Basic Puppy FAQs | Rusty Rose Ranch

Puppies, Policies and Pricing FAQ

How much do your puppies cost?

Our prices range between $1000-$1500 (depending on full vs limited registration) but we do offer a discount to established serious sport homes, active juniors currently competing in sports, co-own sport homes, etc. Please contact us for details. Our first priority is getting our pups into sport homes and we are willing to work with active competitors to fit their budgets.

All pups going to pet homes are sold on Limited Registration.

All mismarks are sold on Limited Registration.

Sport puppies may be sold with Full Registration upon approval.

What is the process to purchase a puppy?

Please send me an email to Rustyrosemas@gmail.com, send a message/call 817-304-8272, or send a message to our facebook page at Rusty Rose Ranch . We will also need you to submit the proper application. You will be put on the waiting list if we think you're a good fit and when the litter is confirmed to be bred, we will contact you. After the litter is born, we will do a phone interview to finalize your spot and take a small deposit. Remainder of cost is due in cash only at pickup.

What is your spay/neuter policy?

I do not require sterilization as I feel this is a personal choice and there is a lot of new research out there to indicate that hormone-removing sterilization may have negative effects. However, if you buy a dog on limited registration and choose not to sterilize, you assume responsibility for preventing unauthorized breeding. Any unauthorized litters will incur a monetary penalty as outlined in your contract.

I strongly recommend waiting until as close to 24 months as possible to sterilize your dog if you use traditional methods, but this requires careful management to avoid accidental breeding. Traditional sterilization prior to 12 months carries long term health risks. You may do so at your own risk but it will void my health guarantee.

Do you sell to novice/beginner pet homes or to homes where this will be our first dog?

No. Our dogs are very high drive and not suited to beginner homes. We would be glad to refer you to other breeders with lower drive dogs that would be more suitable to a novice pet home though. Our dogs are simply too energetic and need too much intense training for the average novice pet owner. We also do not encourage this breed to be kept in any household where they will the "only dog" long term. We strongly prefer our buyers have experience with herding breeds.

Do you dock tails?

No. Our program is primarily focused on agility and sports. We do work small stock with our dogs and we’ve not found the tails to be a problem. We do not work cattle or horses and we do not recommend our pups for homes where they will be herding large stock.

Tails are greatly beneficial in sports, not only for balance but because many international competitions have banned docked dogs from competing. We want our future puppies to have every avenue open to them including being able to compete at the international level.

Do you remove dewclaws?

We do not remove front dewclaws as these are integral to the function of the foot and assist in stability when turning. Removing them has been shown to have long term negative effects.

How does your waiting list work?

There is no fee to be placed on the waiting list. The waiting list is not “first come/first served”. It is prioritized based on the type of puppy requested. I always retain first rights to pick a puppy. After me, the sire owner (if using an outside sire) will get second pick if applicable. Full registration picks will be after, followed by limited registration sport picks. Pet picks will be last and based on who has been on the list the longest. Not all puppies will be available to all prospective buyers. We temperament test puppies and try to place puppies in the best possible homes while still honoring our buyers wishes for certain colors/genders. If we feel a puppy is an especially poor fit for a particular buyer, we will remove that pup from your options.

Do you require a deposit to hold?

I do not take deposits until the litter is born. We have an extremely small program and do not want to accept deposits until we know how many puppies are going to be available. When the litter is born all waiting list members will be notified. At 2 weeks, I will start accepting deposits. The cost is $100 and is non-refundable. I accept Venmo, Personal check, Cash, CashApp or Zelle for deposits. No Paypal, as Paypal does not support the sale of live animals. All electronic deposits must be sent “friends and family”. We reserve the right to refuse to sell to anyone if we feel it is not in the puppy's best interest and in this situation, your deposit will be fully refunded. In those cases where the puppy passes away or experiences an unforeseen health issue, we will refund your deposit or transfer it to a future litter (your choice). At 7 weeks, those who have placed deposits will be contacted about selecting your puppy and we will arrange a day for you to pick them up between 8 and 9 weeks of age. If you do not pick up your puppy on the assigned day or make other arrangements, we will go to the next person on our deposit list. Once the deposit list has chosen, we will contact the rest of the waiting list. If any puppies are left, we will list them on our facebook page and website.

Can I pick my own puppy?

Temperament evaluations are done at 7 weeks. Some pups may be reserved only for serious sport homes. We will make strong recommendations as to which puppy would be best, but we do want you to have some choice in picking your puppy.

Can I come visit the puppies to pick one out?

We generally do not allow strangers in our home due to biosecurity risk, and the potential of upsetting our elderly rescue dogs, but we may be able to negotiate a "drive way visit" here at the farm. We will happily facetime/video chat and allow you to watch the puppies and dam. We are happy to provide photos and videos of our home and whelping area.

How do I know you’re not a scammer or puppy mill?

As we only accept cash for pickup, you will never pay us money until you have a puppy in hand with the exception of a very small deposit. We also are actively involved in multiple clubs and you are welcome to come meet us when we are showing at local events. We also have many, many references that we can provide from friends, trainers, and vets. We can also provide you with links/screenshots of show results on public websites.

Do you ever have adults or retired dogs for sale?

We will *never* have retired dogs available from our program. While I respect that some larger programs do this out of necessity, our program is very small, and our dogs are family and pets first.

However, we do have a policy of taking back any dog we have sold at any time if the owner needs to rehome said dog. If this should happen, or if we have friends with available adults, we will post this to our website.

What guarantees do you offer?

All puppies are guaranteed to be in good health at the time you acquire them. We do not guarantee against parasites as these are treatable. You have 72hrs to have your puppy evaluated by a vet. If the pup is found to be in poor health or have any congenital issues at this visit, we will take the puppy back and issue a refund minus your deposit. You are responsible for bringing the puppy to us and all expenses related to such travel. We are not responsible for any illness or injury that results from the buyer’s negligence or poor decision making. A vet’s statement will be required and must state that the issue existed prior to you acquiring the puppy. We also guarantee against life-threatening congenital defects for a period of 24 months. If you dog is found to have congenital issues within that time, we will offer you another puppy from our next litter. Our guarantee does not cover reactions to Ivermectin as the breed is known to be sensitive to this medication. We recommend never using Ivermectin for any aussie or MAS.

We do not guarantee any of the following:

-Hip, elbow, patella or OFA results. Unfortunately, many of these things are affected equally by environment as well as genetics and we cannot guarantee your dog will get passing results with OFA or Pennhip. The parents are tested by OFA and results available for viewing.
-Epilepsy. The causes of epilepsy are currently unknown.
-Size. I will try to give an estimated size range; however, my bloodlines are a mix of small standard aussies/mini aussies/toy aussies. I cannot guarantee that any dog will remain within either the ASDR or AKC definition of a “mini”.
-Ear set. I do not guarantee rose ears or button ears.
-Adult "bite" type. Bites can and do change as pups grow.
-Show quality/performance ability. These are very subjective things and I cannot guarantee your dog will be successful. I sell “prospects”. Your dog may or may not be successful in your chosen venue.
-Breeding ability. If agreed upon in our contract, you have the right to try to breed the dog you’ve bought from us; however I do not guarantee fertility in any form or fashion. All male breeding prospects will have 2 descended testicles prior to leaving our care. We will not send a male home with the hope that his testicles will “drop”.