Author Topic: Purebred puppies  (Read 18372 times)

Inaya

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #50 on: April 12, 2017, 09:40:11 AM »
I often thought that if I was approached by a foreign psychologist who asked, " Where in your society might I find an unusually high concentration of  people with mental health issues?", I would first direct them to gather a group of school guidance counselors, and if that proved to be not quite fruitful enough, I would recommend heading for the animal rescue folks.
Without negating the enormous good rescue employees and volunteers do, I agree with this 100%. Hubs and I volunteer for a cat rescue and we've found some of the others to be... eccentric. (To be fair that might describe us as well...) Not all are like that, and they are for the most part amazing, wonderful, selfless people.

I've also volunteered with a dog rescue, where we got two of ours.  I did not like the internal politics of the dog rescue and tended to just volunteer to work with the dogs at the adoption clinics and show them to people, and stay out of the administration of the rescue.
We volunteer for community outreach (mostly manning booths at festivals with the world's chillest cat), so we rarely even go to the facilities or have anything to with the admin. The sheer amount of drama, crazy, and politics that goes on is ridiculous. Apparently our entire board just imploded last summer in the middle of building a multimillion dollar facility. The resulting fallout included facility completion a year behind schedule, at least $1MM over budget, and a several million dollar shortfall. The building was finished late last year, but it's just sitting there, empty and consuming resources because there just aren't funds for furniture, clinic equipment, etc.

Because we only go to events, we never saw any of this play out--we only saw it on the news like everyone else. Well that and the resignation announcements, but we only found out the reason for those resignations well after the fact.
« Last Edit: April 12, 2017, 09:43:40 AM by Inaya »

Chris22

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #51 on: April 12, 2017, 09:50:40 AM »
People who run rescues are volunteers who put in a lot of their own time and money into the operation.  They don't owe anyone a dog.  I do think many of them get way to wrapped up in it to the point of losing their objectivity.  Exposure to a lot of horrible behavior on the part of people makes many of them extremely jaded.

I'm sure that's all true, but you have to remember, you* can't simultaneously shame people for not rescuing dogs and then put them through the ringer when they try to rescue one.  You want to put people through "extreme vetting" to adopt an animal, don't be surprised when they don't want to play the games and jump through the hoops and instead are happy to get the cute puppy from the store, no questions asked, for just 24 payments of $89. 


*not YOU, the dog rescue community you

Dezrah

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #52 on: April 12, 2017, 09:56:57 AM »
Bird shelters also seem to attract a certain level of crazy volunteers.  In their case though I totally get it.  95% of birds at a shelter are from people who surrendered them after they realized they didn't have what it takes to care for it.  Even the people who love birds can be unintentional bad owners if they don't properly feed and stimulate them.  The more a bird gets rehomed, the more likely it is to develop psychological and behavioral problems.

That said, the application process for these guys is crazy.  Literal written tests, reading assignments, home studies, pre-adoption visits to bond with the bird, hundreds of dollars for the small guys and thousands for the big ones, and that's if they even bother returning your calls after you fill out an application. 

It's a vicious cycle.  The more rigorous these shelters are, the more people are driven to uncaring breeders and pet stores, the more birds end up in shelters, the more cynical and rigorous shelters become.

I tried reaching out to a few shelters but was always turned down because I lived outside their home visit radius.  Eventually we got the guy in my profile pic from a private couple we learned about through word of mouth.  Their daughter had developed an allergy to the bird dander; they loved him, but couldn't keep him.  He's been a happy addition to our family for nearly seven years now.  I'd never get to do that if I actually had to deal with a shelter.

Pigeon

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #53 on: April 12, 2017, 10:08:18 AM »
People who run rescues are volunteers who put in a lot of their own time and money into the operation.  They don't owe anyone a dog.  I do think many of them get way to wrapped up in it to the point of losing their objectivity.  Exposure to a lot of horrible behavior on the part of people makes many of them extremely jaded.

I'm sure that's all true, but you have to remember, you* can't simultaneously shame people for not rescuing dogs and then put them through the ringer when they try to rescue one.  You want to put people through "extreme vetting" to adopt an animal, don't be surprised when they don't want to play the games and jump through the hoops and instead are happy to get the cute puppy from the store, no questions asked, for just 24 payments of $89. 


*not YOU, the dog rescue community you

The powers that be at the rescue I volunteered with had zero problems with people walking away if they didn't want to jump through the hoops.  Good riddance, and all that.  Despite all the hoops, they placed a huge number of dogs, considering that it was a small rescue run on a shoestring.  Most of the people who pushed back were looking for puppies, and the puppies practically flew out of there.

