[PeterP]

Hi,

We are a young married couple that lives in Warsaw, Poland, and we are looking for a Czech Wolfdog puppy. While we live in Warsaw, I work on a large farm near the Ukrainian border, where I stay at least half the week. We are just getting ready to move into a larger apartment in Warsaw and, after moving, want to add a new member to our family. When we were younger, we both had large dogs, so we have a little experience in handling them. We already have a rambunctious Bengal cat, who is very dog friendly and not at all shy (actually, he chases and fetches balls - we aren't sure he isn't confused about what he is).

So we have a few questions:

1. Male or female? While I don't necessarily believe there are huge behavioral differences inherent in gender - and that good or bad behavior mostly comes from training - I was curious as to what the more experienced members on the forum thought. We get various "ideas" about this - like females are better with children (which we don't have, but eventually will) or that males are more aggressive. Any truth to this?

2. Neuter or not? I was born in the States, but am of Polish descent, and, in Poland, we often hear that females especially need at least one litter in their lifetime. I'm not sure I believe this - it sounds like folk wisdom that doesn't bear scientific study. Also - are neutered males really much more calm than unneutered males? We neutered our cat when he was very young, because we weren't interested in breeding and I came to the conclusion that neutering would let him live a healthier and longer life with less chance of prostate cancer, etc. His energy level was definitely not affected, as some had warned me.

3. We will be ready to get the puppy in June when we have some vacation and the new apartment ready. I was wondering about the specifics of buying a puppy in Poland or border countries. Is it usual to request to visit the breeder's facilities? In the States, one wouldn't even consider buying a dog without visiting the breeder and checking up on their mom, dad, family, environment, etc.

4. About the website - on the planned litters - are the dates there generally pick up dates (reflecting the fact that the puppy has at least 8 weeks of age) or are those birth dates. We want to start looking and visiting some potential breeders soon...

Sorry for the long post! We are really excited about getting a wolfdog puppy, but as new owners, have some concerns and want to do everything well.

All the Best,
Peter & Lia