Buying A Puppy From A Pet Shop

[poodlemum]

People buy puppies in pet shops because they don't know any better places to buy them.

The pedigree dog world needs a better publicist.

Exactly - I think Dogs Victoria could do a lot more promotion of purebred dogs, considering the fees they get from us!

[Mystiqview]

I know a guy at work whose rotty bitch had a mix breed litter. Accident. He sold the pups to the pet store at 6 weeks, unvaccinated etc for $50 each. The same pet store later was selling them for $800 or so each. Granted they would have had them vaccinated/wormed (not micro chipped as that was not compulsory in Qld then). I can bet most pet stores would not be paying the $75 average person would be paying for vaccinations.

What I still find amazing when I am out and about, is the number of people who do not know about registered breeders, don't know that we do the health testing, and that MOST of us do actually care about the health of our breeding stock/puppies.

What I find further hard to swallow, is the uppity attitude some of registered breeders when they have been approached an ignorant puppy buyer. Most who I have talked to, have been nice people, ignorant yes, but nice and most cases have been wanting to do the right thing by the dog. The first person they approached had been thoughtless and did not give them the time of day because they were ignorant.

They went to a BYB to get their puppy. I know of them and their animals :eek however they are pleasant to talk to and appear to know their stuff etc and are approachable.

While I may curse ignorant puppy buyers who want a traditional marked border collie.. I still treat them equally and make allowances for their ignorance, initially. I give them the benefit of the doubt at first. I remember what it was like when I first got into dogs and trying to find someone to point the way

[shells]

I've been trying to convince my friend that pet shops are bad for a while now.. he keeps insisting "well every dog deserves to find a home, even the ones in pet stores!" Dunno what to say to him anymore frown.gif

'

Ask him if the same applies to the parents of pet shop puppies. Puppy farm dogs deserve good homes too. Every sale from a pet shop keeps two dogs in misery.

Thats a great answer to a common theme I hear from people who have bought pet shop puppies. I am sure most do think that the dog does deserve a home and they are providing that

People buy puppies in pet shops because they don't know any better places to buy them.

The pedigree dog world needs a better publicist.

I agree and like a PP I thought dogs from registered breeders were show dogs.

[Gayle.]

What I still find amazing when I am out and about, is the number of people who do not know about registered breeders, don't know that we do the health testing, and that MOST of us do actually care about the health of our breeding stock/puppies.

And that is why the pedigree dog world needs to get off it's collective bum and start promoting itself properly, to the public. They do a great job of promoting the benefits of purebred dog ownership.....to their own members. We are not the ones who need converting, we already know.

Rather than continually diss the "opposition"....the pet shops, the backyard breeders, the puppy farms....they need to positively promote correct breeding practises, good ethics and the benefits of owning a pedigree pet.

And do it with a friendly, welcoming face.

[Mystiqview]

What I still find amazing when I am out and about, is the number of people who do not know about registered breeders, don't know that we do the health testing, and that MOST of us do actually care about the health of our breeding stock/puppies.

And that is why the pedigree dog world needs to get off it's collective bum and start promoting itself properly, to the public. They do a great job of promoting the benefits of purebred dog ownership.....to their own members. We are not the ones who need converting, we already know.

Rather than continually diss the "opposition"....the pet shops, the backyard breeders, the puppy farms....they need to positively promote correct breeding practises, good ethics and the benefits of owning a pedigree pet.

And do it with a friendly, welcoming face.

Cannot agree more. Even here on DOL. Some people need to take stock. I know there will always be those out to make a quick buck and want to pick the brain of a registered breeder and not want to do things properly and take short cuts.

Not every one liner email or dumb question asked is dodgy. Some people just don't have good communication skills.

The CCC's do not get out there and promote pedigree dogs. As you say, they list the benefits of a purebred dog. But with so much bad publicity against pedigree dogs and their supposed bad health, they should be out there saying what breeders are doing to combat health issues (health checks etc and steps certain breeds are doing to address specific health issues)

[Tim'sMum]

I have lived and learned from pet shop puppies and will never do it again! Promise!! I also have DD's...lord oh lord did I mess up on our first puppy buying adventure!

You are not alone.

Friends decided they wanted a dog about 7 years ago. They were thinking about getting a Corgi, so asked the local Vet about Corgis when they took their rabbit to him for vaccination.

The Vet recommended they buy a new breed....a 'Spoodle'....because it would have hybrid vigour. So they did.

[TsarsMum]

i think that also one thing i found was I had breeders when i emailed just give me 1 lined answers. or not very informative emails or just no answer at all. this would turn the adverage person off reg dog breeders it certinatly turned me off a certain breed. I can see why its easier for the unknowing to just go to a brb or pp because they dont have has much issues.

I got a great puppy from a breeder who answered all my questions etc. but i can deffantly see how people could just walk away from going to reg breeders.

[Mystiqview]

i think that also one thing i found was I had breeders when i emailed just give me 1 lined answers. or not very informative emails or just no answer at all. this would turn the adverage person off reg dog breeders it certinatly turned me off a certain breed. I can see why its easier for the unknowing to just go to a brb or pp because they dont have has much issues.

