HOW IT WORKS
I would like to apologize, in advance, for the lack of brevity with this page, but I have encountered enough misunderstandings over the many years I have been breeding Queensland Heelers, to feel that it is warranted.
Please feel free to email me at thelewisranch@aol.com if you have any questions after reading this page.
First of all, when you reserve, you are paying for a pup that is not born yet. We will get you a pup as quickly as we can, but when you reserve for a pup you are stating that you have read and understand How It Works,
which is our version of Terms and Conditions, and you are agreeing to wait patiently for your pup to be born.
You must agree to wait patiently for the arrival of your pup, in order of reservation (waiting your turn), which could take several litters to get what you have asked for. This could take awhile, or be fairly quick...but there is no way for me to predict how quickly I can get you the pup you have reserved for (i.e., gender, color, markings, tail, dam/sire).
I currently have 9 breeding females (7 standard/2 miniature) with 2 possible litters (each) per year.
You may certainly specify gender, color, markings (e.g., mask, patch, spot, or no markings), tail (left in tact, born stumpy, docked, or Natural-which indicates you want the pup the way it was born), or if you want a pup from a particular female or male.
Please be advised that wait time can be from 1 day (if you happen to reserve and we have a pup that is available immediately) to a year or more if I have had an influx of a particular reservation type, and nature doesn't cooperate.
...some things cannot be controlled. I do not offer refunds for longer than you thought wait.
Dogs only come into heat every 6 months and gestation is 62 days (included in the 6 mos between heats). I cannot allow anyone to cut in front of anyone else so please don't ask to pay extra to cut in front (believe me it happens). Queensland Heelers are tough to find, I gather, and I am doing my best to accommodate those who have contacted me because they want a pup from my ranch. I began taking reservations because someone asked if they could pay in advance and get the next pup born that fit what they wanted. I allowed this, and then...the rest is history. I raise them because I love the breed, and enjoy it. It is a lot of work to coordinate all of this (the reservations, the notify lists, the payments, etc.) in addition to caring for the dogs and the puppies. Anyone who has ever had a female dog in heat and tried to keep her from breeding every dog in the neighborhood should have a sense of what I go through each time a female comes into heat (or 3 at once). Between personalities, hormones, and natural instinct to breed (remember I have 10 females here at my ranch), it is never an easy job. I am sure that no one but me enjoys the lag time between heats and litters. I love the puppies, but I love spending time with my dogs too (without the worry of heats and coordinating breeding, or caring for puppies and updating their new owners with pictures each week,
...not to mention coordinating, and pulling off, a successful puppy pickup day).
Please remember that I don't make these pups in my garage and I cannot refund your money if you change your mind, find a pup elsewhere after you reserve, or it takes more time than you expected to get the pup you want.
Please. Just be sure you are willing to wait for one before you reserve. It will be worth the wait, I promise.
What the hold-up could be...
In order to accommodate your choices, it may take several litters to get you a pup, especially if you are particular about size (standard or miniature) color/gender/tail/markings/personality (which is understandable and perfectly acceptable).
In order to accommodate what you want , out of a particular female's litter, it could take a bit longer as each of my females have only 2 heats/litters possible per year (62 days gestation each). Now that we have stumpy tails in the mix...this complicates things a bit more since some pups are born without tails. I can dock tails, but I cannot put them on (duck tape has its limitations) so this sometimes means less opportunity for those who must have a tail. Some of my dams throw some pups in each litter (not all) with stumpy tails, but some do not. I can dock a tail upon request at 3 days old.
Occasionally a female doesn't take when I breed her. This is normal and I certainly don't begrudge any female a well-deserved rest (nature sometimes reminds us of this needed break). I try to take this in stride...hopefully you will too.
Rest assured that I am diligent about marking the calendar for each female, tracking her cycle, watching for signs of heat, and then watching for her standing heat; kenneling her with the male, and watching for the end of her standing heat so that I have an idea of her due date and can let her out of the kennel, confident that she is bred. This process takes a full 3 weeks sometimes (from first sign of heat to no sign of heat).
