The puppy's general health is guaranteed for 1 week after the date that it is shipped. We guarantee that the puppy will arrive to you free from communicable disease however, there are many things a puppy can contract prior to the completion of its vaccination series. We recommend keeping your puppy at home and limiting you and your family's outings to places like parks and places where dogs frequent until your puppy has received it's entire puppy vaccination series. This is an effort to minimize your puppy's exposure to disease. There are no other implied warranties past 1 week other than those mentioned below.

The puppy will have a thorough examination by our veterinarian before being shipped. It will come with a State of California Health Certificate signed by our vet. When the pup is shipped it comes with the health certificate and kennel vaccination/worming records.

ADDITIONAL WARRANTIES:

The pups ears are warranteed to stand. If they are not standing by 4 1/2 months, the owner must contact SentinelHarts Kennels. The pup must be examined by his vet at 5 months of age. The ears must be taped for a period of 4 weeks starting at 4 1/2 months. If they are not standing after 4 weeks of taping the owner must again contact SentinelHarts Kennels and the dog must again be seen by the vet at 6 months of age.

A pup will not be replaced for soft ears unless these procedures are followed and have been documented in our office. We do not have ear problems in our dogs. If a new owner takes the necessary precautions to tape weak ears 99.9% of the time they will stand. It is entirely possible to have a dog whose ears would have stood had they been taped, but they did not stand because the owner has not done his or her share in making sure the ears were properly taken care of.

Customers should know that ears may come up and then go back down when the dog begins to get his adult teeth (at 4 to 5 months). If this happens the ears will ALWAYS come back up after teething.

The male pups are warranteed to have both testicles drop. This part of our warranty expires at 12 months of age. Puppies will not be replaced until 12 months of age. Testicles can drop as late as 18 months. If this occurs, the customer has 2 choices:

1 They may have the puppy replaced WHICH MEANS THEY RETURN THE FIRST PUPPY

2 They can retain the puppy which MUST BE STERILIZED, (There will be no exceptions to this) and then the customer may purchase a second puppy at a 50% discount. 

Our hip / elbow guarantee is as follows.

The pups hips / elbows are warrantied to pass OFA at 2 years of age. This warranty expires when the pup is 28 months old. This means the owner has a 4 month window to have the pup x-rayed and certified by the OFA. If the OFA recommends an additional x-ray in 6 months to issue a certification the owner will re x-ray the dog at 30 months of age. The majority of dogs who are re x-rayed come back with a certification.

We strongly recommend preliminary x-rays at 12 months. If the owner's vet suspects a problem with the hips, the owner or his vet should send the x-rays to the OFA and ask for a preliminary opinion. A copy of the x-ray must be sent to SentinelHarts before the dog is replaced. If we determine that the positioning is bad on the x-ray, We will not accept that x-ray as grounds for a replacement dog.  Some Veterinarians do not know how to properly position a dog for an x-ray and being out of position even a little can cause a false negative reading.

The hip / elbow warranty is non transferable.

It is important to understand that there is a possibility that a puppy from our kennel can develop hip dysplasia, even though every dog we breed has had it's hips x-rayed and has good hips.  But this does not change the fact that German Shepherds all have the ability to produce an occasional bad hips in their off spring. The only way to get a 100% guarantee that a dog does not have bad hips is to purchase an adult dog and have the hips x-rayed before the purchase.

Hip dysplasia has four major causes:

1. •genetics
   

2. •diet
   

3. •over feeding
   

4. •too much exercise at a young age
   

It is felt that genetics play between a 25% and 30% role in a dog having hip dysplasia. This means that new owners can assume a great deal of responsibility (70% to 75%) in their dog developing good hips.

This begins with feeding an appropriate diet. It also means that you should keep your dog lean. Carrying too much weight at a young age is going to add stress on soft puppy bones and ultimately negatively effects skeletal development of a young dog.

New owners need to be very careful of over exercising a pup. This means no jogging until after the dog is 12 months old. This mean not exercising to the point of exhaustion, or taking the pup for long long walks. Around the block is fine, a 2 mile walk is not fine.

In addition We will only replace a pup once. If someone gets two pups from my kennel and both have bad hips, then that person is doing something wrong in the way they raise their dogs and we will not cover any additional replacements.

If a preliminary x-ray or an OFA x-ray is done and the local vet feels that the hips are not going to pass OFA , then the vet must send the x-rays to my kennel with the paperwork. We will send the x-rays onto the OFA after reviewing them. If the local vet does not want to do this, then the owner must ask for a copy of the x-rays so they can be sent to SentinelHarts. No dog will be replaced without us viewing a set of the x-rays. There is NO EXCEPTION to this policy. We must be certain we are not replacing dogs with good hips based on a local vets or a customers opinion.

If the dog does have bad hips We need to see the x-ray to determine what level of problem exists. This information is used to determine what actually happens to the dog. (i.e. are the hips so bad that the animal will be in pain and it should be put to sleep, or are the hips not good enough to breed but it can live a normal life as a family dog).

We do not warrant the temperament of our puppies. Temperament is determined by genetics and environment. It is very possible for nice puppies develop temperament problems as a result of the way they were raised. We have no control over environment or exposure once they have left our premises.

If the dog is to be replaced, it must be returned to SentinelHarts (at the owners expense). There are no exceptions to this rule. The replacement puppy will be selected by us and in our determination will be of equal or better quality. The shipping costs of the replacement dog will be the responsibility of the owner. 

If the point where replacement has been reached and the customer wishes to keep the original puppy, then the customer has the option to purchase a new puppy at a %50 discount and they agree to have the first puppy sterilized. (this is only applicable if the first puppy is not determined to be so bad that it will be in pain)

If the dog is bred before 2 years of age -THIS WARRANTY IS VOID. Although we do not recommend it, This does not mean you cannot breed before 2 years. It just means you need to x-ray and be sure of the hips before you breed. We will not replace a dog for bad hips if it has been bred prior to 2 years old.

Our warranty is a replacement puppy warranty and NOT a money back warranty. We do NOT refund money on replacement dogs. There are no exceptions to this.

All puppies will be registered bearing the name "SentinelHarts" in their name and all puppies will be microchipped.

There are no other implied or intended warranties or guarantees.

When you buy a SentinelHarts Puppy: If you intend to breed the dog, You agree that the dog will be 2 years of age before it will be bred and it will be certified with OFFA, Penn Hip  or the European equivalent as having fair or better hips and normal elbows (although we prefer good or better), it must be tested for DM and be clear (unless it is clear by parentage (which most of ours are) and CERF tested, and we strongly encourage cardiac and thyroid certification prior to breeding as well as requiring these tests of the respective stud or bitch to be used.  Also, the dog can only be bred to registered GSD's.

We also have a first right of refusal clause. Buyers who purchase pets from us agree that the dog can not be re-sold. If they can not keep their pet, it is to be returned to us - no questions asked. If the puppy is purchased with the intent to be used for work or for competitive sport and the dog is  certified or titled, the dog may be sold however, SentinelHarts is to be offered the first opportunity to purchase the dog. In the event that SentineHarts declines to purchase the dog, then we are to be advised of the new owner who WITHOUT EXCEPTION must also agree to give us first right of refusal if they are to sell the dog.  This is the same for dogs to be used as breeders. (the whole idea here is that no dog ever ends up in a shelter or a bad home) we know where every dog we ever bred is for its entire life.