NEWBIE: I did the unthinkable - PETLAND
 

I have been in the market for a Yorkie pup (as a pet) and over the past few months I have contacted several breeders and also been shopping on the PureBredBreeders website. Yesterday, I wandered into PETLAND and they had two Yorkies - one little guy immediately jumped all over me and then fell asleep in my arms. He was perfect. I've read all about the puppy-mill horrors (regarding PBPUPS.COM and PETLAND) - but now my heart has been stolen.

Petland says the puppy is ACA registered. This is also concerning - even though I will never breed the pup. They are charging 1999.99 - which looks to be around the price point for a pure AKC pup.

I am looking for any words of advice.

I also found a 9 week pup in the classifieds - no papers - 600 quick sale. Should I run?

If you can afford two grand for a pup, why aren't you looking at reputable breeders?

Reputable Yorkie Breeders in Michigan
 

That's just it! I'm a newbie and I'm having a hard time figuring out WHO is reputable and who is not. I'm reluctant to buy from an out of state breeder - I want to meet the puppy before I purchase it. I'm struggling to find the right breeder in Michigan. Is it safe to assume if the breeder provides AKC registration - then they are "reputable"?

You put yourself in a hard position here. I feel your pain.

I wanted to welcome you to YT and commend you on coming here to seek advice. :)

What happened to you is exactly why I will not go into stores that sell dogs. Back in the day, I didn't realize that they got their pups from puppymills. Now, I do.

So, now your heart has been stolen by this sweet puppy. And, we can make the argument that the puppy didn't do anything wrong and needs a home. But, bottom line is that this puppy's parents came from a puppy mill and they are suffering in terrible conditions. To buy this pup (and that is a crazy amount of money, by the way!), would be keeping this store in the business of torturing dogs to produce puppies that people think are "cute" and "in".

I would just have to say a prayer for that baby puppy and her parents and move forward to find a reputable breeder.

If you go for the puppy in the store OR the one that is for quick sale...you have no idea what you are getting. In the long run, you will have your heart broken more when a puppy store puppy ends up taking over your heart and then it comes down with dreadful illnesses..which is highly likely.

So, advice? Yes, run. And good for you for coming here to seek answers!

can i ask are you not interested in a rescue? there are many available on pet finder.com..that being said your instinct is right about meeting your pending bundle of love and the parents also. you want to be sure the parents are the correct weight and signs of a byb are the words teacup, tini, micro..things of that nature. technically you want the mom to be 5 pounds at least and at least 2 years old i think. i hope others will chime in and help out here. i think the most important thing is to be sure the parents are well taken care of and are vaccinated and everyone is socialized with the family not kept in a crate with no vetting or attention or love. hope that helps a lil. i did a google search and there are alot of yorkie breeders in michigan. i wish you luck in your search.

i attached a pic on puppy mills babies and this shows why you want to know who your babies parents are.

Welcome to Yorkie Talk. $1,999 is way overpriced for a non-AKC Yorkie. Also, Petland, you are gambling big time in terms of the health. The puppy could end up costing much more in healthcare. Then there is the issue of who you are supporting buying a puppy from them.

$1,999 is also a bit pricey in most parts of the country for an AKC male.

The other pup you mentioned, $600 and no papers, listed in classified. Very dicey.

I would be patient and keep looking for a reputable breeder.

Welcome to YT. Sounds like you got bit by the IWannaYorkie bug. The Petland prices are outrageous for a non-AKC Yorkie. You really don't know what you are getting for your hard earned $$. I would run from the pup in the classified for a couple of reasons 1) you don't know the background of the pup and 2) the breeder is letting the pup go much too early.

Rescues are a great option if it would work for you. There are many pure bred Yorkies that are in great need of loving homes. If you want a "registered" Yorkie, then AKC is the way to go. Checking with the YTCA (Yorkshire Terrier Club of America) is a fantastic starting point.

It's best to stay focused on finding that perfect healthy pup that will fit with your family. It is so hard not to fall in love with each one you see, but be patient - your new baby is out there just waiting on you to find him/her.

Our first yorkie, Ginger, came from a small independent pet store. Did she come from a puppy mill? I don't know. We didn't know about puppy mills back then (over 9 1/2 yrs ago). She has been perfectly healthy all her life and is still very healthy. Actually, she may be the healthiest of all my dogs. I think we were very lucky with her!

Would I hate you for buying that puppy? No. Would I pay $2k for the puppy? NO! Heck, I wouldn't pay half that. That puppy is WAY overpriced! Petland is just plain crazy if you ask me.

