Co-ownership with FHF

First Harmony Farms started Co-owning some dogs with friends and family so that we could try to have a litter of puppies every year without having to own too many dogs personally. As much as we love breeding, we were not willing to live with more dogs than we already owned, which only allowed for an occasional litter. We eventually gave some favorite puppies to family members with the agreement that we get to possibly compete and breed with them. Not every dog/bitch has turned into a breeder, but many of our breeders have lived in other homes. Eventually, we also had some friends interested in co-owns as well. This grew to us having co-owns with a variety of people over the years, some old friends and some became friends over time. We are open to a variety of co-own contracts, but all are for people interested in breeding their dogs/bitches. Pet people will not appreciate having in tact animals even if they don't think they care. Other than the occasional breeding, the dog lives with the co-own. With some dogs and if the co-own is interested, the dog/bitch may come back to FHF to board, breed, or show. Most co-owns show themselves, but some have us do the competing and they just help with the training. The benefits to the Buyer are that they get a chance at the first pick puppy from a cross and we will do all the paperwork for getting the dog registered and health tested. Co-owns do have some say on pick of the litter, but we will always pick one of our favorite puppies. This is rarely decided before 7 weeks old. We are also willing to help train and compete the dog to help title it and get Personal Best scores. We love helping new breeders get started,  but do have a lot of rules for breeding our dogs. We do not guarantee that we will use the co-owns in our program and many never get used for breeding.  

Price:
This varies depending on the dog, how important the dog is to our breeding program, who is doing all the showing, who is paying entry fees, who is paying for health testing, and how well I know the Buyer. People in our group that have been breeding with us don't pay for their puppies compared to those that are new to our group. I have even offered to refund up to purchase price or a puppy back for when done breeding if paying full price, which is perfect for many that want to start their own programs.  

Health testing:
FHF will cover any health testing for most of our breeding dogs if done at the Animal Care Clinic in Princeton, IL.  This will be important for the contract and can effect the price. Who is paying the $500-1500 for health testing? 

Male Co-owns:

1. FHF gets a set number of breedings back.
2. FHF retains all breeding rights for themselves and their co-own dogs
3. FHF shares breeding rights with the buyer if they own females

Buyer can choose to not stud to any other outside females, offer outside females themselves (if an experienced breeder) or have FHF advertise the stud and split the stud fee equally between FHF and the buyer. 

Female Co-owns: 

1. FHF gets 1-2 puppys back with full registration.
2. FHF gets 2 litters back with full registration.
3. Buyer agrees to breed a litter with a FHF stud dog.
4. FHF does have to approve the stud used. 

Registration:
The dog/bitch will usually stay in our name or as a co-own on the papers. This can be Lynette VandeVenter, Stuart VandeVenter, Tara Paulsen, Megan Cain, or Angie Harms. 

Breeding Requirements:
In order to breed the pup in our name they have to be something that we want to add to our program. Here are some of the questions we ask when making breeding decisions. Not all the puppies we co-own are added to our breeding program, just our favorites. 

