I'm New! Got any advice!

Zensandwich · March 2011

Hello! My name is Kristen! So I just started playing the game today, and I was wondering if any of you older more experienced players would help me out a little. I used up all of my turns, bred my first litter, and I've been slowly trying to increase the stats of my new virtual dog. I'm sure within that sentence you can already scold me for the many novice mistakes I'm likely making. I haven't entered into any events yet, because I'm a little confused about how they work. The "Training" session on the game guide wasn't working for me either, so I'm a little confused about what effect stats have on your dog, what training improves which stats, which events judge based on which stats. Also, Breeding... Is it always a good idea? I have two puppies for sale now, and I have no idea if I should be training them while I wait for someone to buy them. Should I stop advancing now, to let players buy them young? I'm keeping my initial dog, and one of the puppies. I didn't quite realize that it would be so lifelike, and I would get a whole litter! Another question about breeding. If you breed two different breeds of dogs, is the offspring a mutt? How does that work? Thanks everyone! All help, contact, friendly-well-wishings are appreciated.

LaLa_Laru · March 2011

If you breed two different breeds of dogs then YES, the offspring will be mutts and they will be born NUETERED. Mutts, unless they are imports and intact, are generally unwanted unless there is something special about them, breeding them is looked down upon by a lot of people though because of the over population that VP already has. There is so much to training, and breeding, and eventing that I couldn't possibly explain it ALL in this post, but you can always read and review the FAQS and some of the other help posts. OR..you can always PM me : ) I'd be happy to help, I've been playing for quite a while. Oh..and as for training the puppy while you are waiting for it to be bought, not a good idea. Quite frankly, novice training isn't really sought after. You could get a sponsor to train it for you, or you could leave it untouched (meaning you do absolutely NOTHING to it). A lot of buyers prefer untouched and UNNAMED.

Mileysmybaby · March 2011

Yes, 2 purebreds of a different breed will be mutts unless they are like wolf hybrids or something. You can sell puppies young, its your choice if you want to train them or not. Skill and Stat maxing your dog makes its offspring better and the pups you sell with higher stats will earn you more money from the sale. And it also makes the dogs better at showing events. Sounds like you have started out pretty well!

And Welcome to VP!

Zensandwich · March 2011

Thanks! I'm glad I picked another Border Collie to breed with then. It's a shame Mutts are born Neutered, but I guess I can see why. My two puppies are both a month old already, whoops. I'll try to curtail taking any turns until they are sold. They are the cheapest on the market right now for their breed... so hopefully someone will snag one soon. Otherwise I'll "release them", so I can keep playing. A few more questions: What largely determines stud fee? The status of everything? Are some traits more valued than others? Is it better to max out one stat for a stud, or make him more well-rounded? What is the culture like when dealing with breeding? Is it pretty open, or is it very selective and hierarchical with more advanced players carrying more prestige and weight in dealings? Will my first stud ever be bred even with a low fee? Is it better to win competitions or max out stats?

ImportsandLines · March 2011

Hey! Glad to see you joined VP! Like everyone said mutts are most of the time not generally desired unless they exceptional show quality and what not. Also checking out the Help Section and Tips and Tricks will definitely teach you a few more things than just one post in general. Getting your dogs trained by a "Sponsor" will increase your dogs value, and than you could show it or whatever. Stud fee's are generally determined by the dogs stats, training, if it's a gifty(rarity), showing level, earnings, and other things like that. Many players breed lines to achieve 10x4's of a certain breed, than they can sell them in auctions for more cash because they are simply the only ones with that 10x4. Generally the Virtual Pups public goes for stud's with high stats and good showing history, though many people tend to look in the higher price range simply because that is were the good dogs go. Though younger players like yourself and other novices(people who have a basic understanding of the game) like yourself or players with low cash will generally go towards the cheaper dogs because you only start out with $50k and paying $25k and up is unreasonable for just a simple stud fee. Becoming a "Sponsor" player will allow you to have better bonuses for your dogs, whether it be in training or prestige. Advanced and well known players get some respect with what they do, because they are good at it and they know what they are doing. People usually seek out dogs born at their kennel because they have bonuses if they are sponsors or they are just well bred dogs. Winning competitions are stat maxxing are on two totally different levels. Yes you do want a stat maxed dog, yet you have to see what stats you need for that area of competitions. There is a post out their about how you should train your dog for certain competions like Flyball, Dock Jumping, etc. I would also love to get you some more money and a few great dogs that you could do wonders with. Well I hope this helps you out a bit, and if you need some more assistance please drop me a message!

Minx · March 2011

If you want a very detailed description about how to play i can give that. It would take to long on here ad i dot think i would be able to cover everything LOL! But ive done EVERYTHING on vp. So id be glad to answer any questions.

