Puppy woes... any advice?

[MommyAllison]

double post

[ChicagoNDMom]

Umm, all “doodle” breeders are backyard, for-profit breeders. And if they have multiple litters available at a time, they are puppy mills. Pure and simple.These are not real breeds and there is no breed standard. Don’t be fooled by slick websites. They often sell dogs with health problems or poor breeding for very high prices.

If you want an excellent medium-sized dog that is more hypoallergenic, find a reputable Portuguese Water Dog or Wheaten Terrier breeder in your area. Reputable breeders generally are members of their state/regional breed club and show their breeding stock in AKC recognized shows. They generally have 2-3 litters at most per year.

A good breeder asks you tons of questions and checks you out to make sure you will provide a good home. They are not just about getting your $$. I would run away from that situation.

[twowhat?]

Umm, all “doodle” breeders are backyard, for-profit breeders. And if they have multiple litters available at a time, they are puppy mills. Pure and simple.These are not real breeds and there is no breed standard. Don’t be fooled by slick websites. They often sell dogs with health problems or poor breeding for very high prices.

If you want an excellent medium-sized dog that is more hypoallergenic, find a reputable Portuguese Water Dog or Wheaten Terrier breeder in your area. Reputable breeders generally are members of their state/regional breed club and show their breeding stock in AKC recognized shows. They generally have 2-3 litters at most per year.

A good breeder asks you tons of questions and checks you out to make sure you will provide a good home. They are not just about getting your $$. I would run away from that situation.

Sorry, OP but I tend to agree with this. Because doodles are so popular right now, it makes it easy for a "breeder" to have a high volume of sales and appear to be a legit "breeder" (even though these aren't actual breeds!). If you feel bad buying from a "breeder" I really encourage you to ramp up the search for a rescue dog that is likely to be lower shed...poodles and poodle mixes, some of the terrier breeds that have hair vs fur, etc. And if you're considering a Golden, then you're probably fine with dealing with shedding . Also, smaller dogs have less fur overall. Of course we ALL would prefer a low/non-shedding dog but I think that unless you have allergies, then give the shedding dogs a chance too! I have a friend who is looking to adopt a puppy and there are so many cute ones available now (if you want a puppy).

eta: check Petfinder to look at rescues in your area - many of them operate on foster homes and you could conceivably hasten the process if you're able to get in touch with the foster family through the rescue.

[westwoodmom04]

Umm, all “doodle” breeders are backyard, for-profit breeders. And if they have multiple litters available at a time, they are puppy mills. Pure and simple.These are not real breeds and there is no breed standard. Don’t be fooled by slick websites. They often sell dogs with health problems or poor breeding for very high prices.

If you want an excellent medium-sized dog that is more hypoallergenic, find a reputable Portuguese Water Dog or Wheaten Terrier breeder in your area. Reputable breeders generally are members of their state/regional breed club and show their breeding stock in AKC recognized shows. They generally have 2-3 litters at most per year.

A good breeder asks you tons of questions and checks you out to make sure you will provide a good home. They are not just about getting your $$. I would run away from that situation.

Or a tibetan terrier.

[doberbrat]

I'm going to agree with ChicagoNDMom & HannaAddict in this case. Doodles are super cute. But paying thousands for a mixed breed dog never made sense to me. They're all back yard breeders though clearly some are better than others.

Good Breeders: I'd look more for the breeder looking for references about you. Vet references etc. An ironclad contract stating that the dog must always be returned to them. An offer to speak to previous buyers - not online reviews. Proof of health testing - not just saying we do it, but here are the sire & dam's health clearances. OFA, thyroid, cardiac holter etc

Paying in cash makes sense to me - you're paying xxxx .... no one wants the check to bounce.

A slick website is a sign of nothing special. The biggest byb and puppy mills all have great websites. Its their business kwim?

Interesting that in other places adoptions are still going on. Here, all shelters etc have said they're closed to the public and no new adoptions are going on.

[Kindra178]

I'm going to agree with ChicagoNDMom & HannaAddict in this case. Doodles are super cute. But paying thousands for a mixed breed dog never made sense to me. They're all back yard breeders though clearly some are better than others. I'd look more for the breeder looking for references about you. Vet references etc. An ironclad contract stating that the dog must always be returned to them. An offer to speak to previous buyers - not online reviews. Proof of health testing - not just saying we do it, but here are the sire & dam's health clearances. OFA, thyroid, cardiac holter etc

Paying in cash makes sense to me - you're paying xxxx .... no one wants the check to bounce.

A slick website is a sign of nothing special. The biggest byb and puppy mills all have great websites. Its their business kwim?

Interesting that in other places adoptions are still going on. Here, all shelters etc have said they're closed to the public and no new adoptions are going on.

Yes to all this with one exception. Good breeders have contracts that make clear that any dog they sell is theirs no matter what. Doodles are only popular because poodles have odd personalities and a look that not everyone likes and their mix partners have better personalities and a more cute dog like look.

Op, I would not get a dog from this place. Something seems off and I bet it does to you too, which is why you are posting!

I’m a rescue person. I’m not sure I could ever buy a dog. We have a million allergies and asthma but we are not allergic to dogs. Dog hair doesn’t really bother me.

