Did You Buy Your Puppy From A Less Than Reputable "breeder"?

[lanabanana]

Just thought I would add...would I do it again? I am going to horrify some people with my answer....yes. I wouldn't go out looking for a BYB or petshop pup but if that's where I was led then so be it (though as we specifically want purebreeds next time - which we usually don't care - we will be finding an ethical and responsible registered breeder)

I believe that there are certain dogs you are meant to have for whatever reason and when the time is right you are led to that dog.

Hence why I have ended up with what looks to be a lab (mixed but very labby) when I didn't like labs, and a small breed when I didn't like small dogs LMAO

[Henrietta]

BYB here. It's not something I would do again. For a couple of reasons.

Ethically, I will not do that again. I will only support ethical breeders who are striving to do the right thing by their dogs and their breed or an ethical rescue.

The other key points for me are health and temperament. Touch wood, I have been lucky with my girl's health so far (and honestly I keep thanking my lucky stars here, it's not something I take for granted). But temperament? Well, I got myself a timid pup and I didn't help matters by not recognising this and making some key errors.

I love this dog so much and like many fear aggressive dogs, she is an absolutely wonderful with her family and to be honest, a joy to live with. But there is a lot of work involved and a lot of management, a lot of training. It isn't so bad for me, as I am lucky that I have a dog I can manage and handle and I have received some excellent help. But I don't want to paint it as all roses. There are frustrations and tears, although as time goes on, they seem less and less and the small, yet satisfying triumphs seem to be taking over.

Truth be told, I don't want to repeat the experience if possible and I think that given the knowledge and experience I have gained and through the help of others, I will have set myself up pretty well for next time!

My chances of getting a dog with a lovely temperament are increased if I do my research and find myself an ethical breeder. And my time with my girl, researching, training etc, has made me more aware of what I would ideally want in a dog, what breed characteristics I value and what I can personally provide for a dog.

[waffle]

I got my boy from a BYB and wouldn't do it again. I read up about dogs as much as i could and i used to read a lot from the burkes backyard site, not sure why. i think i liked the pet road tests that they did. Anyway they said that x breeds were healthier and I could kind of see what they were getting at so i was just looking at ads and came across a cav x breeder. she said she bred crosses because purebred cavs have a lot of health issues and the crosses were less likely to develop diseases like MVD. She has actually been really supportive because my boy has allergies and recently lost an eye due to glaucoma and she refunded the purchase price.

Anyway i had no idea that i hadn't gotten him from a reputable breeder until i came across dol. I remember my vet asking where i got him from and i proudly said i got him from a breeder .

[PoppyDog]

I got my boy from a BYB and wouldn't do it again. I read up about dogs as much as i could and i used to read a lot from the burkes backyard site, not sure why. i think i liked the pet road tests that they did. Anyway they said that x breeds were healthier and I could kind of see what they were getting at so i was just looking at ads and came across a cav x breeder. she said she bred crosses because purebred cavs have a lot of health issues and the crosses were less likely to develop diseases like MVD. She has actually been really supportive because my boy has allergies and recently lost an eye due to glaucoma and she refunded the purchase price.

Anyway i had no idea that i hadn't gotten him from a reputable breeder until i came across dol. I remember my vet asking where i got him from and i proudly said i got him from a breeder .

Hmm, I wonder if we found the same "breeder"? Ours also claimed that the X breeds were better and she has also been very supportive and friendly. She genuinely LOVES the litter that we got our Poppy from and even kept one for herself. She also gets so excited when we sent update emails every few months.

What X is Oliver? Poppy is a Cavalier X Cavoodle.

[Guest Kate_Summer]

Some breeders seem reputable enough...although many seem to reply to question about the breed they have once pups are available, which I think is a shame, when you want to know more about a particular breed you would think that breeders would be happy to help, before saying 'here I have some pups available for purchase(few months after the first question were sent with my contact details..another was quick to answer my email but not the questions, to the questions all she said was ' obviously you do not know the breed therefore they wouldn't suit you'...well duh.

But I know there are some good ones out there, hidden somewhere.

[corvus]

Delibrate cross breeding = NOT a good breeder.

Well, purebreds haven't always been pure. They all started as deliberate cross breeds.

I got my first dog from a BYB. She lived to 13 1/2 and was relatively healthy except for a degenerate disc in her back late in life and a proneness to bowel blockages. My two current boys came from registered breeders.

My mother has a pet shop puppy who is now 6 years old. She is perfectly healthy and had no problems toilet training and no behavioural problems related to her time in a pet store. My mother also has a dog from a registered breeder that has been in poor health all his life. Her last dog came from a registered breeder she took more care in selecting and is lovely in temperament and healthy.

