Wow...
the breeder that I got Ruthie from had some of her dogs debarked - I had never heard a de-barked dog before but as soon as I stepped in her door and heard her dogs I could tell. They CAN still bark, it's just a quieter, whispery bark that doesn't echo down the street. It doesn't remove their voice box - it removes a fold of tissue on each side of the larynx. Apparently some or all of the bark can come back within a few months too.
Obviously it didn't stop me from buying from this breeder - and I don't regret it for a second. I don't think you can generalize it either and say that it automatically makes them a bad breeder - Ruthie's breeder is excellent and has continued to keep in touch with me for updates on how she is doing whereas Oscar's breeder hasn't bothered to respond to any of my emails for the past 4 months and I have YET to receive his papers...
I myself would NOT debark a dog... But if I had a cat, I WOULD have it de-clawed... how are they so different? Both are done for OUR sake, not the animal's... |