Shelters in chicago are getting emptied! The big chicago animal care, with capacity for 300 dogs, is down to some 60some dogs today. Normally this public kill shelter is begging for folks to come adopt as they are always running at or above capacity.




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[ourbabygirl]

Thanks, Everyone.

Yeah, I passed on these breeders, even though it was super tempting, because they were in our price range, and we'd be able to take them home either today, this Friday, or on the 18th. There were probably 10-15 puppies at 4 different breeders as of yesterday morning, and they were all gone by this afternoon. They're the only ones in our price range; we don't want to spend $2500 + spaying/ neutering, etc. to get one from a 'better' breeder.

I just didn't know enough about them, and since we can't meet any of the puppies before making a deposit, I didn't want to risk it. A lot of the more 'reputable' breeders I'm seeing in our state don't allow you to meet the dogs before adopting them, though- they only let you pick based on your order on the waiting list, and you can only pick based on a photo (and whether you want a boy or girl). Growing up, when our family was in the market for a dog from a breeder, we could always go and meet the puppies and pick them out that way (see how their personality shows when you're around them).

I still like the idea of a rescue as far as giving an animal a home that really needs one, but I'm a little worried about what health problems they could have. Plus the only place where we can meet more than one dog at a time here is at the humane society, where they're in cages (and which euthanizes if necessary, which I don't like). All the other shelters have dogs in foster homes, and you can only apply for, and meet, one. Unfortunately the puppies are in such demand that they go pending basically as soon as they're posted online (my kids and I have been looking and applying for 2 or 3 weeks). It's a moot point right now, though, as almost all of the shelters are shut down during the governor's stay at home order.

As far as I know, we don't have any allergies in our family, but I'm hoping to find a dog that sheds less, since it will be fully an indoor dog. Unfortunately, the look and personality that my family and I like the best are in the big dogs that shed a lot (German Shepherd, Great Pyrenees, Bernese Mountain Dog, etc.). We can't have a Great Pyrenees because we don't have a physical fence (and the shelters won't adopt them out to us with Invisible Fence), and many of the dogs I've looked at on shelter websites aren't good with cats or kids, they're anxious and don't like men or kids, and they need a companion dog to help them learn the ropes. So we'll keep looking... I will try the other breeds you mentioned...

[niccig]

We got our small dog from a rescue that specializes in small dogs. They thought he was a poodle terrier mix. After years of talking about it, we did the dog DNA test. He’s a purebred Chinese Crested Powderpuff. We were expecting a mix, you just never know with a rescue. Now we have some medical info to tell our Vet to watch for. I’d look at getting an older dog over a puppy. Less work, you can tell the personality and they’re not as popular. Our dog was either 3 or 4 years old.


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[ChicagoNDMom]

ourbabygirl, any place that tells you that you are “adopting” a puppy for $2500+ is a scammy puppy mill. Seriously. Also, the “puppy was available this morning but now is gone” is a sales tactic. They get you to think you are going to have to move fast and buy one from the next litter they put up. They are breeding these poor bitches every 6 months for years and years. It is criminal.

Please do some homework and don’t buy from one of these mills.

[westwoodmom04]

Thanks, Everyone.

Yeah, I passed on these breeders, even though it was super tempting, because they were in our price range, and we'd be able to take them home either today, this Friday, or on the 18th. There were probably 10-15 puppies at 4 different breeders as of yesterday morning, and they were all gone by this afternoon. They're the only ones in our price range; we don't want to spend $2500 + spaying/ neutering, etc. to get one from a 'better' breeder.

I just didn't know enough about them, and since we can't meet any of the puppies before making a deposit, I didn't want to risk it. A lot of the more 'reputable' breeders I'm seeing in our state don't allow you to meet the dogs before adopting them, though- they only let you pick based on your order on the waiting list, and you can only pick based on a photo (and whether you want a boy or girl). Growing up, when our family was in the market for a dog from a breeder, we could always go and meet the puppies and pick them out that way (see how their personality shows when you're around them).

I still like the idea of a rescue as far as giving an animal a home that really needs one, but I'm a little worried about what health problems they could have. Plus the only place where we can meet more than one dog at a time here is at the humane society, where they're in cages (and which euthanizes if necessary, which I don't like). All the other shelters have dogs in foster homes, and you can only apply for, and meet, one. Unfortunately the puppies are in such demand that they go pending basically as soon as they're posted online (my kids and I have been looking and applying for 2 or 3 weeks). It's a moot point right now, though, as almost all of the shelters are shut down during the governor's stay at home order.

As far as I know, we don't have any allergies in our family, but I'm hoping to find a dog that sheds less, since it will be fully an indoor dog. Unfortunately, the look and personality that my family and I like the best are in the big dogs that shed a lot (German Shepherd, Great Pyrenees, Bernese Mountain Dog, etc.). We can't have a Great Pyrenees because we don't have a physical fence (and the shelters won't adopt them out to us with Invisible Fence), and many of the dogs I've looked at on shelter websites aren't good with cats or kids, they're anxious and don't like men or kids, and they need a companion dog to help them learn the ropes. So we'll keep looking... I will try the other breeds you mentioned...

No reputable breeder will refuse to allow you to meet puppies, that’s a sign they don’t want you to see their facilities in advance. We have two dogs from breeders, and both insisted upon meeting us before puppy was delivered.