I update this site when a female is in heat, for sure, and again when she is breeding, when she is done, and once she is about a month or so along and I am sure she is showing and going to have a litter of pups. There is a "last updated" date at the beginning of the Queensland Heeler page, and again just before "The Latest News" section, that shows when I last updated. If it hasn't been updated very recently then there has been nothing to update. ;)
Occasionally, a litter is low (or void) of a particular gender, color, or tail (or the combo of these you reserved for). I don't control this either...please try to understand. We cross our fingers and hope each and every reservation can be filled ASAP...not always the case, but I will always go in order of reservation, skipping people only when what is born doesn't fit what they specifically ordered. If you are flexible, and tell me that you are, on your reservation, then you will not be skipped (for example, you can put: "I may/will consider either gender" or "I may/will consider either color" or "I may/will take a tail or lack of one that he or she is born with"), or I may/will consider either size (asking to be duplicated on the miniature and standard list).
Being flexible will get you a pup sooner. Know that I will never hold you to a pup that you decide you do not want. You may opt to be skipped anytime you are offered a pup, and hold your spot until I offer you a pup that fits what you want. If the timing is off (illness, summer vacation, new baby, moving, or ?) when I contact you. You may ask to be skipped and not lose your spot for any reason, or change your specifications at any time. I want you to be ready for your pup, and completely happy with the pup you take home.
The Way it Works
When a litter is born, I assess what is born as far as color, gender, tail, markings, and parents (some people specify that they want a pup from a particular dam). I then go in order of reservation. Always. If you reserved, then you are in my folder. For instance, if, when you reserve, you reserve for a blue female only, and an all red litter is born (rarely happens), you will not be contacted; only the people who fit the litter will be contacted. If blue pups are born, but only males are born, you will not be contacted either, because you specified blue female only. Only those who reserved for blue males would be contacted, and only if it is their turn. If a blue female is born, and you are next in the folder for a blue female, you will be contacted. If there are 6 blue female pups born and you are 7th in the folder, and all 6 ahead of you say yes to the pup, then you will not be contacted that litter, but will be first on the list, and contacted for the next blue female born.
I contact people starting from the top of the reservation list (oldest reservation) according to what is born, skipping red pup only reservations, for instance, if I have a blue litter, or female only reservations if I have all males, or tail "wanters" if there are no tails, and also skipping anyone specifying a particular dam, if this litter isn't from that dam. I contact the person reserved the longest who first fits what is born in that litter, going through the reservations in order, skipping only those who don't match anything in the litter.
If there is more than one choice of pup when I come to you, I will contact you (by email/text) and the other person who is up for a pup of the same specifications, and whoever gets back to me first (choosing from the pictures/descriptions I send of the pups that fit) gets choice, and the other person(s) are assured to get one of the other pup(s) that fit. If I cannot reach you right away, but you are up, and a pup is born that matches your specifications, I will hold a pup for you that matches what you want, according to your specifications (but only for a couple of days if I have your number as well to text you to alert you of the email). If you cannot be reached after a couple of days/attempts, I will have to offer this pup to the next person it fits in the reservation folder and you will go back into your spot in the folder, to be contacted on the next litter.
I do it this way to keep this process from dragging on for days or weeks (some people are on vacation or don't check messages right away, etc.), and to accommodate those who want a tail docked (this must be done at 3 days old). Keep in mind that there is very little difference in pups at birth beyond a patch, spot, mask, tail, color, and gender, since they have the same parents (so personality can be somewhat assumed). In the absence of a response, I will assign a pup to you according to your specifications and hold it a couple of days, but you do not have to accept this pup once you respond. You can opt to go back into the folder, in your spot, and wait for another litter/pup.
Please contact me at thelewisranch@aol.com if you still have questions about the process.