iris lily

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #54 on: April 12, 2017, 10:14:25 AM »
My Venomous Spaz Beast was free through my daughter's bio-family network. In the underclass people still like to keep pets, but they don't spay or neuter them or take them for vet care because it's Too Expensive. The VSB came to us from a couple of dogs who actually had a long-term relationship and had had a couple of litters together. But because of the living conditions around that neighborhood, the VSB's littermate and her older sister from a previous litter both died young. Originally the VSB was destined to be used by my daughter's cousin to get a girlfriend, however my daughter called dibs on the pup and proceeded to reject and ignore her, treating her exactly the way her bio-family treated dogs. The pup, frantic at being neglected, bonded to me out of a need to survive. Since then the relationship has blossomed into something beautiful and I'm finally experiencing the positive aspects of an emotional bond: my ex-girlfriend said that perhaps adoption, for me, was simply a very expensive and time consuming path to Chihuahua ownership. Meanwhile, in the neighborhood the VSB came from there's a lot of turnover in dogs. Her older sister was critically injured when she got involved in a fight between two larger dogs, and her littermate brother died because he was so skinny, tiny, and starving he couldn't put on weight (possibly due to never being dewormed). The pup was so hungry he'd eat anything, and eventually he got a mouthful of rat poison that had been left outside. So you really can see natural selection in action. In the dog population there's no nonsense about patella problems or anything else since the dogs are not AKC and contain out-crossings in the distant past from pugs, Min Pins, Doxies, and other small breeds while remaining characteristically Chihuahua. So the VSB has a slight under-bite but outstanding teeth, and she's mellow enough to let me examine and touch them. She is almost preternaturally healthy. The fact I let her cram in as much high protein puppy food as she wants while giving her lots of exercise and providing regular shots and spaying has been a factor. She's very buff, cut like a racehorse but you can't see her ribs, and she scampers around so much on concrete that I seldom have to trim her nails. She's put on nearly a pound since I had her spayed and that got her well out of teacup territory (much to my relief). I don't think she'll make it to five pounds because she burns off the calories doing her walks, playing fetch, and training for Doggie Ninja Warrior.

Although the potty training has had a few setbacks (characteristic of the Chihuahua breed) the VSB is a healthy little doggie. Not show quality due to the under-bite, and although she was small she's now over four pounds and out of teacup territory. She's a little leery of high-energy dogs but likes other small dogs and cats and is extremely fond of children. When I walk her in the neighborhood all the kids know her and want to play with her. Seldom have I seen a pup so eager to snuggle up with kids who sometimes play a little rough, and because she's so personable, easy-going, cute, and quiet all the kids want a VSB of their own.

Hahahah all the way down the block to the bolded.

Otherwise, excellent entertaining post about the little beast.

I don't do rescue because I am a GOOD person,
I do rescue because the dogs entertain me, they are a laugh a minute. It really is all about me.:)

Walsh1122

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #55 on: April 12, 2017, 11:26:45 AM »
Um, I want quality that lasts?  Mazda3 sport hatchback (at least another 5 years before it dies) and my favourite breed.  Both quality but not super high priced, and suit me and would not necessarily suit others.

I have the same car.  Had a Mazda 5 before when the kids were young.  An old Toyota Corolla before that.  None of them bought new.

Shoot-out to a fellow Mazda5 driver! I love mine.... but now that we've decided to stop at one kid instead of having a second, I'm wishing I had gone for the Mazda3 instead. That will be next, I guess.

As a veterinarian, it amazes me how many people shell out massive money for these purebred dogs and then can't afford to care for them. Great Danes are expensive to buy, but even more expensive to buy meds for (since medications are dosed by weight). Bulldogs and Frenchies are expensive to buy, but even more expensive when you have to manage their chronic allergies and other health issues. I see so many dogs who develop treatable problems as puppies that have to go untreated because the owner says "I just spent so much money to buy him/her that I don't have any money left for xyz right now." People never cease to amaze me.

As a fellow veterinarian, I agree.  Please do not adopt or purchase a pet if you do not have the financial ability to properly care for it.  Make sure you either have an "emergency fund" set up for sudden illness or at least have some form of pet insurance to help cover costs that can not be planned for (illness/injury). 

If you are thinking of adopting or purchasing a pet and have questions, call a local veterinarian and set up an appointment to talk it over.  I personally would be THRILLED if I had a client take this pro-active approach and probably wouldn't even charge them for my time, largely out of sheer amazement that they thought that far ahead.  Worst case scenario you are out a $30-50 office fee, but at the very least you would have some basic knowledge on what caring for that particular breed/animal would entail. If you are thinking about purchasing a pure bred, find a reputable breeder and go talk to them as well.   

In the end, I don't care what the purchase price was as long as you have a financial plan in place to take care of your new 10-15 year commitment.

tralfamadorian

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #56 on: April 12, 2017, 12:11:42 PM »
If you are thinking of adopting or purchasing a pet and have questions, call a local veterinarian and set up an appointment to talk it over.  I personally would be THRILLED if I had a client take this pro-active approach and probably wouldn't even charge them for my time, largely out of sheer amazement that they thought that far ahead.

I would like to say that I'm surprised that more people don't do this.  I did call my vet and set up a phone appointment to talk about a couple breeds we were considering (standard poodles and ridgebacks) to get his opinions/thoughts.  I presumed that it was a pretty normal, common thing to do. 

MsPeacock

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #57 on: April 12, 2017, 06:31:01 PM »
Absolutely, that said, there are a countless folks at rescues who are  pretty strange people, obsessed with the mission, and totally irrational when it comes to being reasonable about where a dog get placed. My daughter is a dog lover, and actually makes a living charging horrifically unmustachian rates to walk other folks dogs. She wanted a dog of her own, and spoke to a few local rescue wackos. No deal, once they heard that she was a city dweller in an APARTMENT (Oh, the humanity of it all) they were done talking.

