Backyard Breeder?-I'm so stressed out.
 

Hello!

I have been wanting a yorkie for a very long time now, and my mom surprised me by putting down a deposit for a yorkie puppy, but I'm pretty sure that the lady is a backyard breeder. She AKC registers all of her puppies, which is how my mom found her, but she has a strange lack of policies.

For example, instead of the typical 1 year health guarantee, she only gaurantees health for 48 hours. Basically, from what I understand she would want me to take the puppy to a vet asap, and check its health, but from what I understand several health issues can appear later on in puppy-hood.

Another thing is she wants to release the puppy to me at 8 weeks. Really, she wanted to release the puppy to me at 7 weeks because she was already 2.1 pounds and eating, but I couldn't pick her up then. I'm really afraid about this because I know that puppies that young can get hypoglycemia and should be socialized with their litter mates and mommy. What if I miss something? Also she has only given the puppies the first round of these vaccines:Distemper (MLV), Hepatitis (adenovirus type1) Adenovirus Type 2 (MLV) Para influenza (MlV) and Parvovirus. I don't know what the puppy should actually have at this point, but she did mention something about not giving them bordetella because she doesn't like how it is administered.

Yet another thing that bothers me is that she doesn't require a neuter/spay contract. Obviously, I'm going to spay my puppy, but the fact that she doesn't require it is odd, right?

Ok, so obviously a lot of things are alarming about this breeder, but she honestly does seem very nice and knowledgeable, and she seems to be taking care of her personal 3 yorkies very well.

My mom paid $200 for a deposit(I doubt that it is refundable) , and she wants $600 more for the female puppy. Should I go ahead and go through with the transaction, or should I cut my losses and try to search for a more reputable breeder?

I attached some pictures of the puppy in question:

I would cut my losses and move on. This sounds very much like a backyard breeder. You only have 48 hours to get it to a vet to find out if it's sick is not enough and they can have issues later on. I got mine from a broker and I wish I could put them out of business but I can't. They keep threatening to sue me, such is life. Mine were about 8-10 weeks when I got them and there is so much more they needed to learn from their mom but unfortunately I don't think they had been with their moms for a while. I would move on and find someone else.

Honestly, this doesn't sound good to me at all - and I think your gut is telling you the same thing. I would cut my losses and look for a better breeder who will be there for you if needed. You'll get a healthier dog in the process too.

Btw, WELCOME to YT. :)

You have done a lot of research which is wonderful. I would see if I could get your money back. If not cut your losses. You will save so much more money in vet bills in the future this way !

It looks like you did your homework. I would back out and look elseware. Years ago I bought a yorkie from a dum breeder and we fought I.B.D. since she was a year old. It was awful and we loved her so....much. We finally had to say goodbye and from then on I learned so much from Yorkie Talk. We now have a beautiful little girl we bought from a reputable breeder here on Yorkie Talk. She is four years old now. It is awful to lose your refund but you will spend lots of money on vet bills from a puppy that could have genetic problems. Our baby that had I.B.D.was from genetics and this dum breeder still has it in her line. Well good luck on a puppy you are very smart do research the breed. Susan

I would think very long and hard about a puppy from someone that only gives a 48 hour guarantee. IMO it would be a wiser choice to spend a little more and go to someone that has a great reputation of selling very healthy and sound puppies even if you were to pay more money up front it. What I mean is paying more for health is wiser than paying for a lifetime of sick care.

If you used a check or credit card for the deposit sometimes your bank will get it back for you. Take it from someone who rushed into it and got a Byb pup, it is better to wait and feel great about where you got your pup from and know your protected incase it gets sick or has genetic issues.

I see most of you are telling me to back out, but unfortunately, I think my mom will be offended if I do. I have look up more about this breeder, and she gave me references that all have very nice things to say about her, but of course this could be biased.

I guess my question now is, what diseases can you not detect at an early age? I found that most 1 year breeder's health guarantee only takes into account serious genetic problems that have to do with major organs. I don't think IBS or luxating patella are covered by any breeder from what I can tell. Would my vet be able to tell if the puppy likely has a major problem from the exam visit? Also, are there any genetic tests I could do for the yorkie. The breeder mentioned she would be willing to extend the health guarantee until I got results from any genetic testing, but I don't know what the tests are for/how much they cost.

Good for you, doing all your homework on what you need to be looking for in your breeder and your puppy. Like others have said, I would suggest you take the loss of the deposit and look elsewhere, because the vet bills and the heartbreak you are setting yourself up for, could easily far out weigh the joy of getting this particular baby. If the breeder is so concerned that her pups are so "iffy" health wise, that she is only willing to stand by them for 2 days, this is NOT a pup you want! And if you do decide to get this baby, and the breeder makes admendments to the contract, make absolutely certain the changes are written by her, in the contract, crossing out the original sentence on the contract, and then you both initial right where the change has been made. At the bottom of the contract, you have HER write, "Changes that have been made to the original contract are initialed by both myself and the buyer, validating I/ we are in agreement with the initialed changes". Sign and date that additional sentence!

My breeder gave a 48 hr contract to so I had to rush them to the vet and the vet let me know what he thought about that breeder. Also she is sending them to their homes way too early

Smart girl, you have really got a good head on your shoulders. You sound as if you probably know more than the breeder does about all the issues involved. So many of us have fallen for a cute puppy from a lovely couple who are just starting out breeding, or a darling little thing in a pet store and ended up with heartbreak. Lots of good advice given here. I wish more people who write to yorkietalk were as cautious and teachable as you. Good luck

That's a tough predicament. I'd hate to hurt my mom's feelings like that and she had to think she was getting this pup through a great breeder, since the pup is AKC registered. Are you sure it's AKC though? I have read about breeders promising AKC registered pups and instead giving CKC papers (CKC is worthless; a poster here registered her coffee table with the CKC, I am dead serious). If you end up cancelling, I'm sure we can highly recommend some great breeders for you (Judy, aka, Yorkiemom1 above is one of them!).

As for the shots, you'll usually want to do four rounds of them. The bordatella shot is a must if you plan on boarding your pup somewhere, for example, when going on vacation. My vet recommended I get it for Cook since I like to take her on walks to the city park, where she occasionally gets into other dogs' poop. Don't forget rabies too, as Yorkies were bred specifically to be very effective hunters.

Yes I am sure the puppy is AKC registered. She gave me copies of the paper work already, and I saw parents and puppy litter both on the AKC website.

Have you been able to find anything about the breeder online? I know most other breeds of dog it's pretty standard to get them at 8 weeks, but that's pretty young for a yorkie. Hypoglycemia is a huge concern, especially when a pup could be a little stubborn with eating in his first few days in a new home.

If the puppy is healthy then not that big of a deal to me if you just want a pet. You may be saving this pups life. No telling where this little guy will end up. Poor puppies