Wow-I am kinda slow-but I had to read that first line a few times to get it. :rolleyes: Funny. :p

Since so many YTers contribute to the OK Rescue both financially and through product donations, why not make public the number of dogs purchased at the auction, the amount of $$ spent on each, and the status of each dog -- health, registered or not, age, etc. If you don't feel comfortable making the information truly public, then please make it available through emails or pm's.

What first line mine or hotel4yorkies? I don't know much about OKYR and had no idea who hotel4yorkies was. Elaine

No-the gettin' fresh part....:cool:

With all of this talk of getting "the ones no one else wants", of glass houses and transparency and the great number of dogs OKYR has saved in such a short amount of time, I've a challenge for OKYR admin: List the number of dogs you've saved to date and their origins, either auctions purchase, owner surrender, breeder surrender, shelter, etc.

My guess is almost half of their dogs have been auction purchases, and only a few were purchased for $1 (I'm aware of only two I believe that were $1). I would say the average paid would be around $40-50.

Oops sorry! I was posting before I had read your post Cindy.

Thank you Jen. You would know. You were there.

LOL. Well, I'm not kind of slow. I am slow. Tee hee. I just didn't want Hotel4yorkies to think I was picking so I said I wasn't trying to be fresh with her but did not really get what her post was saying. I think I'm understanding now. Hotel4Yorkies is I guess affiliated with OKYR and she's saying that they don't buy puppies from auctions? Elaine

Ok...I give up! All I know is that we are saving yorkies! That is my mission. I love what I do and will continue. And yes...I'm a foster with OKYR. I will answer any questions to the best of my knowledge. And you are so wrong....half have not been auctions!

GREAT comments. :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

And I think this clarified for me that, currently, I am not sure of OKYR's mission after what I've learned today. I'm not saying they haven't rescued many, many dogs - it's clear they have.

But, what has stuck w/ me the most since this afternoon was this comment from a former OKYR member to a current member: "You know as well as I do the first auction with biewers OKYR was prepared to spend several hundred dollars for each biewer" -- that's where I'm just lost as to the intent of the rescue. When I think of the quantity of dogs who could've been saved using those "hundreds" that were earmarked for the biewers, I just don't get it. Why was OKYR willing to spend hundreds on the biewers....that is the burning question that I can't get out of my mind. That is where I don't understand the intent or mission of the rescue. :confused:

I believe she was saying the ones OKYR gets from auctions are the dogs no one else wants. And, they do buy puppies, not necessarily young puppies, most are usually in the 6 month old range. Some of the puppies are returns from pet stores and brokers as they got too big to sell.

Also, I want everyone here to know Hotel4yorkies, her sister and daughter are very good people with the very best intentions. I've considered and still do consider her my friend even though I felt compelled to speak out against OKYR practices.

Jenn we were posting at the same time. :D :D :D

I don't want ANYONE to bash an organization that is trying to save Yorkies, Beiwers, or any animal for that matter -- sometimes an organization does the best they can do to help.....

It just seems that there are a lot of questions - that if they were anwered by "The Rescue" then we could all make our own personal decisions about whether or not we choose to support the group. If it is their goal to save dogs through purchasing them at auctions and then "reselling them" to appropriate homes, then they are doing what they feel is helping yorkies in need --- however, since they are using donation $$ to accomplish this work, it is appropriate to make financials public.

Hotel4Yorkies, you seem to be a very dedicated and caring person. It sounds like you have done wonderful things for the yorkies in your care.

As a caring person, I do hope that you can be open to re-evaluating your position on auctions. I can't say you MUST think one way or the other -- I just learned about this issue myself. I think we are all animal lovers here, and we keep focus on the big issue here, how to improve dog welfare in this country.

I have learned a lot from this thread, and it's not really about OKYR for me. I live in California.

I'd welcome any rescue to come on here and say "yes, we buy at auctions. Here's what we do and why." If you know in your heart that you are doing the right thing, I don't think there's any problem with being public about it.

I congratulate you for all of your hard work towards saving our beloved Yorkies. It takes a very special person to foster. I hate it that you are fielding these questions alone....

It would be a good thing for some of our members who are on the OK Rescue Board of Directors to field these questions and help the members who contribute to their cause to understand.

Half may be a slight exageration....but I am aware that at the very least 30-35 of their rescues have been from auctions. And, the number is actually higher I believe, I just don't have access to the records anymore.

Agreed. This is not against any one person and definately NO fosters. They are the backbone of the second chance at life these babies are given. :thumbup:

Boy am I naive ....I can't believe this is what goes on.....My mouth dropped when I starting reading this thread.....
Sheila

My thoughts exactally.