You may have to look out of state to find the perfect puppy (if there is such a thing as a perfect puppy). They will all be prone to some health issues and will all be a significant amount of work. They require commitment.

I have personally not had much luck with rescues in the past. And the whole thing about submitting an application, having them do the whole background check, home "study", and subject you to all sorts of stuff prior to even considering you as fit to adopt a dog, and then only to find out they adopted the dog to someone else anyway. That's the reason I won't consider adoption any more. I have not had good experiences with adoption. I will still say that adoption is a wonderful thing though. Those dogs deserve good homes! My problem is that I have no patience and need instant gratification.

I hope you find the right puppy for you and your family. Please keep us posted on your search. Yorkies are wonderful dogs and companions. Good luck!

NEITHER OF THESE. Hon honestly, don't do it. Do not give PetLand your money. Save your money get the right pup the right way.

Please, please, please....

Please do not buy that puppy its parents live in filth, there own feces, they are matted, unhealthy, rarely feed and watered, never loved, never get vet care and most puppy mills will do there own c-sections with out putting the mom under anesthesia. Buying that puppy is supporting that. You can find reputable breeders at the ytca.org. A reputable breeder will not let a puppy leave there mother until 12 weeks, they will do health testing on there breeding dogs, they will be AKC registered, they will not breed females under 12 pounds, they will not have so many different breeds and litters that they can not offer personal attention to each litter, you will be able to see both parents, they will not use the word teacup or micro, they will have a spay and neuter contract, in the contract they will want the pup to come back to them if you can no longer keep the pup, and they will not breed mixes. It may take some time but you are much better off finding a reputable breeder then buying from a puppy mill or back yard breeder because most pups from non reputable breeders end up with some kind of issues and health problems. Before I knew better I got my yorkie from a broker who got there pups from a puppy mill and although I love my yorkie with all my heart and can not imagine my life with out her I have had to watch her go through painful stuff because of bad breeding.

Please look at this thread http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/gen...ppy-mills.html

Run.. Run.. Run!
Wayyyy over priced, and no guarantee that puppy is actually purebred yorkie and positive it comes from a puppy mill! We work very hard as Show Breeders to improve the breed, and provide healthy pups to families. Do not support pet stores selling puppy mill puppies!
As an example, I sell AKC Champion Sired puppies for $1250.00 as pets, they come microchipped, and a 5 year health guarantee. So that price is not the normal for a purebred Yorkie!
I wish I knew a breeder in your area that I trust, but I don't. Good luck and please, don't look back as you're running away from both!

This, This, This, Please listen to her as she IS a REPUTABLE breeder.

:thumbup::thumbup:

I forgot the champion sired part in thinking about price of an AKC male.

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
I was going to say along the same lines as far as pricing goes, for my pups as well, and these puppies also come from winning Champion show dogs and established proven age old lines! (This is important to YOU because while you do not want a show dog, you can rest assured you are getting a puppy out of Yorkies that are exquisite examples of the breed standard in appearance and temperment, as well as health! Look at that body of that beautiful dog on Amazing Yorkies avitar....a picture of health and beauty and temperment. Find a reputable breeder...go to dog shows and mingle with the breeders...that is a start.... You have absolutely NO idea what in the world you are getting in a puppy from a pet store......I have had several pet stores contact me trying to become a provider of puppies for the pet store....I can tell you this...NO reputable breeder ever stocks pet stores, so you can rest assured the puppies that are found there come from byb or puppy mills...people that throw two dogs together, and then put the pups in a box, take them to the pet store, and sell them for $300.00-$600.00 apiece....the pet store doubles the price to move the dog to customers, assuring you THEY only get their babies from the very best breeders.....NOT!!! I too, never go into pet stores that sell puppies....it kills my soul to see those little precious souls there and I want to buy them all......so I just dont go there!

I dont blame you Ive been in the pet stores and seen those sweet little puppies and want to buy them all. They all come from puppymills though and you dont know what underlying health problem they may have since alot that come from puppymills do because of the conditions and lack of health testing

I did the same thing as you are describing with Taka, I didn't know about puppy mills and all the bad things about it until after buying Taka and coming to yorkie talk. We paid $1900 for him and we found out he has a soft spot that will not go away since its still the size of a dime and he is 8m old and he has a degenerative bone disease (LCP) we just discovered. I have no idea if he is registered or not since he is from Japan and his papers are in Japanese lol. So my advice.....I wouldn't buy from a pet store. I'm so happy we have him now but if I would've known about all the bad things I probably wouldn't have gotten him. Lily came from a pet store too I think we got lucky with her. I just wanted to get her out of the store she was in, I COULD NOT STAND the condition she was in when we got her it was HORRIBLE! She was so matted that I couldn't even pet her without getting my fingers stuck in her hair.