My MIL wanted an older, smaller dog (she is in her early 80s) after her previous one passed away, and went to the local shelter a couple of times but they "never had anything suitable".  My DW finally went with her, and demanded to know what was going on.   After a somewhat unpleasant confrontation she got them to admit that they thought my MIL was too old for a dog.  After all, if she had a health care emergency my DW was almost 4 hours away, so wouldn't be able to get there in time to take care of the dog.  I'm thinking "Really, your big concern about an elderly woman's health care emergency is that the dog may be unattended for half a day?"  At least my MIL won't have to waste her time going there to inquire any more, but it would have been nice if they hadn't been wasting her time all along by lying to her.

I often thought that if I was approached by a foreign psychologist who asked, " Where in your society might I find an unusually high concentration of  people with mental health issues?", I would first direct them to gather a group of school guidance counselors, and if that proved to be not quite fruitful enough, I would recommend heading for the animal rescue folks.  Maybe it's just dumb luck, combined with being a dog lover, married to a teacher of thirty years, but damn, if it isn't accurate. If you are hunting for a whole lot of crazy but (barely) functional, that there is some fertile ground to till. The OP's Mom's case is typical. Better that an older, unadoptable little dog rot in a cage at a shelter, than enjoy life with an old lady whose life would be greatly enriched by having a companion. Disgusting.
Haha. Okay! Maybe.

I think the main thing to understand is that we, the rescue people, don't know you or what is in your heart or that you have had dogs for 30 years and had a yadda.

One of my friends has "rescued" many dogs off the street and that "rescuer" persona is a huge part of her identity. She never has fewer than 5 dogs living in her city house. One day I was over to her house visiting her and she was pissed off, crying, mad. She had applied to a local rescue , headed up by someone we both have known  for years, to adopt a dog. They turned her down. They turned her down because when they checked  her references, her vet said she did not give her dogs heart worm meds or do heart worm tests.

That is a legitimate standard.

But in her mind, she is the rescuer, she does the good work, she is the GOOD person.

And to the anonymous screener at the rescue organization, she is just another applicant who does not meet a standard and who may  signal an "animal hoarder."

My experience with local rescues when I wanted to get a dog a few years ago was consistent with ridiculous standards and crazy people. It was literally impossible to get a dog as someone who works outside of the house and has two kids. The minimum age of kids would vary from day to day and which animal I asked about (my kids were 7 and 10 at the time). The fact that I was employed meant I couldn't adopt a dog because the rescues required that someone be home all day with the dog. Home visits were required, multiple times. I spoke with numerous rescue organizations and after months gave up. It was ridiculous.

In the past few weeks we have tried to find a kitten. I have a 2 year old cat who was adopted along with his brother, who died suddenly of some neurological problem. We wanted a kitten because it would be easier to introduce a kitten to the household. Shelter told me that they only adopt kittens in pairs (despite having an odd number of kittens available). This is the local public animal shelter, which appears to be rising to rescue standards.

Anyhow - my working theory is that "rescues" are mostlY animal hoarders who want a veneer of social acceptability for their 17 "foster" dog of whatever.

Got my dog from a good breeder after extensive research. Got an adult cat from another public shelter in the next county over, with a basic ask no questions policy.

paddedhat

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #58 on: April 12, 2017, 08:13:23 PM »
It's interesting to see all the other members here who also report bizarre and irrational behavior while attempting to add a rescued animal to their lives, AND the folks who can rationalize and explain away every strange and unreasonable behavior. Birds of a feather, perhaps.

 Thank God I never end up with a dog breed that can never be left alone while the family is at work and school, cannot be exposed to the horrors of children, other pets, stairs, lack of fencing, or denied the perfect suburban existence. You know, the kind you only find in sitcoms on the rerun channels. Hell, here in the real world, these mythical dogs are pretty rare, but oddly enough, rescue organizations are apparently awash in them. Hum, makes you wonder how many dogs never find a decent home since the bat shit crazy leadership can't seem to find the specific nirvana their animals apparently can't live without? I wonder how many of these places end up with taxpayer money to engage in this silliness?

skeeder

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #59 on: May 05, 2017, 06:51:45 AM »
we have a purebred goldendoodle.  I was against spending the money we did, but honestly the "less shedding" aspect is the only reason why I can keep him in my house with the allergies I have. 


TheGrimSqueaker

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #60 on: May 05, 2017, 08:22:16 AM »
It's interesting to see all the other members here who also report bizarre and irrational behavior while attempting to add a rescued animal to their lives, AND the folks who can rationalize and explain away every strange and unreasonable behavior. Birds of a feather, perhaps.

 Thank God I never end up with a dog breed that can never be left alone while the family is at work and school, cannot be exposed to the horrors of children, other pets, stairs, lack of fencing, or denied the perfect suburban existence. You know, the kind you only find in sitcoms on the rerun channels. Hell, here in the real world, these mythical dogs are pretty rare, but oddly enough, rescue organizations are apparently awash in them. Hum, makes you wonder how many dogs never find a decent home since the bat shit crazy leadership can't seem to find the specific nirvana their animals apparently can't live without? I wonder how many of these places end up with taxpayer money to engage in this silliness?

