That's a very sweet picture of what I'm sure is a very sweet puppy. All puppies are sweet at that age. That puppy is going to grow up. How he grows up to be depends primarily on the genetics of his parents. Will he be able to run and play freely, or will he be in chronic pain from joint issues? Will he be your happy-go-lucky companion, or will he be so anxious he snaps at strangers, visitors, even you? Will he get along with other dogs or will he pick fights and potentially get himself injured? Will he live a good long life or will his heart fail at age 7? Will his retinas atrophy over time, causing him to go blind? Will he have healthy skin and hair, or will his sebaceous glands be perpetually inflamed? Will he maintain his healthy, happy mind throughout life, or will he develop a seizure disorder that picks away at his cognition every time he seizes? These are all things that are largely already decided, already in his genes, traits selected for or against by which dogs the breeder chose to combine.
Have you met the parents? What do you know about the grandparents? Did they undergo screenings for joint and heart health? Have they tested negative for being carriers of common genetic disorders? What are their temperaments like? Why did the breeder decide on this particular pairing of a poodle and a beagle?
Have you met the parents? What do you know about the grandparents? Did they undergo screenings for joint and heart health? Have they tested negative for being carriers of common genetic disorders? What are their temperaments like? Why did the breeder decide on this particular pairing of a poodle and a beagle?
