Can you tell me about your puppies?

My puppies are all reared within our family home and are well socialised through the "Puppy Culture" program. They grow up hearing normal household noises and having exposure and confidence building to prepare them for the big wide world. They leave my care vaccinated, microchipped, wormed regularly and fully vet checked for any health issues.

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Each litter produced is carefully planned to preserve and improve the Italian Greyhound breed, paying particular attention to health, temperament and conformation.

 

I breed my puppies to show in dog shows and use in my breeding program.  Pet puppies will be placed on the limited register as required by Dogs Victoria and will be desexed (unless otherwise discussed).  Full registration papers will only be made available for show/stud animals to registered ANKC affiliated members.  

 

Please remember that the cost of a puppy reflects the amount of time, dedication, love, money, planning and research that goes into every Skyefall puppy.

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Further details to guide you as the new owner in your puppies’ health and well being are available in our 'Puppy Guidelines' online document, including training information, videos, recipes, do's & don'ts.

We also provide our puppies with a Puppy Pack including Custom Skyefall slip lead, sample dry kibble, toy, teething toy, dental gel, blanket and more.

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Skyefall puppies will be desexed before going to their new homes. 

 

Once the puppy is in possession of the new owner, all care and health/wellbeing concerns are the responsibility of the new owners from there on. We are here to support you with any questions you have along the way.

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Do you health test your breeding dogs?

Italian Greyhounds can be affected by a number of different genetic diseases, some of which are able to be tested for by DNA saliva test or vet examination.  We absolutely health test our dogs as we believe that it is the responsibility of every ethical breeder and it is a requirement at Skyefall for every mating to be considered low risk for known and testable hereditary diseases. We have tested all of our foundation stock by Vet Cardiologist - Richard Wooley and continue to utilise UC Davis DNA testing for PRA, Glaucoma and FEH.
Please see our 'health' page for more information. 

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What is the difference between a ‘Show’ and ‘Pet’ puppy?

Each puppy is raised with the same love, care and devotion regardless whether it is to be a show dog or pet companion.  The basis of this is that they are all pets to our family, however the reason for the mating has been to produce a future generation to maintain and preserve the quintessence of the Italian Greyhound breed.  We will retain the puppies we believe best exemplify this standard as puppies will be graded as they mature to eight weeks old. 

 

Show prospects will be considered on the full register only to approved and registered members of an ANKC affiliate. Those wanting to enter the show scene should contact us for advice in regards to membership and the possibility of available show puppies. We are always happy to support or mentor new exhibitors or newcomers to our breed.

 

All pet puppies are sold with initial Parvac vaccination given at 6 weeks, vet examination, first C3 vaccination at 10 weeks, regular worming, microchip (transferred to you) and limited (pet) registration/pedigree papers (transferred to you) from Dogs Victoria.

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How do I get on your waiting list?

I keep a list of homes wanting a Skyefall Puppy based on a number of different criteria (see Questionnaire). 

There is no ‘first in, best dressed’ scenario, as I aim to match the right puppy with the right home.  In saying that, I will do my best to honour the timing of enquires however I cannot make any promises.  

 

Please read the ‘Puppy Buyer Etiquette’ article to help you understand the process of purchasing a puppy.  

 

Once puppies are born we will sort through and reserve a couple of likely pups for our show team and all others will be offered/matched with pet puppy inquiries.  Any pups we have reserved for ourselves that do not make the requirements of the breed standard as they grow will be offered for pet adoption at a later date.

I encourage prospective puppy buyers to make themselves visible by befriending me on facebook and following our progress (see link at bottom of page).  This is a way for us to build a relationship. I also love visitors at Dog Shows which are held around Melbourne and Country Victoria.  You can meet my dogs and I can get to know you much better than in any email.

 

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I live interstate or overseas, do you travel your puppies?

If you are interested in a Skyefall Italian Greyhound but live outside of Victoria we can refer you to a transport company at affordable prices.  There are a number of different pet transport companies we use to transport puppies both interstate and occasionally overseas.
My puppies usually travel to their new homes at 10-12 weeks of age depending on how far they need to go and are un-phased by the journey.
 

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Do you have Blue Italian Greyhounds?

We are continuously asked if blue coloured puppies are available. Firstly, please understand that we put colour way down the list of traits when considering a mating as we aim to breed healthy, strong, sound, well conformed puppies; and secondly you need to realise that blue and blue pigmented fawns are occasionally affected by "CDA" (Colour dilute alopecia).  This means that as your dog gets older it may start to lose hair down the back, on head and tail and gradually over the body caused by the mutation of the black gene that produces the blue colour which is a dilute and not a natural colour for a dog.

As a breeder there is no gene marker or proof of hereditable cause and we know that some pups are affected and some are not from the same litters so we have no idea when selling a blue/blue fawn puppy if it will or will not ever be affected. I liken it to male baldness in humans- some brothers lose their hair as adults and some don't. It is a bit of a lottery so when buying a blue pigmented puppy of any breed as you risk it being a possibility and as a breeder I prefer not to deliberately breed for colour.

 

I do however occasionally get one pop up in a litter and if looking to buy one please realise that it is at your own risk. Aside of late onset hair loss the pups are completely healthy and will still be a wonderful companion although they will need sun and wind protection as they are prone to sunburn without their coats protection.  There are a few illnesses that we are as yet unable to test for that can affect an Italian in later life. CDA - Colour Dilute Alopecia and Epilepsy are a couple of concerns but as new tests become available we will be checking our dogs and until then we will not keep any dog that may be remotely affected in our breeding program.

 

 

When can I come and see the puppies?

In the past I have always met prospective puppy buyers in my home, however I have grown wary of allowing strangers into my home for two reasons.  The first being that our babies are our priority, and it is our job to keep them safe from viruses like Parvovirus and Coronavirus that thrive in the metropolitan areas. It is very easy to walk a virus onto our property on tyres, shoes and clothes and for this reason we are reluctant to put unvaccinated babies at risk.  The second reason is for our own safety and the safety of our animals.  We have known of puppies that have been stolen after home visits to scope out security etc, and it is also for our own personal safety as we put ourselves at risk every time we invite a stranger into the house.  We apologise if this upsets you, however you are always welcome to call and follow your puppies’ progress via email. We often meet up with prospective buyers at dog shows where you can meet one of the parents or relatives of your puppy and have a cuddle. Our priority is to keep puppies safe and ourselves of course.  I hope you can understand this.  

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