I think that's very true! No two people will agree completely on anything. Now multiply that by 1000!
Either way, I think this is a great way to discuss this topic, everyone gets a chance to post what their views are and we could build on that.
I would have liked it though if someone answered my questions from my last post. As I have never bred a dog or for that matter had one as a companion (yes I know, I have a sad existence) I wouldn't ever know what the cost of raising a litter would be, and what a "fair" price would be for any dog, whether mixed or purebred.
Oh! And I wanted to comment on the mixed vs purebred at shelters.
I just got home from participating in our "Grooming Group" at the shelter. We pretty up our dogs to make them smell and look nicer! Today we had two toy poodles and a purbred westie among all the wonderful dogs there! Now, only one dog did we know for sure was a purebred. The westie was a owner surrender as the owner was shipped off overseas to complete their military service, her we know for a fact is a purebred. The other two are strays we picked up from the street. One had a docked tail which would indicate that at one point in its life it had owners. But that's just a guess. And since it looks like a poodle we put on its card "possible poodle mix" not because it is or it isn't a mix but because we don't know anything about it. If we would put "miniature poodle" and assumed it to be a purebred, then whoever adopted it would hold it to the standard for poodles when it came to temperament, size and color. The adding of the word possible and mix is a safety so that when someone does come and adopt one of the little ones at the shelter, they won't feel like they were being misled when the pup does not act the way they were hoping it would.
As for the health of these puppies, I don't think it's fair to assume that they are all in horrible conditions. Some are owner surrenders and are for the most part, very healthy. Others were taken away from bad owners and to no fault of their own have health problems. Still others grew up with no human interaction as puppies and only need a little TLC to get them to be the great companions the could be!!!
That's not saying I'm against getting a puppy from a breeder. There is a sense of comfort when bringing a puppy home from a caring breeder. The predictability can be usefull to prevent heartache. What if this is your first puppy and you know your allergic? (like me!) A little research can save you a ton of heartache and help you get the little friendly puppy that would best suit your needs. If I had the choice, I would defenitely get one from a breeder. But I'd also like to rescue, I don't know if that would be possible for me though.