[WoofnHoof]

My current dogs are both pet shop pups, my chi was diagnosed with a heart murmur last year age 6, my sibe had a liver shunt which required very expensive corrective surgery so I'm not rushing to the pet shop for my next purchase, having said that the chi has been relatively healthy aside from the heart murmur and the liver shunt is quite rare in sibe and neither condition is routinely tested in these breeds as far as I know.

I'm hoping to get a white gsd in the distant future and if a rescue doesn't call to me it will be a pup from hip and elbow scored parents.

[DogNerd]

My chances of getting a dog with a lovely temperament are increased if I do my research and find myself an ethical breeder. And my time with my girl, researching, training etc, has made me more aware of what I would ideally want in a dog, what breed characteristics I value and what I can personally provide for a dog.

I really like what you've said at the end of your post Emm, your situation sounds similiar to mine. I feel the same.

I got my poodle from a BYB. Apart from numerous allergy problems, she also has behavioural issues. Not saying that that's definitely why she is how she is, it's a combination of things, but from now on (I'm planning on getting another dog next year) I will always buy from a registered ethical breeder. My parents have a pet shop puppy, he's a good little boy, great temperament, but has a bad knee that's probably going to require surgery when he gets older.

[Sayly]

Poppy is a pet shop puppy I bought when I was 17. I love her to death but there's no way I would ever do it again.

She has skin/ear issues, had temperament issues and was incredibly difficult to toilet train. She's my best friend but was certainly the wrong decision. But she set the wheels in motion to getting Ruby and if it wasn't for showing Ruby I wouldn't have Holly and Bree, I'm very glad I did get her but she was and still is a lot of work compared to other dogs we have had.

[*Bones*]

waffle

she said she bred crosses because purebred cavs have a lot of health issues and the crosses were less likely to develop diseases like MVD

Unfortunately, DOGS have a lot of health issues if bred by people who know little, and who breed with parents from bad or untested lines. On average, there are more registered and purebred breeders carefully breeding with tested and healthy parents than breeders of cross breds. People who breed x breds delude themselves that purebreds have problems, and they do, but the ones who have problems are usually the poorly bred ones and the ones which are available to cross bred breeders to use for breeding.

[haylz27]

Well let's see. We had a red heeler x BC named Pepsi when I was little. She was brought from a pet shop for $40. She lived until a ripe old age. She was no doubt, the best dog I have ever owned.

My parents, right up until this day didn't know about "reputable breeders". They still don't really know exactly what they are.

Another childhood dog, BC x Kelpie was obviously not from a reputable breeder but she lived until 18 years old.

Our next dog, we got when I was 10(ish), and she was supposed to be a purebred pomeranian, brought from a petshop. We didn't know any better, hell, I thought it was normal to buy from pet shops or anyone who had a dog with pups. She died at... 9 months. We think she got bitten by a spider or poisoned by something.

Now onto our current dogs. Coco, JRT x fox terrier. She was from a lady who lived on a farm which had a litter of pups. Obviously a byb. She's 7 years old now, completely healthy and I wouldn't trade her for anything.

Indi, beagle x cocker spaniel, was from a lady that my brother's girlfriend knew. I remember I was sooo excited to get a new puppy after so many years of just having one dog. She the cutest thing that I'd ever seen. So tiny and cuddly with her big floppy ears. I barely knew anything about reputable breeders, but I did know of the term "backyard breeder". It didn't bother me at the time. She's perfectly healthy, but she does have flaky skin... and scratches a lot. I wouldn't trade her for the world either. :p

BUT, now that I've learnt more, and done the research I definitely plan to get my next dog (Aussie!) from a reputable breeder. I can't wait.

My friends look at me stupid when I try to explain to them the differences between reputable and unreputable breeders. I don't really bother trying to convince them not to buy from bad breeders, they don't listen anyway.

Edit: Wow, I seriously have too much time on my hands... at 4:30 am!

Edited September 1, 2010 by haylz27

[Parkeyre]

Edit: Wow, I seriously have too much time on my hands... at 4:30 am!

:p Get off facebook and go to bed hayley!

[nightgrace6]

My first doberman was from a "breeder" that seemed legit but now I look back and she definately wasnt... although Lita is 10 years old and stick kicking and the most beautiful tempered and natured dobe ever, I suspect she was actually the runt and she was sold to us at 5 weeks. The only problem we had with her was that she got so close to us she literally cried when we werent home even with the other dog and then later our next "pedigree" dobie.