I can think of plausible reasons why an *individual animal* might have any of the above restrictions due to health or behavioral problems, and there's something to be said for matching an animal's needs and restrictions with what a prospective adopter can provide, but having a blanket policy that prevents a healthy, child-friendly animal from going to a home with stairs and children makes no sense to me.

A policy that prevents a non-special-needs home from adopting any of their animals simply ensures that all the animals have to wait longer before being placed. The normal animal who would do very well in a home with stairs, kids, or a bit of daytime solitude, and who does not require a special-needs-friendly home, is prevented from getting a perfectly good home in which he or she would thrive. Meanwhile the animal with hip dysplasia or knee problems due to inbreeding, who genuinely can't handle stairs, has to wait even longer because families with a stairless, special-needs-friendly home are going to snap up the normal, healthy animal instead. Having the animals around for longer no doubt suits the hoarder-fosterers just fine.

Chris22

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #61 on: May 05, 2017, 08:43:08 AM »
It's interesting to see all the other members here who also report bizarre and irrational behavior while attempting to add a rescued animal to their lives, AND the folks who can rationalize and explain away every strange and unreasonable behavior. Birds of a feather, perhaps.

 Thank God I never end up with a dog breed that can never be left alone while the family is at work and school, cannot be exposed to the horrors of children, other pets, stairs, lack of fencing, or denied the perfect suburban existence. You know, the kind you only find in sitcoms on the rerun channels. Hell, here in the real world, these mythical dogs are pretty rare, but oddly enough, rescue organizations are apparently awash in them. Hum, makes you wonder how many dogs never find a decent home since the bat shit crazy leadership can't seem to find the specific nirvana their animals apparently can't live without? I wonder how many of these places end up with taxpayer money to engage in this silliness?

I can think of plausible reasons why an *individual animal* might have any of the above restrictions due to health or behavioral problems, and there's something to be said for matching an animal's needs and restrictions with what a prospective adopter can provide, but having a blanket policy that prevents a healthy, child-friendly animal from going to a home with stairs and children makes no sense to me.

A policy that prevents a non-special-needs home from adopting any of their animals simply ensures that all the animals have to wait longer before being placed. The normal animal who would do very well in a home with stairs, kids, or a bit of daytime solitude, and who does not require a special-needs-friendly home, is prevented from getting a perfectly good home in which he or she would thrive. Meanwhile the animal with hip dysplasia or knee problems due to inbreeding, who genuinely can't handle stairs, has to wait even longer because families with a stairless, special-needs-friendly home are going to snap up the normal, healthy animal instead. Having the animals around for longer no doubt suits the hoarder-fosterers just fine.

Things like stairs are silly to me.  I have a dog who won't do stairs (okay, he will go up carpeted stairs, but that's it).  I live in a split level house, 5 hardwood stairs to go up (bedrooms), 5 carpeted stairs to go down (family room) from the main level (kitchen, living room).  He basically stays on the 'main' level all of the time, unless we carry him (he weighs 12 lbs) up or down, which we do regularly (he sleeps up, hangs out with us down, etc).  But there's no reason I have to allow my dog access to all parts of my house; if I had a 100lb dog and he could only be on the main level, that's far from an issue in my mind, especially versus say, living in a shelter or being destroyed. 

iris lily

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #62 on: May 05, 2017, 08:44:44 AM »
It's interesting to see all the other members here who also report bizarre and irrational behavior while attempting to add a rescued animal to their lives, AND the folks who can rationalize and explain away every strange and unreasonable behavior. Birds of a feather, perhaps.

 Thank God I never end up with a dog breed that can never be left alone while the family is at work and school, cannot be exposed to the horrors of children, other pets, stairs, lack of fencing, or denied the perfect suburban existence. You know, the kind you only find in sitcoms on the rerun channels. Hell, here in the real world, these mythical dogs are pretty rare, but oddly enough, rescue organizations are apparently awash in them. Hum, makes you wonder how many dogs never find a decent home since the bat shit crazy leadership can't seem to find the specific nirvana their animals apparently can't live without? I wonder how many of these places end up with taxpayer money to engage in this silliness?

I can think of plausible reasons why an *individual animal* might have any of the above restrictions due to health or behavioral problems, and there's something to be said for matching an animal's needs and restrictions with what a prospective adopter can provide, but having a blanket policy that prevents a healthy, child-friendly animal from going to a home with stairs and children makes no sense to me.

A policy that prevents a non-special-needs home from adopting any of their animals simply ensures that all the animals have to wait longer before being placed. The normal animal who would do very well in a home with stairs, kids, or a bit of daytime solitude, and who does not require a special-needs-friendly home, is prevented from getting a perfectly good home in which he or she would thrive. Meanwhile the animal with hip dysplasia or knee problems due to inbreeding, who genuinely can't handle stairs, has to wait even longer because families with a stairless, special-needs-friendly home are going to snap up the normal, healthy animal instead. Having the animals around for longer no doubt suits the hoarder-fosterers just fine.

Uh, you have fallen for paddedhat's overgeneralization about rescue groups. He has an axe to grind (otherwise know as "an opinion") and that is fine, this is America, God Bless it! Sing it, sister.