This is my point exactly and a comment I often receive from puppy buyers when they contact me. We all lead busy lifestyles. Some more than others. Many of us work full time, have family, hobbies, and a lot of other stuff we do.

I have a drafted pretty standard email response (health testing, what I do, what I expect etc). And just add/delete the blanks plus a few lines to make it personal. Not brain science really.

[Sheridan]

What I still find amazing when I am out and about, is the number of people who do not know about registered breeders, don't know that we do the health testing, and that MOST of us do actually care about the health of our breeding stock/puppies.

And that is why the pedigree dog world needs to get off it's collective bum and start promoting itself properly, to the public. They do a great job of promoting the benefits of purebred dog ownership.....to their own members. We are not the ones who need converting, we already know.

Rather than continually diss the "opposition"....the pet shops, the backyard breeders, the puppy farms....they need to positively promote correct breeding practises, good ethics and the benefits of owning a pedigree pet.

And do it with a friendly, welcoming face.

This has been said over and over to hoots of dismissal various DOL showies. It seems it's easier to complain than do something.

[Nahla + Teddy's Mum]

I have lived and learned from pet shop puppies and will never do it again! Promise!! I also have DD's...lord oh lord did I mess up on our first puppy buying adventure!

You are not alone.

Friends decided they wanted a dog about 7 years ago. They were thinking about getting a Corgi, so asked the local Vet about Corgis when they took their rabbit to him for vaccination.

The Vet recommended they buy a new breed....a 'Spoodle'....because it would have hybrid vigour. So they did.

Yes ours are "Spoodles" too! They look nothing like each other and 1 looses hair and the other does not and 1 is much taller than the other. They are our absolute world and such good little dogs but the more research I do the more I find out about possible health factors, but then again I guess all breeds have this. Our only problem so far was kennel cough which they got at puppy school but other than that they are very healthy and happy puppies! We wanted a small-mid size dog as this is what we came up with!

[Fleuri]

I got one dog from a registed breeder many years ago (ad in the newspaper I didn’t know any better). I didn’t do any research, only bought a book about the breed) to cut the story short she was a nightmare to toilet train. I think she must have been kept in a kennel since she was born, no instincts at all.

I think most people just look in the newspaper to find a fur friend or some go to the pet shop. I never bought from a pet shop because I was so afraid they would be a nightmare to toilet train after the experience with this dog. I had also heard that Pet shop dogs are sometimes sick.

I also think that the average person thinks that someone that calls themselves a “registed breeder” can be trusted, because they are registed and they show their dogs, wow they must be experts.

After joining Dool I have learnt so much more, this is such a great site.

So when we are ready, if we don’t opt for a rescue doggy then I will definitely be very careful and do a lot of research and ask lots of questions when I purchase from a register breeder.

Edited September 14, 2010 by Fleuri

[Red Fox]

I think it depends on what people want - and if they actually know what they want.

Someone who just wants a dog, any dog, and wants it now, is going to go to the easiest source - being the pet store, choose a cute puppy and take it straight home. If the pet store has nothing perhaps they will check out the local paper or the pound.

Someone who knows exactly what breed they want, particularly if it's not a common "pet shop breed" and is willing to wait for the right dog as opposed to the first available puppy is going to have to do a bit more work.

When it came to buying a dog we decided on a few breeds that we both liked, researched them, decided on a Ridgeback, Googled breeders, came up with the RRCSA and DOL, then began to contact breeders, research lines...

It wasn't rocket science, it just seemed like the most logical way to find a pup in the breed of my choice

Though when I was a kid and Mum promised me a puppy on my birthday we went right down to the pet shop and bought the cutest one -a kelpie cross Didn't know any better, didn't have a breed, size or colour in mind or really care, I had been pestering for years and just wanted a DOG any dog and thats what we got. I'm sure that had I known exactly what breed I wanted and pestered for long enough then mum would have had to of looked to a breeder instead.

[aussielover]

I admit our first dog was from a petshop. He was supposedly purebred bichon frise but in reality more likely a poodle or poodle x. The only thing he had in common with a bichon was being white and woolly!

He was a nightmare to train, probably a result of our inexperience as well as his bbackground and upbringing (toilet training was horrific due to him being used to going in his own bedding), but i'm sure this combination is common in many first time puppy buyers and petshop puppies.

It was only after he died we did some research and then wanted to get a less common breed that we even considered registered breeders.

[Staranais]

Someone who just wants a dog, any dog, and wants it now, is going to go to the easiest source - being the pet store, choose a cute puppy and take it straight home. If the pet store has nothing perhaps they will check out the local paper or the pound.

When I got my first dog, I just wanted a nice, friendly dog to hang out with. Really, that was as far as I thought. My first impulse was to go to the SPCA, but the friend of a friend was giving away a stafford that he really did not have any time for, so I ended up taking him instead. Luckily, he was awesome.

I think 90% of the general public would have no idea about why you would want a purebred dog, or how to go about getting one, or why you might not want to support a petstore.

[Guest Tess32]

I think part of the problem is it is a lot harder to go through a breeder than is made out on DOL.