1. Did they pass satisfactory health testing? Not every dog gats a perfect at everything, but they have to hit the minimum pass by our standards to be used in our program. I would love to say every dog we have tested has passed, but we have now flunked out 2 of our up and comers for health testing results. We have also been actively culling Harlequin merle from our program due to the increased health risks. We still breed them, but on a limited basis and with the intention of culling the harlequin merle from our program. We treat MDR1 the same way and EAOD, keeping the clear puppies back for the next generation. 
2. Are they healthy overall? Not all issues can be tested for. We have now failed one up and comer from our program for IBD. We have also used some dogs very limited due to epilepsy risk in the lines, despite there being no official testing for it yet.  
3. Do we want to add that lineage still? Some lines develop health problems after we use them and we have to weed them out later. Even if a puppy is great, but multiple siblings have problems we will weed those lines. If most puppies are great with an occasional outlier, we may only do limited breeding the next generation. 
4. How did the other puppies from this litter turn out?
5. Do they have a neutral, friendly, or socialite temperament? Temperament is not only genetic, but we have removed certain lines from our dogs due to trends we saw that didn't fit our overall goals. 
6. Are they easily trained compared to other dogs? This is critical for us. Many of our dogs go for pets, junior dogs, 4-H dogs, and newer handlers. We have built a reputation for having easy dogs and hope to always maintain this. Our puppies are usually the star of every class they take and that is something we are very proud of and want to continue. Not all owners will put in the work so I don't always get to know about every dog in a litter. But when an owner does do the work, I expect a dog that loves to learn and I always love hearing those stories from my puppy owners. 
7. Are they athletic? Not all dogs have to be on the world team, but when an owner is trying to train and compete I want them to succeed. Some lines are more athletic than others. Whether I am looking at jumping style, ground speed, or stamina, I want a dog that can hold their own in the competition world. They have to be able to play enough to keep themselves in shape if the owner puts in the time.  
8. Are they easy to live with for their breed? There is nothing I hate hearing more than our breeds make horrible pets, which I have heard for all of our breeds. I consider all our dogs to be pets and feel like they are amazing at it. They can hike, camp, attend festivals and games, or enjoy a Netflix marathon. They can be amazing with babies to elderly. They are not the perfect pet for everyone and some do develop behavior problems, especially if they are not trained well. But the majority of our puppies are amazing pets for their families as well as partners in competition. No dog is 100% perfect, but they should be pretty close by their owners standards. The first thing I ask co-owners is if they want a puppy just like this one again. If the answer isn't yes, then we have to dig into that deeper. 
9. Does their size and structure improve our program? Our dogs can vary in our program, but we definitely have preferences. I love a BC  17-20" and a MAS  14-16", but not all of our dogs fit in that category. I have ruled out some dogs due to size alone, but if I love everything else I will usually just breed to a mate in my size preferences.
10. Does anyone in our breeding group want a puppy? If not now, in the future? We occasionally skip a generation because we want the line but aren't ready so soon. If not, I will let the buyer spay or buy out our co-own. Unfortunately, we can't keep any where near as many puppies as we would like so we make some hard choices. 
11. Do they have any major phobias or behavior problems? Some traits are a hard no from all of us, especially severe phobias or aggression. 
12. Female MAS and ES must be at least 2 years old to breed. Some males will be bred on prelims before 2, but these are usually for special circumstances. BCs must be closer to 3 years old. 

Expectations:
The expectations from the Buyer vary, but some general rules always apply.

1. Socialize your puppy. Positive socialization is part of what makes our dogs so social and fun.  Puppies that never leave the home do not tend to do well as adults when asked to do things. 
2. Train your puppy. They don't have to be winning every show out there, but I need to be able to know their strengths and weaknesses, which you can't tell without training and competing. Everyone thinks their dog is the best at home. Many dogs don't show problems until they are under pressure. I need to know how resilient they are before choosing a mate. Some co-owns never get past this point.
3. Health testing. Whether it is done with us or elsewhere, it takes time to do. Genetic testing can be done at any age. We usually do it at the time of OFAs. New genetic tests pop up all the time and we try to keep everyone tested if they are still breeding. OFA hips, elbows, +/- shoulders, +/- spines, patellas, cardiac are done at 2-2.5 years old, OFA CAER exams should be done yearly, but the shortage of availability has made it more of an every couple years for some dogs. We can't do those at our place. Some specialty clinics have them, but most are held at large cluster shows or health testing clinics. We try to get them done at clinics when we can, but those can fill up fast! I can usually only get a few done when I have 10 that need done, which is why we have now been shooting for every other year.
4. Breeding. Males have to be available to meet with girls when they are in heat. They can be bred here with us or at your place. Females can have puppies here or at your place. If they are to have puppies with us, they have to be used to us so it is best if they stay occasionally and are happy here. This is much harder to accomplish and takes more work on the Buyers end. Raising puppies is hard work and we are all trying to raise the puppies with similar protocols. 
5.  Keep us updated. I do not stalk my puppy buyers but LOVE updates-photos, videos, or just a text. I need pics for the website and facebook so don't send ones I can't share. I don't share any videos unless you ask me to and occasionally I see them on Facebook and ask if I can have them. If we are using them in our program, I try to have their descriptions, titles, brags, and stats on their webpage. Yearly updates are fine, more often is even better.