 Having been involved in rescue for 25 years I inow that yes  there is plenty of crazy well as averice in this biz.

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #63 on: May 05, 2017, 01:13:30 PM »
It's interesting to see all the other members here who also report bizarre and irrational behavior while attempting to add a rescued animal to their lives, AND the folks who can rationalize and explain away every strange and unreasonable behavior. Birds of a feather, perhaps.

 Thank God I never end up with a dog breed that can never be left alone while the family is at work and school, cannot be exposed to the horrors of children, other pets, stairs, lack of fencing, or denied the perfect suburban existence. You know, the kind you only find in sitcoms on the rerun channels. Hell, here in the real world, these mythical dogs are pretty rare, but oddly enough, rescue organizations are apparently awash in them. Hum, makes you wonder how many dogs never find a decent home since the bat shit crazy leadership can't seem to find the specific nirvana their animals apparently can't live without? I wonder how many of these places end up with taxpayer money to engage in this silliness?

I can think of plausible reasons why an *individual animal* might have any of the above restrictions due to health or behavioral problems, and there's something to be said for matching an animal's needs and restrictions with what a prospective adopter can provide, but having a blanket policy that prevents a healthy, child-friendly animal from going to a home with stairs and children makes no sense to me.

A policy that prevents a non-special-needs home from adopting any of their animals simply ensures that all the animals have to wait longer before being placed. The normal animal who would do very well in a home with stairs, kids, or a bit of daytime solitude, and who does not require a special-needs-friendly home, is prevented from getting a perfectly good home in which he or she would thrive. Meanwhile the animal with hip dysplasia or knee problems due to inbreeding, who genuinely can't handle stairs, has to wait even longer because families with a stairless, special-needs-friendly home are going to snap up the normal, healthy animal instead. Having the animals around for longer no doubt suits the hoarder-fosterers just fine.

Uh, you have fallen for paddedhat's overgeneralization about rescue groups. He has an axe to grind (otherwise know as "an opinion") and that is fine, this is America, God Bless it! Sing it, sister.

 Having been involved in rescue for 25 years I inow that yes  there is plenty of crazy well as averice in this biz.

I don't see direct personal experience as having "fallen for" somebody else's overgeneralization.

Most of the four-legged animals I've kept have been surplus animals from unexpected litters or else rescues of some kind. I definitely agree with you on the "plenty of crazy" part because I've seen it in action. I'm looking to double up on my Chihuahua action. There's one group in town I'm hoping very much to work with once I get this next spate of travel over with, but before I found them I ran into some of the counterproductive behaviors I mentioned earlier.

jinga nation

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #64 on: May 05, 2017, 02:09:49 PM »
It's interesting to see all the other members here who also report bizarre and irrational behavior while attempting to add a rescued animal to their lives, AND the folks who can rationalize and explain away every strange and unreasonable behavior. Birds of a feather, perhaps.

 Thank God I never end up with a dog breed that can never be left alone while the family is at work and school, cannot be exposed to the horrors of children, other pets, stairs, lack of fencing, or denied the perfect suburban existence. You know, the kind you only find in sitcoms on the rerun channels. Hell, here in the real world, these mythical dogs are pretty rare, but oddly enough, rescue organizations are apparently awash in them. Hum, makes you wonder how many dogs never find a decent home since the bat shit crazy leadership can't seem to find the specific nirvana their animals apparently can't live without? I wonder how many of these places end up with taxpayer money to engage in this silliness?

I can think of plausible reasons why an *individual animal* might have any of the above restrictions due to health or behavioral problems, and there's something to be said for matching an animal's needs and restrictions with what a prospective adopter can provide, but having a blanket policy that prevents a healthy, child-friendly animal from going to a home with stairs and children makes no sense to me.

A policy that prevents a non-special-needs home from adopting any of their animals simply ensures that all the animals have to wait longer before being placed. The normal animal who would do very well in a home with stairs, kids, or a bit of daytime solitude, and who does not require a special-needs-friendly home, is prevented from getting a perfectly good home in which he or she would thrive. Meanwhile the animal with hip dysplasia or knee problems due to inbreeding, who genuinely can't handle stairs, has to wait even longer because families with a stairless, special-needs-friendly home are going to snap up the normal, healthy animal instead. Having the animals around for longer no doubt suits the hoarder-fosterers just fine.

Things like stairs are silly to me.  I have a dog who won't do stairs (okay, he will go up carpeted stairs, but that's it).  I live in a split level house, 5 hardwood stairs to go up (bedrooms), 5 carpeted stairs to go down (family room) from the main level (kitchen, living room).  He basically stays on the 'main' level all of the time, unless we carry him (he weighs 12 lbs) up or down, which we do regularly (he sleeps up, hangs out with us down, etc).  But there's no reason I have to allow my dog access to all parts of my house; if I had a 100lb dog and he could only be on the main level, that's far from an issue in my mind, especially versus say, living in a shelter or being destroyed.

Now you're just enabling that dog! (I kid, I kid)

iris lily

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #65 on: May 05, 2017, 03:19:43 PM »
It's interesting to see all the other members here who also report bizarre and irrational behavior while attempting to add a rescued animal to their lives, AND the folks who can rationalize and explain away every strange and unreasonable behavior. Birds of a feather, perhaps.

