Ailis is a Westie breeder in the greater Seattle, Puget Sound region of Western Washington State (Renton, which is immediately south of Seattle). We raise Westies, focusing on health, temperament and type [i.e. conformance to the breed standard] in our breeding program. All our puppies are from championship lines. You can see our pedigrees by searching our pedigree database.
Our Mission
As a responsible breeder, we strive to place each of our Westie puppies with loving families as pets, companions and family members. To assure that none of the puppies we bred ever end up in a shelter, our puppy agreement requires that should the family ever cease to be able to keep their Westie, they must return it to us. One aspect of selecting the perfect family for each of our puppies is making sure they are familiar with the West Highland White Terriers. We highly recommend that folks use the resources on the AKC website to find the best breed for them.Every one of our West Highland White Terriers and their puppies are house dogs and members of the family. This is extremely important for socializing puppies. We produce only one or two litters a year and the puppies are our kids.
Responsible Breeding
Prior to each breeding, we carefully select each of our West Highland White Terriers to be certain they compliment each other to ensure proper soundness, temperament, and type.We breed to the standard, and always keep all those points in mind when planning a litter. All of the males we use to sire litters are either champions or working their way toward that goal.
To assure that we remain informed about the Westie breed, we belong to the local West Highland White Terrier Club and are involved with showing our Westies. These interactions are the best way to gather the information we need about the Westies and Westie breeders in our area to select only the healthiest lines when preparing to breed one of our dogs or acquire another Westie puppy.
The Westie Personality
Westie's possess a great deal of self-esteem and believe they should be the pack leader. If you hesitate to take charge, they will not.Assertive but cheerful, with the typical stubbornness and cleverness of a true terrier, the Westie Highland White Terrier must be shown that you are in charge, or he may become demanding and testy when he doesn't get his own way. He does respond extremely well to positive, consistent, discipline and praise. Then they are wonderful, loving companions with an abundance of personality and character.
The Westie is everything a terrier was designed to be. Sturdy, spunky, and bold. He needs his daily walks and interactive play sessions. Yet he is easier to handle and friendlier than most other terriers. He can adapt to any home in which he can be a full participant and busybody.
Quick to announce anything amiss, including visitors, the West Highland White Terrier usually proceeds to welcome them inside with a gaily wagging tail. West Highland White Terriers can be bossy with other dogs of the same sex, but otherwise coexist with other dogs and cats more readily than most terriers.
Some Westies develop skin problems. Click here for ways to avoid them.
Socialization
The socialization a puppy receives during its first 12 weeks has more of an impact on its temperament than genetics. For this reason, all litters of Westie puppies we produce are kept inside our living area where each of the puppies receives the care and all the affection they need to be happy and well-adjusted when we send them home with their new family. During the first 10 to 12 days, we hold and cuddle each puppy for a few minutes every day. We continue to cuddle and start to play with them during the period in which their eyes and ears open. From 3 weeks to around 12 weeks is the most important period for bonding with people and socialization. Once they are 3 weeks or so, we play with them daily and allow them to run around and explore the house.We encourage every family to visit regularly with our Westie puppies until the day comes for them to take theirs home. We often invite the neighborhood children over to help us [under close supervision of course] socialize the puppies by exposing them to new and different people on a regular basis.
These almost 4-week-old Westie puppies are from our last litter.
Adopting an Ailis Puppy
Because finding the very best homes for our Westie puppies is our top priority, we will never trust anyone else to screen families who wish to adopt them. We must develop a relationship of mutual trust and respect before we send a puppy home with anyone. For this reason, we will never use any of the online services or pet shops that sell puppies for other Westie breeders. Most responsible, reputable West Highland White Terrier breeders agree with this practice and you will not find their puppies advertised on such sites either.Please use our inquiry form to check for availability of puppies. Use our questionnaire when you are interested in reserving one.
Except in rare cases where we co-own, we restrict the new families from showing and/or breeding their puppies. The reason for this is, as with all good Westie breeders, we believe it is our responsibility to assure that the qualities for which the West Highland White Terrier breed is known are maintained in all future litters. Please click here to see information pertaining to choosing a puppy. You can check by email to see when we have puppies for sale.
All of our West Highland White Terrier puppies are AKC Registered and come pre-spoiled.
Involving Your Westie Puppy in Competition Events
Westies love to compete in many other forums besides conformance shows. They can be trained for tracking, earth dogs, companion dogs, obedience - and of course, they love agility! Any of these activities is a great way to involve your children in positive activities and teach them the personal rewards of caring for another being.In the video below, Aidan competes in the AKC Sanctioned all-breed show in Puyallup, Washington on January 12, 2013. Aidan is presented beautifully by Sandy of Lanarkstone.