Frequently Asked Questions
How do you develop the puppies to be great pets?
Our dogs are our family and as such, they live in the house. We move furniture out to move the whelping box in. We don't raise our silver lab puppies in outdoor kennels where they have limited interaction with human beings and the real world. Your puppy will have human interaction on a regular basis and be exposed to normal life situations. By the time your puppy is delivered it will have been exposed to people, children, vacuum cleaners, loud pots, pans, and all the other noises and experiences in a household. Your silver lab will have started potty training going outside with it's parents. The impressionable period of 5-8 weeks is critical in the development of a silver lab puppy AS A PET and we focus on ensuring we do the best job possible.
How do I register my puppy with the AKC? (It already is!)
Unlike mass puppy breeders, Ozark Silver Labs is focused on developing a few world class family pets! As such, we pre-register all dogs in our litters with the AKC. When you pickup your puppy it will already have an AKC registration number and pedigree information. At the time of full payment, we will assign ownership to you and you will receive an email from the AKC to complete the puppy's registration with the dog's name, ownership and other information. As with all of our dogs, we are here to assist if you have any questions or issues with the AKC registration process.
Should I microchip my puppy? (It already is!)
As with the AKC registration above, we take the health and safety of our puppies and dogs very seriously. As such, we microchip all of our puppies (and dogs) so that they can be identified if lost or stolen. When you pickup you puppy, we will provide you the paper work to submit the registration with AKC and other pet recovery organizations. There may be an additional fee paid to these organizations when you register their microchip.
How do I know my Silver Lab is healthy?
All of our puppies are delivered in the best of health to our knowledge. Our puppies all are screened by a licensed veterinary doctor within 5 days of birth and dewclaws are removed. Your puppy will be wormed at 3 and 6 weeks of age and it will have received all vaccinations. In addition, your puppy will have screening by veterinary doctor at 6 weeks of age before delivery. We take the health and welfare of our puppies very seriously and will assist as possible to insure your puppy's success and development.
Why will you not ship puppies? (But we will meet you half way!)
We do not breed our dogs for the money, we breed them because we love Silver Labs. Shipping puppies (or dogs) via ground or air is incredible stressful and dangerous for the animal. Many dogs have died or been neglected in process of being shipped and we won't ship our puppies. We will however, meet you half way for a slight fee to bring the puppy to you. In some cases, we might bring the puppy all the way! (We like impromptu mini-vacations with Jake an Polly!) We will work out the details of getting your puppy to you in the best and most healthy way possible.
What kind of food should we get?
Most larger breeders make deals with pet food suppliers to promote a certain brand in exchange for discounts in the food they use in their kennels. Since we only produce up to 2 litters a year, we don't qualify for these discounts. As such, we do use Royal Canin Labrador Retriever Puppy (and adult food) specifically formulated for Labrador Retrievers. We discussed this with our vet and went through many of the different foods on the market. We will provide you with a small bag of dog food at delivery to use if you wish to transition to another type of dog food. In addition, we will provide feeding guidelines and background on what your puppy has eaten prior to delivery.
Can we visit Ozark Silver Labs
We welcome visitors on a scheduled basis. We cannot however allow visitors while the puppies are less than 4 weeks old. As stated above, these puppies are raised in our house and we appreciate people not just 'dropping in'.
How does the selection process work and when does it occur?
Puppy selection generally begins around 5 weeks of age. By that time we will have information about the growth and personality of each silver lab puppy. Each puppy will have its own personality and characteristics that we hope we will have provided online. We will provide pictures, diary, and other information about the puppy to help you make your choice. We also will discuss with you the type of personality your household has and help match a puppy that 'fits'.
When can I pickup my puppy?
Puppies will be available for pickup beginning at 7 weeks old. We discourage people picking up a puppy in advance of this date as vaccinations occur at 6 weeks and need time to develop before exposing to other animals. We encourage puppies to be picked up by 9 weeks of age in their development.