 Thank God I never end up with a dog breed that can never be left alone while the family is at work and school, cannot be exposed to the horrors of children, other pets, stairs, lack of fencing, or denied the perfect suburban existence. You know, the kind you only find in sitcoms on the rerun channels. Hell, here in the real world, these mythical dogs are pretty rare, but oddly enough, rescue organizations are apparently awash in them. Hum, makes you wonder how many dogs never find a decent home since the bat shit crazy leadership can't seem to find the specific nirvana their animals apparently can't live without? I wonder how many of these places end up with taxpayer money to engage in this silliness?

I can think of plausible reasons why an *individual animal* might have any of the above restrictions due to health or behavioral problems, and there's something to be said for matching an animal's needs and restrictions with what a prospective adopter can provide, but having a blanket policy that prevents a healthy, child-friendly animal from going to a home with stairs and children makes no sense to me.

A policy that prevents a non-special-needs home from adopting any of their animals simply ensures that all the animals have to wait longer before being placed. The normal animal who would do very well in a home with stairs, kids, or a bit of daytime solitude, and who does not require a special-needs-friendly home, is prevented from getting a perfectly good home in which he or she would thrive. Meanwhile the animal with hip dysplasia or knee problems due to inbreeding, who genuinely can't handle stairs, has to wait even longer because families with a stairless, special-needs-friendly home are going to snap up the normal, healthy animal instead. Having the animals around for longer no doubt suits the hoarder-fosterers just fine.

Things like stairs are silly to me.  I have a dog who won't do stairs (okay, he will go up carpeted stairs, but that's it).  I live in a split level house, 5 hardwood stairs to go up (bedrooms), 5 carpeted stairs to go down (family room) from the main level (kitchen, living room).  He basically stays on the 'main' level all of the time, unless we carry him (he weighs 12 lbs) up or down, which we do regularly (he sleeps up, hangs out with us down, etc).  But there's no reason I have to allow my dog access to all parts of my house; if I had a 100lb dog and he could only be on the main level, that's far from an issue in my mind, especially versus say, living in a shelter or being destroyed.

No, the stairs issue isnt silly.. You are thinking only of the interior of a single family house, apparently.
There are other variations. Agreed that it doesnt hurt your tiny dog to stay on one floor.

I am fostering a rescue dog right now who is frail, elderly, and a hospice dog. She is 35-40 40 lbs. We sometimes carry her down the 3 steps of our back porch, and we always carry her up the 4 steps of our front door. Apartments without elevators, high decks that lead down to a yard are two places she couldnt go u less smeone was willing to carry her each and every time.

lexde

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #66 on: May 05, 2017, 08:17:11 PM »
Funny, I adopted a purebred Malinois that probably would have cost $1500-2000 to pick up from a breeder. I don't know why people think that for some reason they can't adopt purebred dogs. I wasn't shopping for a "sale" on a purebred, just happened to find her, but still.

MgoSam

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #67 on: May 08, 2017, 02:06:55 PM »
On Friday I went to a drive in movie theater, my friend organized a group. I found out there that one of their friends was planning on going but couldn't, "she had to drive to Texas."

I was intrigued so asked about it casually and found out that she's picking up a puppy. Being someone that loves dogs, I wanted to know what breed and my friend said, "A poodle and maltese mix."

My next question is, "Oh how cute, is she picking it up from a shelter?" And my friend shook his head, "She's picking it up from a breeder."

I couldn't control my shock, WTF! Why would you drive all the way down to Texas from Minnesota to pick up a mixed breed dog from a breeder? There may be something I missed like the breeder is her sister, or something that might put it into more context but I just can't imagine driving that far. I know there are tons of breeders here in Minnesota for mixed breed because I was dead-set in getting a puppy from a breeder a few years ago and thankfully I didn't.

iris lily

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #68 on: May 09, 2017, 08:50:37 AM »
On Friday I went to a drive in movie theater, my friend organized a group. I found out there that one of their friends was planning on going but couldn't, "she had to drive to Texas."

I was intrigued so asked about it casually and found out that she's picking up a puppy. Being someone that loves dogs, I wanted to know what breed and my friend said, "A poodle and maltese mix."

My next question is, "Oh how cute, is she picking it up from a shelter?" And my friend shook his head, "She's picking it up from a breeder."

I couldn't control my shock, WTF! Why would you drive all the way down to Texas from Minnesota to pick up a mixed breed dog from a breeder? There may be something I missed like the breeder is her sister, or something that might put it into more context but I just can't imagine driving that far. I know there are tons of breeders here in Minnesota for mixed breed because I was dead-set in getting a puppy from a breeder a few years ago and thankfully I didn't.

And thats not even a legitimate breeder. Breeders of quality dogs do not purposely create mixed breeds. But whatever, it is is what it is. The market for certain dogs is much bigger than the numner that can be produced by quality breeders.

