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HOME VISITS

We have always been wary of allowing home visits for two reasons.

1. Our babies are important to us and it is our job to keep them safe from viruses that thrive in dog communities in the metropolitan areas. It is very easy to walk a problem onto our property on tyres, shoes and clothes and for this reason we are reluctant to put babies at risk.

2. For our own safety. We know of puppies that have been stolen after home visits to check out security etc, it is also for our own personal safety as we put ourselves at risk every time we invite a stranger into the house and these days it is not a wise move. After recently hearing of the murder of the poodle breeder in USA for her dogs we will no longer be allowing home visits to people we don't know.

Sorry if this upsets you but you are always welcome to visit and handle the dogs at shows where we are happy to answer questions and let you have a cuddle and we are always available via phone or email.  Our priority is to keep puppies safe and ourselves of course

I am sorry we are no longer breeding Tibetan Spaniels. 

When breeding I specifically look to find a dog that is slightly longer than tall as one of my pet hates is the over long Tibbi. I also expect a pretty head that is not heavy and course with a moderate length of nose in a dog that is of a moderate size and not too heavy in type. I guess I know what I like and hope that you like them too. I breed most of my Tibbi litters during the cooler months as the babies seem to find our hot dry summers difficult and I always choose some of my babies to remain here.
 My adult dogs have a complete balanced dry food formula in preference to meat these days as I am very suspicious of the amount of hormones and growth additives added to chicken and stock feed. These additives can affect your dog when digested from the raw meats that are available for pets today even human meats come from force fed (feed lot) cattle and sheep so do contain preservatives, additives and hormones. I feel much safer using a proven cooked formula made specifically for my dogs. I am also not a fan of the raw chicken neck / wing diet as I personally have lost 2 dogs to choke from unchewed chicken necks. These were adult Italian Greyhounds who knew to chew their food but bolted the necks whole and died when the bones became firmly stuck in the throats. Undigested bones from necks can also cause bowel impactions so although many may recommend this style of feeding, I do not. This way of feeding may suit a bigger dog with larger oesophagus but not small breeds in my opinion.  My dogs love the rawhide chew bones and strips and these are wonderful for their teeth as well as the larger beef marrow bones to gnaw when cut longways in half.
VACCINATIONS ETC.... I prefer to vaccinate my babies at around 10 weeks so please realise that I do not allow them to leave up until age11 - 12 weeks these days if they are travelling.  I use a standard C3 vaccine as the more complicated ones containing extra components have been known to cause reactions in some babies sometimes affecting their immune systems. Puppy will also be microchipped at vaccination time and a record of the chip number kept by my vet for extra safety. Full ANKC registration papers will be supplied for show / breeding puppies to registered breeder/ exhibitors only and all other pet puppies will be placed on the limited register. I have many enquiries for puppies as pets only and am happy to put some of them into good pet situations but new rules have now been incorporated into our association regulations and we are obliged to supply papers with every puppy sold regardless of the home situation so please realise that there is now a cost for this certificate included in your quote. If a breeder offers you a puppy without papers he is doing so against the regulations and you should check and see if they are bona fide members of the organisation in your state. A lot of care goes into rearing every Tunamara puppy and the cost reflects the amount of time, dedication, love, money, planning and research. Also consider that your dog will be a long term loving companion as you can expect to have your puppy / dog for up to 15 years sometimes longer.  
TRAINING.... I rear my babies in a pen so that they become used to being confined at a young age for their own safety. They have plenty of playtime and learn that the box in their pen is their sleeping or safe place. The pen has a sleeping box at one end and newspaper at the other for toileting so when you receive your puppy it is used to having newspaper there for it and will (hopefully) seek it out instead of your carpet. I advise that you continue to put sheets of paper or the specially made training pads on the floor for your puppy and continue to use them until it becomes normal for puppy to search them out out. You can then move the paper day by day to the door and eventually outside creating a habit for the puppy to follow as obviously your puppy will not know the layout of your home or where to find the door to start with. Tibbi's are smart and learn about doggy doors really quickly so maybe consider installing one so your baby has its own entrance and exit.
GROOMING.... The Tibbi has a thick undercoat that does shed once a year and a lovely weatherproof overcoat that is more like your own hair than dog fur.  A good brisk brushing will keep it gleaming and a fine toothed comb is perfect for the softer ears and pants. I use a pin brush through the undercoat to remove any loose hair. I bath my Tibbis about once a month (more often if attending shows) in a mild baby or oatmeal shampoo as they do sometimes have reactions to the chemicals in formulated shampoos. If this causes scratching and becomes a problem I use the good old Sunlight bar soap instead.  It is not necessary to use dog shampoos
for Tibbis as they do have hair similar to our own rather than the thicker dog fur coat. Please note that the Tibbi does shed its undercoat each year at the onset of warm weather or in the case of the female approximately 3 months after each season or litter. A grooming rake with wire pins may help to remove it faster thus allowing the new coat to come in. The male Tibbi grows a thick mane around the neck and chest along with hind pants, fore feathers and a huge plumed tail. He is an impressive animal. The female has a shorter all over coat with a lovely feathered tail and pants so it is wise to maintain the coat in groomed condition. Look especially between the hind legs and at the base of the ears for small knots when brushing. 
TEMPERAMENT.... I have had many would be Tibbi owners ask about the problems associated with having a male dog as a pet. My answer is and will always be that I feel the male dog makes a much more stable pet. He is easier to housetrain, He costs less to desex at the vet and he has a very happy, confident, loyal approach to life. When you have a male as a pet he will guard (let you know if anyone is at the door) and look up to you as his leader. I find boys faster to learn. The female is sometimes moody especially around season time and occasionally sulky if she does not wish to follow the lead. I have found that they are not always as outgoing as the males preferring to be entertained and coaxed rather than wanting to please. You will need to spey your female at age 6 months to prevent unwanted seasons in the home and to deter male dogs from coming to call. My house Tibbi is a male. If you really want a female for your house pet please realise that in many cases the breeders of this amazing breed need to retain the best girls for their programs as this is still quite a rare breed and although excess males are reasonably easy to source you may have to wait in line for a suitable female.
 

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