I know in my breed, I emailed pretty much the dol puppy listing at the time and got maybe, two replies?

And think about the people with no internet access, it's not exactly the easiest thing to research.

[*Lolapalooza*]

My neighbour was looking to get a CKC a couple of weeks ago and saw one at Pets Paradise for $950. I told her about puppy mills etc and why it isn't good to go to a pet shop. I talked her out of getting the pup and tried to get her one from Miley's breeder. She wouldn't wait the 3 days and she said she wanted to use her credit card, which obviously a breeder wouldn't take.

So what does she do!?!? She goes to ACA breeders and gets a cavalier x poodle Oh but they use breeders, she says.

I even linked her to an article with a raid on a ACA puppy farm the night before she got the puppy, but she still went ahead and got her. They even gave her the wrong dog the numbskulls. She's had diarrhea since they got her.

I think my old neighbour bought this Cavalier puppy.....

They rang me 2 weeks ago to tell me about their new puppy I could hear their eyes roll when I said 'was she from a pet shop???'

Gets so frustrating when you try and educate and people just think you are being weird

[minxy]

I think part of the problem is it is a lot harder to go through a breeder than is made out on DOL.

I know in my breed, I emailed pretty much the dol puppy listing at the time and got maybe, two replies?

And think about the people with no internet access, it's not exactly the easiest thing to research.

Yup, definitely. I've been waiting since January for a pup. 90% of breeders never returned emails or phone calls. I'd missed some of the breedings, so it could have been up to a year before they would have bred again. I'm still playing a lot of phone tag with two breeders about trying to get a puppy at the end of the year. I'm on the waiting list, but that doesn't secure me a pup, and of course, it's still a few months away. Getting a puppy can be a long and difficult process. Whilst I will admit it is a little bit frustrating as of course I want my puppy asap, but I'm more than willing to wait to get a dog from a great breeder. There are a lot of people out there who don't want to go through this long process, which make pet shops and BYB a lot more desirable when they can go and get a new puppy that very same day.

[Gayle.]

I think it depends on what people want - and if they actually know what they want.

Someone who just wants a dog, any dog, and wants it now, is going to go to the easiest source - being the pet store, choose a cute puppy and take it straight home. If the pet store has nothing perhaps they will check out the local paper or the pound.

Someone who knows exactly what breed they want, particularly if it's not a common "pet shop breed" and is willing to wait for the right dog as opposed to the first available puppy is going to have to do a bit more work.

When it came to buying a dog we decided on a few breeds that we both liked, researched them, decided on a Ridgeback, Googled breeders, came up with the RRCSA and DOL, then began to contact breeders, research lines...

It wasn't rocket science, it just seemed like the most logical way to find a pup in the breed of my choice

Though when I was a kid and Mum promised me a puppy on my birthday we went right down to the pet shop and bought the cutest one -a kelpie cross Didn't know any better, didn't have a breed, size or colour in mind or really care, I had been pestering for years and just wanted a DOG any dog and thats what we got. I'm sure that had I known exactly what breed I wanted and pestered for long enough then mum would have had to of looked to a breeder instead.

But you aren't everyone and it's not logical to a lot of people. Loads and loads of people wouldn't even consider using the internet to find a puppy and if they did, they'd more than likely try sites like the Trading Post first, to see what's advertised in their area.

And a lot of people don't know what they want, or have a general idea.....staffy type, or a small fluffy type, or one of those woolly non shedding types....all of which are available in abundance in newspaper ads, pets shops and the Trading Post online.

Why would they go further when what they want is right there?

[Fleuri]

But you aren't everyone and it's not logical to a lot of people. Loads and loads of people wouldn't even consider using the internet to find a puppy and if they did, they'd more than likely try sites like the Trading Post first, to see what's advertised in their area.

And a lot of people don't know what they want, or have a general idea.....staffy type, or a small fluffy type, or one of those woolly non shedding types....all of which are available in abundance in newspaper ads, pets shops and the Trading Post online.

Why would they go further when what they want is right there?

I think thats possibly true.

When I was tweleve I asked my parents for a "Lassie" I found out it was called Collie (rough) So I looked in a few newspapers and there it was a Collie breeder, so we called and went on the weekend and I chose a pup and brought it home that same day.

We didn't do any research we didn't know we had to. Yes and I had to pick the one with the one testical (on main rego too) I remember it was a blue paper. My sister and I send it in with my details & money order for 10 dollars but it must have gotten lost in the mail or we did something wrong, never got anything back. He was a great dog anyway and we loved him so much. He lived to age 8 years.

[Sheridan]

I think part of the problem is it is a lot harder to go through a breeder than is made out on DOL.

I know in my breed, I emailed pretty much the dol puppy listing at the time and got maybe, two replies?

And think about the people with no internet access, it's not exactly the easiest thing to research.

When I was a kid, my family managed to find our rare Irish terrier breeds without the Internet. I just rang my Mum and our irish terriers were advertised by the breeder in the Geelong Advertiser; our kerry blue was advertised in The Age or Herald-Sun. Both advertised as litters.