In my breed, bulldogs, we have " color breeders" who are producing trendy black and white dogs. One of the Kardashians got one of these dogs and now they are very popular. I fostered one little guy who was barely recognizable as as bulldog (yes, he had AKC papers, perhaps forged)  ut boy he was cute and black and white. He looked like a Boston Terrier on steroids. He got a home bery quickly because he is young and healthy and !TRENDY! We did t even put him up on our Rescue site, we try to downplay that color chit.

ketchup

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #69 on: May 09, 2017, 03:17:11 PM »
On Friday I went to a drive in movie theater, my friend organized a group. I found out there that one of their friends was planning on going but couldn't, "she had to drive to Texas."

I was intrigued so asked about it casually and found out that she's picking up a puppy. Being someone that loves dogs, I wanted to know what breed and my friend said, "A poodle and maltese mix."

My next question is, "Oh how cute, is she picking it up from a shelter?" And my friend shook his head, "She's picking it up from a breeder."

I couldn't control my shock, WTF! Why would you drive all the way down to Texas from Minnesota to pick up a mixed breed dog from a breeder? There may be something I missed like the breeder is her sister, or something that might put it into more context but I just can't imagine driving that far. I know there are tons of breeders here in Minnesota for mixed breed because I was dead-set in getting a puppy from a breeder a few years ago and thankfully I didn't.

It's a malti-poo! Gosh don't you know how special those are. You can't just get any dog, jeez. /sarcasm
I know any designer "breed" is special enough that the owners get butthurt when a vet tech writes "Mixed Breed" on their paperwork.

RetiredAt63

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #70 on: May 09, 2017, 06:18:32 PM »
I know any designer "breed" is special enough that the owners get butthurt when a vet tech writes "Mixed Breed" on their paperwork.
[/quote]

Some breeds started out as planned crosses.  Dobermans, for example.  But in those cases it was planned, the goals were clear and the breeding was controlled until the new breed was consistent.  Unless someone is doing the same with these crosses, they are just crosses for the cuteness of it.

Stopping before this turns into a 5 paragraph rant.

10dollarsatatime

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #71 on: May 09, 2017, 10:02:24 PM »
we have a purebred goldendoodle.  I was against spending the money we did, but honestly the "less shedding" aspect is the only reason why I can keep him in my house with the allergies I have.

No such thing as a 'purebred' goldendoodle.  It's a designer dog, at best.  That for some reason is more expensive than a purebred standard poodle.

My dogs are papered purebreds... adopted for $80 all in from a family who didn't have time for them anymore.  I love these guys, but couldn't imagine paying full akc prices for them.

KBecks

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #72 on: May 10, 2017, 05:54:04 AM »
We had DNA testing on our recent adult dog adoption and found she's 100%  American Staffordshire Terrier (street name, pitbull?) She has a few scars on her head and front legs, upper body.   Perhaps I'll get nerdy and get her an AKC purbred alternative listing if we ever do AKC agility. 

GuitarStv

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #73 on: May 10, 2017, 06:19:42 AM »
I've had purebred dogs from reputable breeders and I've had mixed breed dogs from the pound.

A reputable breeder can tell you the health problems of the puppy you're thinking of purchasing for multiple generations back.  They can do this because breeding choices are complicated and determined to improve the health of the line of dogs.  A reputable breeder will refund your money no questions asked, at any time after you purchase the dog if you don't want it any more for any reason.  You might have to wait several years to get a dog from a reputable breeder, and will be able to get dozens of references from them.  The breeder will certainly want to get to know you, and may reject you after you meet.  Paying a lot for a dog doesn't mean you're getting the dog from a reputable breeder (the high price tag is why so many people with no idea what they're doing pretend to be reputable breeders and produce thousands of dogs with health problems every year).  Most the issues being described in this thread related to pure-bred dogs doesn't apply to reputable breeders.

Mixed breed dogs don't have a breeder carefully selecting parent pedigree.  You might end up with a healthy dog, or you might not.  The idea that mixed breeds are healthier than purebreds is a myth.  I've had lovely dogs that unfortunately ended up with many health problems that were mixed breed from the pound.

I'd always recommend that people check out the pound first because there are so many great dogs who are abandoned every year, (and it's also much less expensive than going with a breeder) . . . but some of the ideas in this thread seem a bit off base.

paddedhat

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #74 on: May 10, 2017, 06:29:01 AM »


Uh, you have fallen for paddedhat's overgeneralization about rescue groups. He has an axe to grind (otherwise know as "an opinion") and that is fine, this is America, God Bless it! Sing it, sister.

 Having been involved in rescue for 25 years I inow that yes  there is plenty of crazy well as averice in this biz.


Got a bit of a silent smirk from this.

 I discuss some of my pass experience with the wacky world of  irrational "Rescuer" behavior. You label it as overgeneralization, and claim I have an axe to grind. Then proceed to confirm my experience based on 25 years of  being a rescuer. 

As the song says, "Isn't it ironic?"

I almost forgot my best rescuer story. My brother's  Ex, mother of his child, would actually fit the profile of a "baby's momma" better than than most. With no job, no income, and  the motivation of a stump. She squeaks by in life with handouts from baby's daddy, her family, and the government.  Her house stinks from dog shit, and her dining room is so full of plastic dog carriers that they are stacked. She keeps at least half a dozen rescue dogs at a time. She "fosters" for a local rescue agency. They typically come for a nearby, extremely impoverished city, and all qualify as aggressive breeds. If she wasn't "In" with the rescue crowd, she would end up on the local news as the local humane society empties the home out, with the cameras rolling. She would be labeled a crazy dog hoarder, and fined,  but no, she is one of the good ones...........