I was 11 at the time and it definately was not a puppy farm or pet shop seller but she was a BYB. The parents were healthy and happy and they lived on a huge "clean" farm so I feel like that semi-justifies it.

My next dobe I am waiting till January for and have chosen one of the most reputable lovely breeders in the business. I dont condone breeding for a quick buck at all, I think it is horrible but I guess I dont know for sure that the breeder who bred my first dobe was like that, she could have just had the one litter, and although I was given the "runt" she is a lovely dog so I am in fact quite lucky.

[MalteseLuna]

I bought a puppy, Belle, advertised in the trading post before I knew better - she was a Maltese cross Pomeranian. The "breeder" also had shih tzu and poodle puppies for sale. He lived in a small 1-2 bedroom flat in Sydney - ground floor. I can't believe he was actually allowed to have as many dogs as he had. I was 18 and stupid. The second I saw her it was too late to say no so I bought her - most of her litter mates had already gone to their homes. She was 7 weeks old (only just).

Belle died less than a week later from Parvo. Her vet bill was over $1000 and she was struggling in ICU for 4 days before she finally passed. She didn't make it to 8 weeks old.

It was the most horrible experience of my life.

I will do my best to never support unethical breeders again and steer as many people as I can away from them.

My next puppy was from a registered Maltese breeder, Luna is in excellent health and has a wonderful temperament. I'm not sure if the breeder was the best BUT she was 100% better than Belle's breeder.

I am now very interested in purebred dogs and plan to get into showing with my next dog (which will be another Maltese).

[teekay]

When my fiance and I started seriously looking for our puppy we were warned off BYB's and pet shops. We were told all about why it was NOT such a good idea to buy a puppy this way. We took due note and started looking for a "breeder". We just didn't realise that there were breeder and then there were breeders.

To this day I don't REALLY know where our puppy came from BUT I suspect a puppy farm.

A LOVELY lady in Brisbane sold her to us. The puppies were hand raised by her at her home from 4 weeks of age! And sold at 8 weeks.

She sells the "Designer Breeds" and that was another thing we didn't realise. Delibrate cross breeding = NOT a good breeder.

I don't know if this women is oblivious or knows what she is doing but she kept on of the litter that Poppy was in and still sends me photos and updates of Poppy's sister. She also LOVES when I send photos of Poppy and tells me how grateful and happy she is that we gave Poppy such a loving home and that we keep in contact with her.

Of course I know better now and I would never buy a second puppy off her. AFTER we got Poppy I had members of another forum tell me that she would most probably have health issues and that she probably was full of worms, fleas and had anal gland problems. The response I got on this forum from those members about our new puppy ruined the puppy experience for me. I was petrified we would go to bed and wake up in the morning and Poppy would be dead! I was so scared that something would happen to her. Looking back I was a bunch of nerves.

We are lucky that she IS healthy and happy and has no problems as yet.

So, who else brought their puppy from a not so reliable or reputable place and then learn't all about it after? I can't be the ONLY one???

Sorry, couldn't really let this go without saying something. On the 'other' forum, not only were you warned off BYB and pet shops, you were also advised to seek out a responsible breeder, to expect to meet the puppy's parents and to steer clear of designer cross breeds. People did, understandably, get a little upset when you then announced you had got a Cavalier X Cavoodle from a lady and didn't get to see any parents and really didn't appear to really know where the pup had come from.

With regard to members saying she was full of worms and had anal gland problems, these were replies based on your posts about Poppy scooting her bottom alot. They were just ideas of what could be wrong with her.

I, sadly, bought my Jenna from what I suspect is a puppy farm, before I knew better. I was not given a hard time on the other forum when I introduced her as people do understand not everyone knows what a puppy farm is. The problem was, you asked for advice and then proceeded to ignore it.

[PoppyDog]

When my fiance and I started seriously looking for our puppy we were warned off BYB's and pet shops. We were told all about why it was NOT such a good idea to buy a puppy this way. We took due note and started looking for a "breeder". We just didn't realise that there were breeder and then there were breeders.

To this day I don't REALLY know where our puppy came from BUT I suspect a puppy farm.

A LOVELY lady in Brisbane sold her to us. The puppies were hand raised by her at her home from 4 weeks of age! And sold at 8 weeks.

She sells the "Designer Breeds" and that was another thing we didn't realise. Delibrate cross breeding = NOT a good breeder.

I don't know if this women is oblivious or knows what she is doing but she kept on of the litter that Poppy was in and still sends me photos and updates of Poppy's sister. She also LOVES when I send photos of Poppy and tells me how grateful and happy she is that we gave Poppy such a loving home and that we keep in contact with her.

