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Last week I wrote about 10 reasons to adopt a dog from a shelter. I realize that no matter how many homeless dogs there are, some people will always buy from a breeder. For this post, I talked with owners of purebred dogs in order to get their opinions on why they bought from breeders. Here are 10 reasons:
1. You know everything about the pup from day one.
A good breeder will tell you everything about the pup’s life up until that point. She will tell you how it was raised, if it had any health issues at birth, if it is a more dominant puppy, etc. Then, once you bring the puppy home, you have control over how the puppy will be raised from the start. You can continue training and socialization on your terms.
2. You can meet the pup’s parents.
The puppy’s parents will tell you a lot about how your puppy will turn out, as far as health, appearance and temperament. With a mixed-breed dog from a shelter, you do not have this option.
3. You know the pup hasn’t had a troubled life.
When adopting from a good breeder, there are no uncertainties about the pup’s past. You know your puppy hasn’t been abused or neglected, resulting in behavioral issues. There are no questions about how it was treated before. With a shelter dog, you often will have no idea about the dog’s past.
4. You are not encouraging irresponsibility.
Mixed-breed puppies are often the result of irresponsible owners who did not have their dogs spayed or neutered. Then they try to make money off of an accidental litter by selling the puppies to anyone. On the other hand, most breeders take pride in the dogs they are breeding. The will spend time researching the lineage of the parents and grandparents in order to produce the best puppies. They plan ahead so they can offer the mother dog and puppies the best care and find the best homes. They know they will not make a profit off the litter.
5. The breeder will have references.
At your request, a breeder will offer you references of dog owners who are happy with the dogs they purchased. This gives you another opportunity to ask any questions you have.
6. You can get another similar dog.
If you really like the dog, you know where it came from in order to get another dog just like it. If you have a mutt, you probably have no idea where it came from, let alone what breed it is.
7. There is endless information on your specific breed.
A breeder of Jack Russell terriers will tell you everything you want to know about Jack Russell terriers. There are also hundreds of others who own the breed and books written on the breed. Your resources are unlimited.
8. A breeder can recommend a good vet for your breed.
A breeder can give you recommendations on vets in your area. Especially if you have a rare breed, the breeder will know of vets who are knowledgeable on that specific kind of dog.
9. Mixed-breed dogs might develop new health issues.
Certain breeds are prone to certain health issues and sometimes this can be avoided by adopting a mixed-breed dog. Other times, a mixed-breed dog will just develop different health issues, or the health issues it inherited from its purebred parents of two different breeds. For example, a dachshund/pit bull mix might have back issues because of its long, stocky body.
10. A breeder will be available to you throughout your dog’s life.
Many breeders like to stay in touch with the owners they sell puppies to. This is good because you will always have someone to turn to if you have a question about your dog. The breeder has probably experienced similar issues at one time or another.
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April 1st, 2008 at 12:31 pm
I LOVE that you wrote about the other point of view. Even though I seem to leave lots of disagreeing comments I really enjoy your blog.
I LOVE our breeder. She is one of those GOOD breeders. It’s sad that there are also bad breeders. They give full breed dogs and breeders a bad name.
I think a good breeder allows the perspective ‘parent’ to see everything - where the dogs sleep, where the puppies are raised, etc. There should be total transparency. And I think good breeders also care about where their dogs are going to go. I insisted that our breeder meet all of our dogs before we got Trooper. And she came to our house to visit.
Great article!
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April 2nd, 2008 at 10:42 am
While this was informative, I’m saddened that you felt the need to “sell” the idea of buying a dog, when millions of great dogs are killed every year in our shelters. I understand that everyone has the right to buy from a breeder, but it doesn’t mean we need to actively encourage them to do so.
April 4th, 2008 at 6:52 am
As a dog breeder, I was glad to see you taking a look at the other side. There are hundreds of thousands of “good” breeders in the US. We take excellent care of our dogs, provide them with the best health care, the best living arrangements and breed them to improve the breed and the health of the breed. It is sad that there are a FEW bad breeders who get so much publicity that it blackens the name of all of us. My life is pretty much devoted to animals. I breed them, I make a living grooming and caring for them and I have also adopted from the shelter. Comments like “My breeder is one of the good ones” saddens me because good breeders overwhelmingly out number the bad ones, the bad ones just get all the press.
April 4th, 2008 at 7:01 am
As to the millions of homeless pets, I would ask that you read this article in USA today http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2003-01-30-dogs-usat_x.htm
April 4th, 2008 at 1:47 pm
If there are so many “good” breeders out there, well how come they do not help pure breed rescue more? We call Boxer breeders to help us as we can’t save all the boxers in the shelters and no one call us back! Other pure breed rescues say the same thing. Families come to us as their breeder will not take the dog back once it is SOLD! Not their problem anymore!! So the animal is dumped in a shelter where the poor shelter workers who care for that animal have to then kill it because too many are coming in! I do not see breeders being a part of the solution to pet overpopulation, I just see them being on the defensive all the time trying to prove how responsible they are.. Talk is cheap let’s see you all do something to help animals.
April 4th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
There are so many wonderful dogs in shelters, yet you have to sell the idea of buying a dog from a breeder. There are many wonderful breeders, but there are more wonderful dogs in shelters.
April 4th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
how about purebred breeding programs killing puppies not up to par, inbreeding causing insufferable genetic problems and the underlying fact that they are bred for looks, not personality.
A mutt dog typically exhibits hybrid vigor.
All your points are valid but overlook the bad reasons.
April 4th, 2008 at 3:38 pm
hi
please don’t think too badly of folk who buy pure breeds.sometimes there are good reasons for this.i have pyrenean mountain dogs and i chose to buy a pure because i love big dogs but at the time of our first puppy also had 5 children who were still very young.as pyreneans and other mastiff type looking dogs are very powerful animals which could easily hurt a small child i wanted to make sure i had a puppy of whose background i could be certain.now my kids are mostly grown and even my youngest is eleven i have myrtle 1.year old and huggy which is out of rescue.he had a lot of problems to start with including serious food agression but has over time become a lovely dog to live with.i agree that far too many dogs are put down mixed and pure bred.i so wish that there was more understanding between the two factions as in the end the dogs would benefit regardless of origin.
peace