Yea, I know, that's just me unfairly judging and overgeneralizing.

MgoSam

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #75 on: May 13, 2017, 10:14:42 AM »
Funny, I adopted a purebred Malinois that probably would have cost $1500-2000 to pick up from a breeder. I don't know why people think that for some reason they can't adopt purebred dogs. I wasn't shopping for a "sale" on a purebred, just happened to find her, but still.

Pics? Malinois are an absolutely gorgeous breed and incredibly smart.

iris lily

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #76 on: May 13, 2017, 10:25:23 AM »


Uh, you have fallen for paddedhat's overgeneralization about rescue groups. He has an axe to grind (otherwise know as "an opinion") and that is fine, this is America, God Bless it! Sing it, sister.

 Having been involved in rescue for 25 years I inow that yes  there is plenty of crazy well as averice in this biz.


Got a bit of a silent smirk from this.

 I discuss some of my pass experience with the wacky world of  irrational "Rescuer" behavior. You label it as overgeneralization, and claim I have an axe to grind. Then proceed to confirm my experience based on 25 years of  being a rescuer. 

As the song says, "Isn't it ironic?"

I almost forgot my best rescuer story. My brother's  Ex, mother of his child, would actually fit the profile of a "baby's momma" better than than most. With no job, no income, and  the motivation of a stump. She squeaks by in life with handouts from baby's daddy, her family, and the government.  Her house stinks from dog shit, and her dining room is so full of plastic dog carriers that they are stacked. She keeps at least half a dozen rescue dogs at a time. She "fosters" for a local rescue agency. They typically come for a nearby, extremely impoverished city, and all qualify as aggressive breeds. If she wasn't "In" with the rescue crowd, she would end up on the local news as the local humane society empties the home out, with the cameras rolling. She would be labeled a crazy dog hoarder, and fined,  but no, she is one of the good ones...........

Yea, I know, that's just me unfairly judging and overgeneralizing.

Well, its more like 5% are batshit to the point of non-functionality,  another 15%-25% are absurdly focused to a point of impracticality. But the majority of people in animal rescue are a version of normal.

I am shaking my head about an interaction I had with someone on Nextdoor about his "rescue" efforts.He, or his organization (I cant tell which) gets mill reject puppies "about to be euthanized" and sells them for the price of veterinary costs  to non profit organizations to use in their fundriasing auctions. Oy vey. There are a few red flags here although paddedhat probably camt see them.

paddedhat

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #77 on: May 13, 2017, 12:11:19 PM »

Well, its more like 5% are batshit to the point of non-functionality,  another 15%-25% are absurdly focused to a point of impracticality. But the majority of people in animal rescue are a version of normal.

I am shaking my head about an interaction I had with someone on Nextdoor about his "rescue" efforts.He, or his organization (I cant tell which) gets mill reject puppies "about to be euthanized" and sells them for the price of veterinary costs  to non profit organizations to use in their fundriasing auctions. Oy vey. There are a few red flags here although paddedhat probably camt see them.

I'm not quite sure why, if you rank yourself among the "normal" crowd, you find the continual lame pot-shots directed at me to be necessary? This isn't Reddit, grown up interaction is encouraged.  BTW, I live in ground zero of the PA. Amish puppy mill disaster area, so there is nothing about a puppy mill, be it located in Arkansas, or here in Lancaster County, PA. that would shock me in the least. The misguided antics of a significant portion of the wacky world of rescuers are at least typically directed toward the right goals, primarily doing the right thing for defenseless animals. When it comes to puppy mills, it's quite the opposite. The sad part is that the local Amish are now using very net savvy intermediaries to market their mill puppies on slick websites, claiming that they are all "home raised with the family". They have also taken some of the worst operations to backwoods areas of the deep south since they have a lot more freedom to be as unethical as they want, with nobody to stop them. Cheaper to run a horrible operation in an quiet hollow in twittlefuck Missouri, and ship the pups up to the northeast, than take the chance of being caught, fined, and shut-down in this area.

The saddest part of a misguided scheme to rescue puppy mill cull dogs is that you unwittingly enable the horrible practices in the the first place. By willingly removing dogs that were going to be killed, you are complacent in lessening the horror of the whole operation. The operator wouldn't have a problem doing a mass euthanasia of a group of  cull dogs, but would prefer to avoid the publicity and legal issues of being caught doing so.  Think of how fortunate he is that some wacko rescuer shows up to take the problem off his hands?

lexde

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #78 on: August 12, 2017, 03:59:22 PM »
Funny, I adopted a purebred Malinois that probably would have cost $1500-2000 to pick up from a breeder. I don't know why people think that for some reason they can't adopt purebred dogs. I wasn't shopping for a "sale" on a purebred, just happened to find her, but still.

Pics? Malinois are an absolutely gorgeous breed and incredibly smart.
She's the best.


Pigeon

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Re: Purebred puppies
« Reply #79 on: August 12, 2017, 04:29:18 PM »
That face!