specific puppies until 5 weeks old after they have been examined by our veterinarian and found to be in great health from head to toe. We want to make sure nothing has been missed and everyone looks great before we allow families to start picking their puppies. Families who have sent their deposit will have a spot on The Waitlist. When puppies have passed vet exams, we will go down the list of Waitlist families and offer the puppies for them first. Families will have 48 hours to pick a puppy, or choose to pass and wait on the next litter. After all Waitlist families have made their picks, any remaining pups will then be offered on our website to the public. When we receive a deposit on a puppy we immediately remove all of their ads and mark them as sold. We let anyone who was interested in them know that they have found their new family.
We take safety and biosecurity extremely serious. Since we do not have a kennel building, all of our puppies are born and raised in our home. Anyone who wants to see the puppies in person before placing a deposit, is welcome to meet us at our Veterinary Clinic for the puppies 5 week examinations. We do not allow anyone to place the puppies on the ground, carry them around, etc. Parvovirus, cryptosporidium, parasites, and other nasty things can be picked up on shoes and tracked everywhere you go. We practice rigid biosecurity in our home and around the puppies and do not have visitors when we have puppies on the ground for their health and safety.
We love to meet our new puppy families and see their reactions to meeting their new families for the first time! We allow puppies to leave at (or after) 8 weeks of age. We want all puppies to have time with mom and siblings to learn rules about being a puppy. From bite inhibition to respect of boundaries. All of which are best taught early during their critical socialization periods.
All of our puppies are registered and come with their registration application paperwork in hand. As well as vaccination and deworming records, 30 days of prepaid accident and injury pet insurance to cover them for their first month home. They will come with a loaded puppy pack as well that includes the food they're currently eating, their first puppy collar and other goodies such as toys, treats, potty bags, puppy pads and water for the trip home, as well as a blanket that smells like mom and siblings so they have a little something from home to ease their transition into a whole new family.
We give all of our puppies the strongest start that we possibly can. We start as soon as pups make their way into the world, and do not stop until they leave us for their new families. While we do all we can in their time with us, of course the biggest difference is their new family! Great dogs always start with great owners! We suggest all families take at least a puppy obedience class to learn how to train their puppy. Dog training is almost as much training the humans how to train, as it is actually training the dog. We are always here to offer support whether it's 2 weeks, 2 months, or 2 years down the road.
Sometimes situations change and there may be a reason why someone cannot keep their beloved pup. We understand, which is why all of our puppies leave on a legal binding contract that all owner's agree that no puppy from our program is ever to be turned into an animal shelter, rescue group, or testing facility at any point in his or her life, period. As a breeder we take full responsibility for every puppy that we produce from the time they come into this world to the time that they leave it. This means we will take back any dog or puppy from our program, at any time, no questions asked. Even if it's 10 years down the road and the pup has one eye and a broken leg, we want our dog's back if for any reason you cannot care for them any longer.