I really wouldn't get a puppy from petsmart. You just don't know what you're going to get- temperament and health problem wise. For 2k, I'm sure you can find a really good breeder with healthy pets. Just keep looking, you'll find a healthy one at the right price.

Well said!

I did a no no just like you were going to do but I fell in love with Zach. I was not intending to get a dog but I wandered into a private pet store and saw Zach. It was love at first site. This was before I knew about puppy mills and YT. Well Zach turned out to be great. He's now 3 years old and in perfect health. He was AKC registered and he had a two year health plan. If I had know then what I know now I proabably would have run but I didn't and so far I have no regrets. BTW I was given the breeders phone number and I spoke to him. He told me that I could come to see his home anytime I want. They were really nice people unfortunatly they live kind of far from me and I never did get there.

Hi and welcome!! I too went through the same things you did. I fell absolutely in love with a puppy mill puppy and even had a name picked out for him (Bentley) because I was 110% positive I was going back for him. Bentley was about $2000 as well. I started looking up puppies and found this forum and although my heart will always hold a special place for little Bentley...my wallet wouldn't hold a special place for the vet bills and therapy needed to keep him alive in the later years. I found my breeder on the YTCA.org site. from my knowledge these are very reputable breeders (someone correct me if I am wrong please!!) and my breeder is 9 hours away. I know you said you don't want to travel out of state but I adore my breeder and was willing to drive the 9 hours to get Miley from her. Miley hold's a much bigger place in my heart than Bentley ever did because I know for a fact she is mine and she has clean bloodlines. Believe me when I say I know its hard...I'm not putting you down for wanting to buy a puppy mill pup but for $2000 I would strongly urge you to find a reputable breeder to ease your heartache later on in life.

Good for you for driving and getting a dog from a breeder rather than a petstore/puppymill .

My biggest issue with people, pet stores & puppy mills is the hypocrisy. Don't buy from a petstore & then say you're against puppymills, when you choose to directly fund puppymills. Don't fund practices you don't agree with.

Oh yes my baby was worth the drive. She may be small but she's healthy and that's the most important peice to me. It's like everyone has said there's no such thing as a teacup just smaller Yorkies. My baby just so happened to be the smallest in her litter. Like twins, there's always gonna be a bigger one. Clean bloodlines and health are the most important things to me.

OP I hope after all you've read you decided against purchasing this pup! If you don't know what to look for in a reputable breeder I'm sure one of them on here would be happy to tell you what to look for. It's worth it in the long run, avoiding vet bills and whatnot, and more importantly not supporting puppy mills.

Go to a local dog show. You can find Yorkie ppl there.
Look at a referral Breeder Referral
Look at there home. Get references if you can .
Look at there Pedigree
http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f9...ps9a36f6b1.png
And for Yorkie you not paying more then $1500. If they are show potential your not getting it anyways. What you are getting is a breeder who tries to breed healthy animals and a health guarantee. From a pet story you make get nothing but Vet bills. But even if you buy from a good breeder you may have health issues. But they will work with you help with the bill or take the pup back if its within the guarantee. They want healthy dogs. Pet store think nothing but $$ and pump the dogs out.

There are a lot of people who get there pups from puppy mills that didn't know. Then when they do find out they start speaking out against them.

Oh please please listen to all the good advice you have received and don't buy from a pet store.

Took me two years research before I got my first Yorkie. I also never go into any pet store that sells dogs, since they come from puppy mills. The money keeps those heartless horrible millers in business.
I find it very difficult not to get extremely upset at anyone that "knows" it's wrong to buy pet shop dogs, and yet, still goes in to buy one. It's this kind of selfish shopping that makes putting the millers out of business.

Me too. I go to the Pet store that have rescue dogs but that would be the only type. Like Mudbay type stores but never one that actually sells dogs for $$$$

I did the unthinkable, I got my pup at a flea market, then I found yorkie talk,wished I had found it sooner. My pup is healthy for now but I'm very worried about the future, I still can't bring myself to watch the videos of the puppy mills. Glad I found this forum so I can read and try everything possible to keep him healthy. Please think about it and keep reading the great advise your getting from real dog lovers.:)