West Highland White Terriers - What to look for? Questions

My Aunty would like a Westie puppy and as she has absolutely no clue what to look out for when buying a dog I said that I would help out as much as I can. Since you lot are great for information I was hoping someone could tell me what (if any as the KC doesn't appear to list any) health testing should be completed by any reputable breeders of West Highland Whites and whether any of you would recommend a good breeder in the South West or West Midlands (Aunt lives in Gloucester but will travel for a well bred pup). Also what to look out for in a pup when going to visit the breeder.

Thank you for your help! I am currently trawling the websites to see what info I can find for myself

THe KC do not list any health testing requirements or recommendations for WHWT because there aren't any specific to the breed.

the first port of call when looking for a puppy of ANY breed is the appropriate breed club(s); there are many in the UK both local and national, and they will have people who can direct you to reputable breeders who are club members and abide by their codes of ethics.


http://www.thewesthighlandwhiteterrierclub.co.uk/index.php?CATEGORY=B-Looking for a puppy

Below is the KC link to all the breed clubs and rescue centres for WHWT

http://www.the-kennel-club.org.uk/services/public/club/breed/list.aspx?id=3082

Thanks SB. I have had a look at the accredited breeder list for westies yesterday but finding websites for said breeders seems to be more difficult! Think it's going to be a case of her phoning and travelling to see them rather than having a look around a website to get a feel for them first

A word to the wise, the sophistication or even existence of a website is not necessarily directly related to the quality of the dogs! You will find many many SUPERB breeders in some breeds who do not have websites at all!

As they say, seeing is believing, the claims some people make on their websites are very entertaining for those in the know, unfortunately those who are less in the know are often taken in by clever marketing.

what i would say is check for lines without allergy's as much as u can,whwt are notorious for skin problems...the other thing i would ask about is luxating patellas

Buy from a show kennel, will have the correct temperament and will not have pink feet!

Thanks everyone

I know that a lot of very good breeders don't have websites, but it does make the searching that much more difficult as it's so great to be able to pop onto a website and see lots of pictures of their dogs. Whereas visiting loads and loads of breeders takes a lot of time...it makes narrowing down the selection a little easier. But if she has to visit loads of people then she has to ;-)

Thank you Layla I will let her know to ask these questions when she visits breeders. The two westies I have boarding here sometimes have awful skin and eyes

BD I will advise her to go for a show kennel over a BYB and have definitely told her to steer clear of PFs as there is a big one in Gloucester!