:thumbup:

Shelia, I think there is a lot of misunderstanding that can only be cleared up when the OK Rescue members who have financial and animal records comes on to field questions. I, for one, am not asking for justification, but I would like to know what their Mission is so that I can decide if I want to make any further product donations.....

The closest thing to a mission statement that I could find on the website is the following:
Our mission is to save and re-home Yorkies and Biewer Yorkshire Terriers that are abandoned and no longer wanted.


I agree that it would help to have the founders/current members that have the access to the records come on here. I'm sure they have been told there is this post here and I'm pretty sure they have been following it as well.

Well, I don't think those auction dogs were in the abandoned category:rolleyes:.

And, yes members of OKYR mgmt have been signed on today. Michelle tried to justify their actions in earlier posts and I've seen Angi on line but no response from her as of yet. IDK where the self-proclaimed founder of OKYR has been today, but you can bet she has been made aware of what has been posted.

To me, this speaks volumes!

okay i was going to stay out of this but i no longer can.. yes i was prepared to spend several hundred on the biewers. what you all should know is that was MY OWN PERSONAL MONEY!!!!!! i do have a biewer and i am a biewer lover. Everyone on here is so interested in bashing us and not worried about any of these dogs!

you all are telling me that you would rather these dogs live a life of hell being bred until they die instead of me paying $1-$50 for them?? no.. that is inhumane.. this is a lose/lose situation no matter how you look at..


and this is my only response to Jencar98's 500 posts of bashing my organization. She was the one that introduced me to the world of auction.. she has single handled brought at LEAST 30 dogs into our rescue from auction. i tell that we have room for a few.. she buys 18 hands them over to me and then sends me a bill. so she should know exactly how much we spent because she is the one that paid for them!!!! and the last auction i was at, she was there.. she has gotten several breed rescues involved in auctions here in oklahoma as well.

and my last note... there is NEVER a single dollar made off ANY auction dog.. we probably put $200-$300 into an auction dog and adopt them out for $150.. this rescue does nothing but lose money but i would much rather see a dog know what it's like to have a real life than make a dollar..


If anyone feels the need to call and bash me personally my personal phone number is listed on our website.. feel free to call me if you want to talk but do NOT bash all of our wonderful volunteers that pour their heart and souls into helping these dogs.

Firstly, no one has bashed any of the volunteers or fosters. Nor is anyone bashing the actual rescue itself. No one is doubting that there haven't been legitimate rescues made. We are questioning the practice of buying dogs at an auction while supposedly refusing other dogs at the same time.

I am personally happy to see someone coming on here from the rescue. However, it has remained at a calm discussion thus far. I would hope that it will remain that way.

You have an obligation to those who support you to answer these types of questions. If you feel that going to auctions isn't wrong then so be it. It is the choice of the donor/foster as to whether or not they continue to support such practices.

you are right if they want to support us, they need to know .. and that is what we do.. there has NEVER been a single dog turned away from our rescue, so i'm not exactly sure why this thread has blown up the way it has???

This is really bugging me. Various members of OKYR have come on and given very passionate defenses of buying dogs at auctions. The point is not whether your heart is in the right place. The point is that you are giving money to puppy mills!

This fact cannot be changed regardless of the motives of the people who "outed" OKYR, which dogs have been rescued, or how much of your own money and time you have dedicated. You may be a wonderful person, and you may have done these specific dogs a service. BUT -- another dog(s) will suffer in its place. Maybe you won't be the person eight years down the line picking up the next female that's been used up and spit out on the block. But that dog is getting created, even if it's not standing before you now.

How can someone say it's wrong to buy at a pet store, but okay to buy at an auction? If this question truly has an answer, I would love to hear it.

like i said before.. this is a lose/lose.... there is no answer.. but in MY MIND i feel that the dogs we take out have another shot at life.. they will be replaced whether i go or not.. the millers maybe make $10 off me after their fees are all taken out.. so i do not really view that as a profit..

It was brought up in this thread because you do have a large support system here. I know it may be hard because you are affiliated with this group. However, if you can step out of the box to see why the question would arise. You just stated that you were going to use your own money to buy a biewer for yourself... this is probably worse than the rescue doing it. You are not only putting money into the hands of these puppy mills but you are doing it for your own greed. I know it is hard to look into the faces of all the pups you see at auctions but to buy them all up is not only counterproductive but is in my opinion not an ethical move to make as a rescue.

I would love to have a biewer too but I would NEVER buy from a puppy mill. I would look to my fellow breeders who take the time to educate and take the time to place these babies.