The dog you end up with is decided before you meet it. Where it was bred, how it was raised in its first eight weeks and who handled it in that period matter more than any training you will do afterwards, and they are the things easiest to get wrong from a laptop.
Luxembourg sits in the middle of a European market, which is a genuine advantage and also the reason a large volume of badly bred puppies moves through this region every year.
The three routes that work
A shelter or a recognised rescue. You get a dog whose behaviour has been observed by people who have no reason to flatter it, usually already neutered, vaccinated and chipped, and with support afterwards. Adult dogs are often far easier than puppies for a working household, because you know what you are getting and the toilet training is done.
A serious breeder. Fewer litters, health testing appropriate to the breed, puppies raised in the house rather than in an outbuilding, and a waiting list. Expect to be interviewed rather than sold to.
A breed-specific rescue, including those working abroad. Perfectly legitimate when the organisation is transparent about the dog's history, does a proper home check and takes the dog back if it does not work.
What a good breeder does
- Lets you visit, more than once, and see the mother interacting with the litter in the place they were raised
- Shows health test results for the breed's known problems, as documents rather than assurances
- Does not release puppies before eight weeks
- Asks you difficult questions about your working hours, your flat and your experience
- Has raised the puppies inside a home, with normal household noise, handling and early habituation
- Provides a contract, the identification documents and a written undertaking to take the dog back at any point in its life
- Is still answering your messages six months later
The warning signs
The clearest signal of all is the meeting place. A seller who suggests a car park, a motorway junction, or anywhere other than the house where the litter was raised is telling you something that no amount of reassurance should override. The same goes for a mother who is unavailable to see, or a dog presented as the mother that plainly is not.
After that, look at the shape of the operation rather than at the puppy. Several breeds available at once, or several litters, describes a business rather than a breeder. Immediate availability, pressure to decide today and payment by instant transfer belong to the same picture, as does a price that sits well below the market, or well above it with an elaborate story attached.
Two details settle most cases. A puppy offered below eight weeks of age, or one whose stated age does not fit the vaccination dates in the paperwork. And the absence of questions about you: anyone placing an animal they care about wants to know about your hours, your flat and your experience, and will ask before you do.
The arithmetic that exposes most illegal imports: rabies vaccination cannot be given before twelve weeks of age, and the vaccine needs time to take effect before a dog may be moved legally between countries. A ten-week-old puppy that has just arrived from abroad with a valid rabies entry did not have one.
Paperwork to check before money changes hands
Ask to see the microchip number and check that it matches the documents and the dog. Ask for the passport, look at the date of the rabies vaccination against the date of birth, and check which vet administered it. Ask for the vaccination record and the worming history. If the dog is coming from another country, ask which route and which paperwork, and be suspicious of anything that arrives by van overnight.
Anything that does not add up is a reason to stop, not to negotiate. Buying the sad puppy to rescue it funds the next litter, which is the uncomfortable truth of this trade.
Once the dog is yours, in Luxembourg
- Identification and commune declaration. Within four months of birth, or within one month if the dog comes from abroad or from a previous owner. Make sure the register shows you, your address and a telephone number that works
- Civil liability insurance. Compulsory, usually an extension of your home policy. Keep the attestation, the commune asks for it
- The communal dog tax, set by your commune, with a legal minimum of ten euros a year
- A vet, registered with before you need one, and a check-up within the first week even if the seller says it is unnecessary
If the dog belongs to one of the breeds classified as susceptible to being dangerous, the owner's training certificate and the ministerial authorisation have to be in place before you acquire it, not afterwards, and the dog itself must complete a training course with an examination. That is a decision to make before you fall in love with a photograph.
Choosing the right dog rather than the right-looking dog
Two questions decide more than breed does. How many hours will the dog be alone, and what will it do with them? And what are you realistically going to do at seven on a wet January morning?
A working household in a flat that is out from half past seven until six should think hard before a young working breed, a puppy, or any dog that needs several hours of activity a day. The same household is often an excellent home for a settled adult dog of five or six, which is precisely the animal shelters struggle to place.
Coat is the other practical filter. Curly and long coats need professional grooming every six to eight weeks for the dog's whole life, which people do not price in when they choose a puppy from a photograph.
Before you commit
Arrange the weekday cover before the dog arrives rather than in the difficult third week. Knowing that somebody comes at one o'clock changes which dog is a reasonable choice for your household, and it is a great deal easier to arrange in advance than during a crisis with a chewed door and a neighbour's complaint.
The PAWLY breed guide. 198 breeds described honestly, with history, temperament, health and what each is like in a Luxembourg flat. Browse the guide.
General information for dog owners in Luxembourg, not veterinary or legal advice. For your own dog, ask your vet, a qualified behaviourist or your commune. How this journal is written and checked.
Away from your dog all day?
PAWLY provides individual dog walks, home visits and overnight care in your own home, across Luxembourg City. Same walker every time, written report after every visit.
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