We appreciate families who are willing to make the trip to north Texas and we love meeting folks here! But honestly, for longer drives especially, we really do prefer to bring the puppy to you, and here’s why.
First, think about it from the puppy’s perspective. This is their very first trip away from the farm. They’ve never been in a car before. They’re leaving their momma, their siblings, and everything familiar to them. That’s a lot! Now imagine that trip being 2, 4, or even 6+ hours in an unfamiliar vehicle, without us, and without any of the equipment and experience we’ve developed over years of transporting young puppies.
We often travel with more than one puppy at a time.
This is a bigger deal than it seems. Puppies who travel together are calmer and more comfortable. They have a friend with them! We also use crates specifically designed for puppy transport, with a false bottom so that if a puppy gets sick or has an accident (which is not uncommon on a first trip!), it doesn’t become a bigger problem for everyone. We make multiple stops to offer water, check on the pups, change puppy pads, and make sure everyone is doing well.
We also know the signs.
After years of transporting puppies, we know what to watch for, how to keep everyone comfortable, and what to do if something unexpected comes up along the way.
And one more thing...Parvo.
We take this very seriously. The more stops your puppy’s paws touch unknown ground on a long road trip home, the greater the risk of exposure. When we deliver, we keep tight control of the environment from farm to your front door.
We strongly recommend that your puppy’s feet don’t touch the ground in public places at all until she’s fully vaccinated. A long family road trip home makes that nearly impossible! Click here to read more about Parvo and why we take it so seriously.
And lastly...
After delivering hundreds of puppies over many years, we’ve learned something else, too. It’s almost always better for the family to be home, rested, and ready when the puppy arrives. When you drive a long distance to pick up your puppy, you’re often tired by the time you get back (round trip just to Austin, for example, is 8-9 hours!)…and then the real adventure begins when you get the little stinker home!
A new puppy, especially for first-time puppy families, brings plenty of excitement on its own, and occasionally an unexpected accident or two on the way home that can make a long trip even more exhausting. Our goal is simple: we want your puppy to arrive at a home where everyone is fresh, calm, prepared, and excited in the best possible way. That’s how you get things off on the right foot.
For all of these reasons, delivery isn’t just a convenience — it genuinely tends to get things off on the right foot for the puppy AND the new family. Most families who choose delivery tell us the puppy arrived calmer and more settled than they expected!
*Note: We travel with all puppies in the cab of the pickup, in the backseat, in a safe travel crate with a false bottom (to help keep them clean in the event of accidents or motion sickness.) We stop often and offer water when needed. The images above were taken after we arrived at the pre-determined meeting location, while waiting on their families to arrive.