Of course I know better now and I would never buy a second puppy off her. AFTER we got Poppy I had members of another forum tell me that she would most probably have health issues and that she probably was full of worms, fleas and had anal gland problems. The response I got on this forum from those members about our new puppy ruined the puppy experience for me. I was petrified we would go to bed and wake up in the morning and Poppy would be dead! I was so scared that something would happen to her. Looking back I was a bunch of nerves.

We are lucky that she IS healthy and happy and has no problems as yet.

So, who else brought their puppy from a not so reliable or reputable place and then learn't all about it after? I can't be the ONLY one???

Sorry, couldn't really let this go without saying something. On the 'other' forum, not only were you warned off BYB and pet shops, you were also advised to seek out a responsible breeder, to expect to meet the puppy's parents and to steer clear of designer cross breeds. People did, understandably, get a little upset when you then announced you had got a Cavalier X Cavoodle from a lady and didn't get to see any parents and really didn't appear to really know where the pup had come from.

With regard to members saying she was full of worms and had anal gland problems, these were replies based on your posts about Poppy scooting her bottom alot. They were just ideas of what could be wrong with her.

I, sadly, bought my Jenna from what I suspect is a puppy farm, before I knew better. I was not given a hard time on the other forum when I introduced her as people do understand not everyone knows what a puppy farm is. The problem was, you asked for advice and then proceeded to ignore it.

I'm not going to bother arguing with you. People on "that" forum also warned me not to come here because of the "culture" of this forum yet to date the experience I have had here is far more positive that the one I had on "that" forum!

[eallez]

A family friend got their dog from a registered breeder, did tonnes of homework, went on a wait list for a puppy etc etc. They ended up getting one only for it to be taken back from them by the breeder and used for breeding against their will. It took them 12 months to get him back and approx $5000 in legal fees as well as having the police involved.

We love the dog and are now looking for one of the same breed but are keen to avoid breeders that are only in it for the money.

[Nic.B]

Gosh, what an interesting thread. It shows how crucial education is needed in how to buy a puppy or adult dog without supporting unreputable breeders.

I feel deeply for the mothers who are forced to breed in terrible conditions in many cases. While there have been some good experiences shared here, for me it’s all about not supporting a ‘market’ which is profit driven, fraught with problems, neglect and even cruelty.

I don’t know why, but pet shops always gave me the creeps for some reason, even before I learnt about them. Just a gut feeling I suppose.

My children are lucky and will never support an unreputable breeder as they have been so well educated

As a small child we had a lovely boy Thomas, who Dad found dumped as a puppy in a recycling depot, he was a great dog.

We then had two GSD’s from a very good registered breeder, they were beautiful dogs, Smokey Joe was my heart dog and best friend. Both died of stroke (were pts in our arms at home) at 15 years and 13 years.

Our Goldie came from a registered breeder, Russell was heaven on earth and my daughters best friend. He died of cancer at 14 (pts in our arms at home)

Our Kelpie comes from two working parents, also a very good breeder, she is divine and at 9 still looks and acts like a two year old. We adore her.

Billy a little Foxie/Chi is my heart dog, a gorgeous rescue from PAWS and the best little dog. It’s Billy’s fault I became involved in rescue

Tinker Tonk Jug Head is my only foster failure and we adore her. An animated and funny cattle/staffy who is obsessed with balls and toys who we have fallen in love with. What a character she is.

I hope in the near future some educational campaigns can be launched on a large scale.

[newfsie]

I bought a cross.......Golden Retreiver cross Border Collie. the people selling the pups told us they were charging money for the puppies, so that they could have the money to desex the two parents. Whom according to them had accidentally mated....BS......They has quite a few litters after, and some ended up at the pound and dog rescue .

That said Tessa is a delightful clever and very healthy dog. We have and are enjoying her intelligence and trainability. She keeps our newfies active and we adore her

My other three are purebreds and two are from a reputable breeder, even though one came to us as a rescue via the Breeder, who keeps contact with her pups where possible. my third newf is also a rescue. Pure breds can also end up in rescue sadly. it is good to know that some breeders are heavily involved with rescue of their breed. i adore them all

Edited November 26, 2010 by newfsie

[Loving my Oldies]

PoppyDog, most of us have made plenty of mistakes - a case of not knowing what we don't know and don't even know we have to know.

Poppy is loved and healthy and that is the most important thing.

Plenty of registered people of any profession are shysters and it is not something that is easy to discover.