LoveToKnow Dogs:AllComments

From LoveToKnow Dogs

Comments

Thanks Kathy, I'm glad you provided the extra details. I agree that this breeder doesn't seem to be making sound decisions based on what's best for the dogs. One thing you might consider is alerting the Humane Society to the situation. They may be willing to do an investigation.

Do let us know what happens.

-- Contributed by: Kelly

HI Kelly,

Thank you so much for your thoughtful response. Yes, I think all of what you have suggested may have contributed to the this breeders this decision. The breeder says she is downsizing due to a personal situation which she shared with me, which is why we offered to keep her whole at our personal cost. It is also true that she had received a deposit on the dogs.

Cir...stances contributing to this dilemma for us include inconsistencies in her actions that alarm us and make us question her sense of responsibility. Her investigation of the breeder in Mexico was superficial at best as she does not speak Spanish and he spoke no English. As she says she is downsizing in one email, she also has said in subsequent emails that she is looking to buy another breeding dog and will get another pet as a mate for a different breed of dog she recently purchased as a pet. The girls she sold -one of which she had for 8 mos (3.5 yrs old), one of 18 mos (3 yrs old), the other for 4 years (4 yrs old) - also had some issues - for example, she wasn't sure one of them could be bred safely as she had an unusually hard, long labor last whelping, a C-section from a prior breeder and had scarring of the uterus which was of concern to her vet. So why sell this dog to a breeder? With the breeding dogs she has now (4 soon to be 5) she plans to breed them as often as possible and expects to get 7-10 litters a year so downsizing won't affect her income as much. In any event, she believes that she is being a responsible breeder as she claims she can't take care of all the dogs any longer and they had to go right away. As much as being a responsible breeder includes understanding your own goals, we think it also includes ensuring that the dogs you do have also go to homes that are in their best interest.

How would someone know this if you are not so intimate with the details as we are? I guess it is important to ask a breeder what happens to the breeding dogs when they no longer work for her "program"? How long does she keep her breeding dogs? Where are the parents of the breeding dogs she has of her own breeding? What are the right questions to ask? I'm not sure how someone who cares what kind of breeder they are buying from would know about these situations if it is not out there. Maybe just writing about them here may help to build a little awareness.

Even though the review sites I am referring are specifically for reviews of local businesses and recommendations as well as negative reviews are posted, you are right we should check to see about liability. We are still coming to terms with how to handle something we see as, at a minimum, irresponsible, and perhaps unethical. We have information we don't know what to do with and are trying to figure out what the responsible thing to do is. Our goal is not to create unnecessary drama, but to make sure that through complacency we don't contribute to the problem.

Thank you for sharing some other things we should take into consideration. I'll let you know what we decide to do.

-- Contributed by: Kathy

Hi Kathy,

I agree that it's unusual that this breeder would consider selling these dogs to a breeder in Mexico that she hasn't sufficiently investigated to make sure the dogs are going to a good situation, but she may be having a personal problem/issue that she hasn't shared with you. Also, she may have already received partial payment from the Mexican breeder and therefore feels contractually obligated to complete the sale.

Should you post reviews about this breeder? That's a decision only you can make. However, you do want to consider whether doing so can leave you vulnerable to a lawsuit for libel or slander.

-- Contributed by: Kelly

Hi, I would like to get some guidance on a situation and dilemma. About a year ago I bought a dog from someone I thought was a good breeder. Instead of a puppy I bought a breeding dog (not her breeding) as a pet and had her spayed. Although things are never perfect, I thought this breeder cared about her dogs. When others asked where I got the dog, I told them and this breeder has sold several puppies as a result. I keep in touch with the breeder and I noticed over the last year she had some of her other breeding dogs for sale, most of whom were with her a short time and all were not of her breeding. In her ads, she identified all their special needs (e.g. not even sure it was safe to breed one of them again). One day recently they were all pending sale and when I told her I hoped they were going to good loving homes, she told me that they were going to a breeder in Mexico and "unfortunatly I don't know much about him". My friends and I who had purchased dogs from her were concerned given what we knew of these dogs(the dog I bought from her has issues from such a life of 4 homes in 3.5 years), and we did not think a home with a breeder in Mexico was the right thing. We offered to pay her full price for the dogs with the intent to find them loving forever homes (no profit to us - we were already making arrangements with a breed rescue organization). We fully expected she would be appreciate this option - no income loss to her, pet only forever homes for the dogs. Instead she defended her plan with very inconsistent and thoughtless arguments. In the end, she decided it was best to sell the dogs to the breeder in Mexico vs. her concerned local customers.

As the owner of these dogs, she of course has the right to sell them to whomever she wishes. However, we think her actions are uncaring and irresponsible to the dogs she claimed to love. We would like to leave reviews on a few review sites sharing this information in the event others may care if they are buying from a breeder who makes such decisions. We just don't get it. Why would someone make such a decision, especially if you care about your customers and your dogs?