Mileysmybaby · March 2011

Vampy is a VERY good helper (: Im sure she can guide you through the game

Vampy! I rescue and train dogs and I have some that are finished in training if you want a few show dogs/breeding dogs

Zensandwich · March 2011

Wow, thanks everyone. I'll take all the help I can get at this point, just tell me what you need me to do!

Finster2 · March 2011

Welcome to VP! Here you'll meet plenty of strange..people. (I'm looking at you guys, wee wee and vanilla ice!) Anyways...there's a lot to learn. Eventing - Alright. Each event comes with an entry fee, and when you enter your dog, it gets to compete with the other dogs as soon as the person who's running it presses the run button. Your dog will place 1-however many dogs there were in the competition. No matter what, every event runs the same exact way, except team sports. Team sports are when you can join a team of dogs or create your own. Teams Sports include: Flyball, Mushing, etc. Each event depends on a certain few stats and training. Like for example, racing dogs need Endurance and Speed, Adaptability, Loyalty and Courage. Adaptability and Courage are both stats you can increase the boarding your dog. Boarding your dog costs some money, but no matter how many times the sponsor boarder takes turns, your dog won't age! The dog will gain Adaptability and Courage over time. Boarding your dog for a long period of time (months - years even in RL) is called "rotting" the dog. I believe a player introduced this term a while back. Anyways, dogs with high Adapt./Courage and the stats that the event needs, and are trained in the event (like if you had a herding dog, you'd train it in working) and its stats are all maxxed to 200 (can be done by a sponsor trainer) your dog is WAY more likely to win or place well in events. But then there's the Trophypup craze, which I won't get into for now. Breeding - Breeding dogs that are not skill maxxed (when you teach the dog stuff it needs to know for events) and stat maxxed (when you increase all stats to 200) is frowned upon by the members who have been with the game for longer. It's recommended you train your dog, event to see if its worthy, and make sure it has good stats and then breed it in a breeding kennel. Don't go the puppy mill route though, when you just breed random dogs that you get. I did that when I was new, yeah, not very many people liked me.:( Anyway, you should keep the highest stat puppy in your litter. You can find out stats by stars: The maximum number for each set of stars for a stat to come in is 4. So if your dog had 4 stars in only 2 stats, it would be a low statted 2x4. If there were 8 groups of 4 stats, it would be an 8x4, which is high statted, but your goal is to get the perfect dog, which is a 10x4. If every puppy in the litter has the same number of stars, then you can use the number way. What are you going to show your puppy in when it gets older? Look at the stats that the event depends on of each puppy. Do not look at Adapt.&Courage though, as it's better to board your dog while your away than work at breeding for the stats. If its racing, check each dog's parentheses speed. Not the Speed outside the ( ) because before you event the dog, you're going to need to get it trained and stat maxxed. The ( ) speed is the genetic quality, whereas the other stuff is only the birth speed, and will be increased to 200. Anyways, keep the highest statted puppy for yourself, and sell the rest. So with each generation you improve more and more, and soon enough all of your dogs will be of great quality and you can responsibly breed litters to sell. Puppies sell faster and for more if they have good stats and have trained and evented parents. Anything else? I'm happy to help If you need anymore, feel free to message me here or on the game. My ever-so-embarrassing playername is Finster22

Zensandwich · March 2011

Thanks Finny! One thing I really am having trouble understanding is the difference between parenthesis and non-parenthesis stats. Which do events judge on? Which ones are passed on to offspring. Another thing, how am I supposed to breed the perfect 10x4 dog, without first breeding some 5x4 dogs along the way? I feel like I'm too be looked down on for breeding poor quality dogs, but how else will I get good dogs to breed? When breeding, should I look for Studs that are strong in the areas I am week in? If the mother has say, high strength but low speed should I find a stud with high speed to counteract it?

Finster2 · March 2011

Parentheses stats is the genetic quality. The other stuff is the increasable stats. Events judge on both

the parentheses stats are passed onto the offspring, but the other kind helps improve the next generation. Of course, you'll always breed lower statted dogs before the high statted ones come along.

No, you're doing great! I can give you a few neutered, but trained Greyhounds to show if you'd like.

No one will look down on you if you're showing and breeding to get better dogs. All great lines start with not so great animals.

And yes, that's a great method with the stud thing.

ImportsandLines · March 2011

Hey Zen pop me a PM, I have some good eventing dogs for you and some really high statted ones.

Zensandwich · March 2011

Thank you both! I PMed both of you, but I'm afraid I didn't totally understand your directions. I'm still learning all the local lingo around here.

iluvdogs111 · March 2011

I'm kinda late posting this, but welcome! You can pm me anytime. I'm happy to help with whatever you need.

Finster2 · March 2011

What didnt you understand?

Howdy, Stranger!

I'm New! Got any advice!

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