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Originally Posted by Nancy1999  So when you looked at rescues you found a bunch of older dogs, mostly male, weird colors, health issues, bad habits to retrain? Where do you think these dogs came from? Think about it for a minute. Do you think good breeders produced these dogs? The reason I encourage people to support the best breeder they can find, is that I want the others to go out of business, and in supporting poor breeders, you are supporting more dogs being born, that people don't want. It's true, a beautiful healthy Yorkie, is going to be adopted much faster than one with health issues and weird looking. In addition, a good breeder's dogs seldom need rehoming, because they are selective in finding homes for their dogs. They want to teach you proper care of the pup, so it doesn't develop bad habits, and make rehoming necessary. I just want to add that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and rehomed dogs, take on a special beauty, and so do their owners.
I'm not blaming you for wanting a puppy, I believe that this is a personal decision, and if someone thinks that they have the skills necessary to produce a well trained dog, I say go for it, but I always encourage people to take the time, and find a really good breeder, and read everything they can on what to look for in a breeder and questions to ask. What's done is done, and I'm not trying to rehash old threads. I don't wish to cause you upset or anguish, but it just seems like you are whitewashing the whole puppy mill situation, and I hope you rethink some of your views, and as someone stated earlier, "If your not part of the solution, your part of the problem." How about starting a new thread that just says you will help with names, but don't mention any registries? If you hadn't mentioned APRI, I never would have replied. I think a naming thread would be a fun thread, and I'm sorry that this got hijacked, but I hope someday, you will understand why so many of us think this is so important. |
Once again Nancy, wonderful post.
If you had truly researched rescue, you would have realized that your misconceptions about only older males with health and behavioral issues being available were wrong. Rescues get many wonderful, healthy, beautiful dogs who were turned over through no fault of their own. The top reasons dogs are turned into shelters are moving, landlord issues, cost of ownership and no time for the dog.
Rescues do get puppies. Pregnant females are regularly turned in or confiscated. With Missouri being the Puppymill Capital of the US, I would expect a higher than normal number of pregnant females to end up in shelters and private rescues.
If you had actually contacted a rescue, you would have been told that the young, adoptable dogs go quickly so anyone who is interested should fill out an application beforehand.
As far as health issues, what makes you think that a puppy from an APRI kennel who does no health testing will be healthier than a rescue? You probably aren't aware that rescues thoroughly vet all the dogs they take in and take care of any necessary health problems like luxating patellas before they are adopted out.