Bought a puppy from a breeder before actually seeing it in person?

[mamaturk]

Has anyone here done this?? We are looking into getting an english bulldog and many of the breeders I have found are from other states and they send the puppy to you. I don't know anyone in person who has done this and feel a little nervous about the whole thing. Just looking to hear about positive experiences.....

[Tondi G]

I haven't done it but I do know someone who bought a Basset Hound from a Breeder and had it shipped. He was adorable and they had a very good experience doing it that way!

Good Luck

~Tondi

[SnuggleBuggles]

Don't know if this counts but my sister has "rescued" 2 cats from show cat breeders w/o meeting the cats. They were both going to be put to sleep b/c they weren't perfect enough to be show cats. They are both adorable and good cats. :) I went with her to pick one of them up at the airport and couldn't understand what could be so special about this cat- till I saw it. :)

Beth

[rgors]

In my personal opinion, I would not buy the puppy. But not because I haven't seen the puppy -- it would be because I haven't seen the breeder. In my experience, you only need to spend 5 minutes onsite at a breeder and meeting the puppy "parents," to know if you are comfortable with how they nurtured the puppy.

Of course, I used to volunteer at an animal shelter and I feel strongly about responsible breeding. And a lot of breeders talk a good talk but do NOT walk a good walk. So this is something I care deeply about and I don't know that the average person would be as concerned as I am, with ensuring the breeder was a responsible pet lover. We all have our own issues.

[Marisa6826]

Yup. Have done it twice. I've seen pics online and have spoken with breeders at length, and then picked the dogs up at the airport. Any reputable breeder with offer a full return policy if you have a problem with the dog. In fact, it will be in your contract that you MUST return the dog to them if there's a problem.

By the way, I have three French Bulldogs.

Love English Bullies, too! :)

-m

[Marisa6826]

That's not always the case. Depending on the breed it can be a very small 'world'. In the case of French Bulldogs, they all know each other and you VERY quickly learn who is on the up and up and who is not. I did Frenchie Rescue and could tell you right off the bat who to stay away from throughout the country and who was absolutely reputable without having ever stepped foot into their state, let alone kennels.

Of course there will always be 'breeders' who are nothing more than puppy mills, and that's an entirely different story. But it is completely up to the buyer to research with due diligence who it is that they're buying from, what lines the dog is coming from, etc.

Much more importantly, any breeder worth their salt spends quite a bit of time interviewing prospective owners before selling their dogs to them. They aren't going to just throw their dogs to the first Paypal buyer they receive and go on their merry way.


-m

[JoyNChrist]

We've done it (with english bulldogs, actually) and had great experiences. You just have to make sure you do a lot of research first.

Not to discourage you, but make sure you do a lot of research about English bulldogs before you make the decision to buy one. They're wonderful, but a rather high maintenance breed and are prone to a few health problems. DH's family has several and we actually used to breed them, but got out of it for those reasons. We plan to get another one day, but only after our kids are a bigger and we can give it our full attention.

Just something to think about. Good luck with whatever you decide!

[Momof3Labs]

I wouldn't. I'd want to observe the puppy's personality myself before committing to anything, especially with small children at home.

[bubbaray]

It would depend on my comfort level with the breed and with the breeder. I go to a LOT of dog shows and know a lot of breeders.

ITA with the PP above. Any reputable breeder will ask you far more questions than you could ever think to ask them. We were going to get another lab and the breeder's questionaire was four pages long, single spaced. I kid you not.

When I was a kid, we got our miniature schnauzer sight unseen from a reputable breeder. He had issues with planes after that, but was a great dog otherwise.

HTH

Melissa

DD#1: 04/2004

DD#2: 01/2007