So, should we post a review or walk away?

-- Contributed by: Kathy

Hi Alley,

I found this question on another page, and basically I think the best thing you can do is ask a lawyer to take a look at your son's contract to determine whether it's legally binding. Please let us know what you find out, and good luck.

-- Contributed by: Kelly

hello, my son paid $1500, signed a contract with a breeder (he met up with at starbucks) for a female english bulldog 6 months of age. With the agreement that he would return the dog after her 2nd heat to be bred. The breeder gets pick of 3 pups. He does not recieve papers or vasccination records until she is bred. I took her to the vet yesterday and he said it is not safe to breed this dog until she is atleast 2yrs old. I would like to get her fixed before she has her first heat, as my son has lost interest and has given her to me. How binding do you think this contract is? Someone told me to report the person. I dont want to breed her so I guess I dont care about the papers really. What happens if I just take her to get fixed can he sue my son?

-- Contributed by: alley

Hi Holly,

I'm so sorry to hear what you and your dog are going through. You do not have to give your dog back to the breeder if you have sole ownership, and you certainly don't have to give back the registration papers. It is solely up to you to decide what is the best thing to do for your dog. You've done what you can to make the breeder aware of the health issue, and unfortunately, there's probably little else to be done about it. However, you may want to consult an attorney to explore whether or not you have a right to a refund. I think a lot will depend on whether you received a written health guarantee from the breeder and exactly what that agreement covered.

Thanks for your question, and best wishes for an acceptible resolution.

-- Contributed by: Kelly

I bought a puppy from somebody I thought was a reputable breeder, however my dog started acting different at almost 3 years old. He started to forget commands which I began to believe was him just not listening. Not long after his 3rd birthday he got diagnosed with epilepsy and perscribed 30mg phenobarbital twice a day. A couple weeks later I noticed that my dog seemed to be deaf. A few months later he had 6 seizures between 2:00am and 2:30pm. The vet told me to give him an extra pill. I did that and he stoped seizing until the next afternoon when he began again. That night after 1am he began having one seizure after another and I began to wonder if it was going to stop. He had about 6 in a row and finally stopped and hasn't had any since. I since got a second opinion done and have been informed that his condition is not epilepsy and he would need extensive testing done on his head and brain because it is neurological. She also said that whatever he has is conginital and the breeder should not be breeding that line anymore.The vet told me his best option is euthanization. This breeder has since breed my dogs sister and is planning on producing another litter this spring. She won't let me get him ethanized and wants me to return him along with his registration papers. I am hurt because I have grown to love my froggy friend and hate to have to give him up. I am also angry because I feel the breeder must have known something and yet she keeps selling and producing puppies of this same genetic history. Is there anything I can do legally to get some money back?

-- Contributed by: Hollie

I have 2 pitbulls that I need to be rid of. They are very gentil and loving dogs that we don't want to get rid of but they don't get along all the time. I'm worried that they might get into a fight that will end up killing one of them and hurting the other bad. One of them is a red nose. They are both beautiful and love kids. I want to sell them but I'm afraid that if I put them in the paper I will end up having fighters get them. If someone could help me please let me know. I'd rather put them down than have them fight.

Hi Sarah, I think your best option is to contact a Pitbull rescue. Try doing an Internet search for one near where you live. I truly hope you find the help you need.

-- Contributed by: Sarah Matusiak

Hi I bought a puppy from this breeder and he died about 3 days after i bought him. I took him to the emergency room and they said that he had all the signs of Canine parovirus and said that i should take him back to the breeder the next day. He passed away that night the had explained to me that he had been sick when i bought him. I called the breeder and told her what had happened and she told us that i had to send her the original registration papers because i could use them for another puppy and a copy of the veteniarian papers where i took the pup. But the thing is that she has told me that once she recieved the papers we would talk should i give her the original papers? and is this leagle that she sold me a sick puppy?

Hi Adela,

I'm not qualified to give you legal advice. What I do know is that a reputable breeder would have made sure the puppy at least had its first vaccination before selling it, and would also give you back your money for selling you a sick puppy that only lived three days. Parvo takes approximately 14 days to incubate, so the puppy was definitely sick when it left the breeder's house.

I would refrain from giving back those papers until it's clear that the breeder is going to give you an on the spot refund. Those papers may be your only proof of ever having possesion of that puppy. If you have access to legal council, you might want to run this scenario by them to find out what your options truly are. If all else fails, save the papers, document exactly what happened, include a copy of the vet's report and take the breeder to small claims court.

Best wishes in this difficult situation.

-- Contributed by: Adela

this website was a good place for me to do my homework for my equine class because of this site i feel that im gonna get a good grade on my powerpoint of dog breeding and care

Glad we could help Stephanie!

-- Contributed by: Stephanie Lee
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