Temperament is a most important qualification. Equally important is health. Puppies who are thin, ungroomed or potbellied have not received good care. Make sure that the dates of wormings and shots as well as the pedigree and litter registrations are all in order. Buying show or breeding stock under eight months of age can be a gamble.
Skyes are very slow in developing, reaching maturity at about three years of age.
Correct ear carriage and mouths can be especially difficult to determine before five or six months. Both types of ear carriage may appear in the same litter. Prick ears, if up by six months of age, usually remain so. Between three and five months there might be abundance of soft puppy coat, but there should be the beginnings of a straight overcoat growing out which on maturity will cover the undercoat. A coat that is predominately fluffy or curly is a major fault.