Ok, we know you came here to get a puppy. But here's some things you should know before you do anything else.
Understand this breed
First thing you need to do: read EVERYTHING on the SCWTCA website. If you went there just to find a breeder and didn't read everything there, GO BACK.
Dog breeds developed because people wanted dogs to do certain things for them. When they found a dog who was good at what they wanted, they bred it to another one who was good at it too...and on and on. As a result, dog breeds have certain predictable traits...including their temperaments. Within each breed, there are variations but generally, you can count on a Lab to be a willing worker, a Poodle to be bright and trainable, an Afghan to be somewhat aloof, a Scottie to suffer no fools...and a Wheaten to be bright, silly, demanding, stubborn at times, affectionate and manipulative.
We strongly believe Wheatens are "high maintenance" dogs. Coat care is obvious. It requires a lot of care...yes, this most definitely includes "just pets"...who need daily brushing and combing plus periodic visits to a groomer. Even more important than the coat is the Wheaten personality which requires a lot of attention, too...they spend 90% of their waking hours trying to figure out how to outsmart their owners.
We tell people when you're getting a dog, you need to match what you and your family want in a pet and what the breed is all about. If what you want is different than what the breed is, there's nothing wrong with you and nothing wrong with the dogs. But you should move onto a different breed.
PUPPY AVAILABILITY
Finding a Wheaten puppy can be challenging.
Please, have patience. We know that when you've said to the kids "wait until you're older" and now they're older, it's hard to ask them to wait longer. You may want to rethink things. Must it be a Wheaten? Regardless, it should NEVER be a dog from a commercial source. Here's more information about that.
OUR PUPPIES
First, even though this site is full of our show dogs, they aren't ONLY show dogs. Yes, we want the best out of each litter to be shown. But in a litter of 6, if 2, maybe 3, make it into the ring, that's pretty good. And the reason you want to get one of the others, whether it be from us or some other "show" breeder, is because the entire litter has been bred, raised and cared for the same way. What we think is the best way to raise a dog that makes a stable, reliable companion.
We do not breed often. Lots of reasons, mostly that we do not have a lot of dogs and use as much caution as we can. As a result, we do not keep waiting lists for our puppies. We don't want potential owners to be on a list for months only to have a small or no litter at all and frankly, we can't manage it.
If you are interested, email us. We'll send you some info, let you know about our breeding plans and send along any referrals we have to other reputable breeders. We'll encourage you to call so we can talk more.
When we know a bitch is pregnant, we start talking more seriously to individuals. We try to match their circumstances with ours and see what works. Again, it's a match and if it after we've talked, it doesn't seem to be right, well, no harm,no foul. There's no magic formula, no special words anyone can say. Our goal is to place our puppies in terrific households where everyone involved will have a great life together.
We take seriously our responsibility to our puppies – throughout their lives… because they wouldn’t be here unless we did the breeding. This means we will be a resource to you throughout the dog’s lie, hopefully for many, many years. It’s why the “match” is so important to us.
HEALTH
Finally, there are some significant health problems in Wheatens. You should NOT pursue purchasing a Wheaten without understanding that. Go back to the SCWTCA website and read about them.
You should NOT purchase a Wheaten from anyone who (a) says "my lines don't have those problems or (b) cannot give you, in black and white, health tests for the parents. NO EXCUSES. The latter is not a guarantee of anything, other than that the breeder takes it seriously and is trying their best to do the right thing. But not having them means what a breeder friend used as a tag line on her emails: "If you don't test, you don't know."
We know about health problems. We face them, too. We've lost beloved dogs. We've supported owners. We've mourned dogs who took their first breaths in our hands. We removed Wheatens from our breeding program, ones that remained healthy, because in our minds, they were too risky to breed. We openly talk about health issues on this website and will when you contact us.
You should also know this: because there are few answers, every breeder approaches this differently. The most important thing is for any breeder to answer your questions honestly and forthrightly. It's the best anyone can do right now.