Did you buy from a petstore/byb/breeder?
 

I'm curious to know where everyone got their dog(s) from.

If you bought from a breeder... was it a good or bad experience? Did you research the breeder before hand? Where reviews easy to find on the web? How did you find the breeder?

If you bought from a byb... Was it a good or bad experience? Did you research the before hand? Where reviews easy to find on the web? How did you find the byb?

If you bought from a petstore... was it because you were not educated in puppy mills and that sort of thing? Was it an impulse? How was the experience...

I'm asking because it seems like there are so many bad experiences on this forum. I did a search for "seashores kennels" after seeing the thread. On google, the thread came up on page1 near the end. On yahoo, page 2 and on msn...I went to page 5 and still didn't see anything.

It got me to thinking that maybe there needs to be a collective site for breeder reviews. Maybe something like dontdatehimgirl.com . Not only for reviews for all types of dog breeders, but information as well.

I do this stuff for a living (websites/graphics) so I have it in my means to do something like this. Do you think it would be useful? Would love to hear all thoughts and opinions.

Thanks for your help.

Layla came from a breeder in Southern Ohio and it was a GREAT experience. Our main communication was through email because I live 9 hours away from the breeder but she was so great. I went to pick Layla up and I was very happy with where she had been born. Her dogs had tons of property to run around and the house was cozy and clean. I still send her Christmas Cards and updates on layla's birthday.

We got Rudy from a Pet Store BEFORE we knew any better. I have since, way........educated myself about Puppy Mills and Pet Stores. I thank God that Rudy is healthy, knowing from where he came from.

I bought Lexi from another owner. She had bought two but with 3 children and 2 cats it was a little hectic for them. Plus they thought that the children might hurt them. So they sold them. She seemed to do a lot of research before buying them as they bought before. Plus I called the breeder and her vet before hand to check to see if their story was true. Great experience. I did lots of research on the web prior to buying, looking at different breeders and whatnot.

I couldn't vote because I would have to pick more than one answer. I adopted my first one from a puppy mill... :rolleyes: That was way before joining YT and having researched the matter. My others were adopted from in home Breeders...One even came from a member here at YT - Linda from Garlin Yorkies! :thumbup:

I got my yorkie out of a newspaper ad in the classifieds (BYB). I set up to see several different litters of puppies at different BYBs (Maltese, Shih Tzu, Yorkies) and fell in love with a pup out of the first litter I saw. Surprise surprise. :D

It was a good experience. I'd buy a puppy from that breeder again. :animal-pa

Hot Rod was from a petstore and Maggie was from a local breeder. The owners of the petstore were really, really nice people and they handled all the pups all the time. They really took care of them.

Maggie was from a local breeder. I know that she was a good breeder but I did not get to see her home as she had a mommy just about due and did not want to stress her out. I been in contact with her and have recommended her to several others.

We got Sydney ( not a Yorkie) from a pet shop before we knew about puppy mills or things like that.

Chloe came from a Yorkie breeder , after meeting someone who had a Yorkie , and researching from there.

We got Tucker from a pet store before I knew anything about puppy mills. It was sort of an impulse buy though I had wanted a Yorkie for a long time, I wasn't actively planning for one. I had been out shopping with my sister and we passed a puppy shop and stopped in. Tucker chose me. He was sticking his paw out of his cage to get to me and gnawing on my finger and that was that! We brought him home the next week. While Tucker is generally healthy, he does have allergies which we give him shots for and LP.

When we're ready for a brother or sister for Tucker we will be going to a breeder or a rescue organization.

Breeder
 

We got Beatrice from a breeder here in Montreal,Quebec. I didn't know anyone here because I had only lived here for one year. I found her through a Google search on line.I looked at many breeders websites in Quebec and Ontario.I emailed several of them and some didn't even reply. One of the breeders that I found in Ontario actually referred me to the breeder that we actually bought her from,she highly recommended her.

Buying Beatrice throught the breeder was a very pleasant experience ,the breeder interviewed me over the phone and even on her website she strictly stated that this puppy was absolutely not to go to a home that had children of any age.This was because of her very tiny size.I felt that she really cared about where she went.

I was very impressed by her website and her strong desire to continuously improve the yorkshire terrier breed. I would strongly recommend that anyone who is in search of a yorkie to go to a breeder and do your research, we are so happy that we did.

What do you mean by 'back yard breeder"? :embarasse I'm not quite clear on the term so I decided on "other". Walker came from a lady who owns just his mom and was her first litter. The mom is not a registered yorkie, only dad is. Yes, I did a lot of research about yorkies on the internet, came across a few scams (including the famous 'relocated to Africa' scam :scratchhe) and ended up with "my breeder", who came recommended by a friend, who worked at her vets office. Yikes, y'all get that? Sure, he's BIG!About 9 pounds, give or take. But I couldn't ask for a better dog and would get another one from the same breeder again. So, long story short: I'm a satisfied customer. :D

I got both of mine from breeders. Duke's breeder was a neighbor, so I didn't research anything on them because I knew them and they were very nice and responsible people. They knew a lot about the breed, and take good care of their dogs, etc.
I found Lucie's breeder through the internet, I forgot how I came across her website, but I did a lot of research on her before I commited to getting a dog from her, I checked with the AKC and stuff. She was very nice, going to school to be a Vet. and Lucie has ended up being a spunky little doll that we all love. The only thing I didn't really like was that she had a USDA registered kennel so the dogs were kept out of the home, but she was willing to show me the kennel and she was able to answer any quesitons I had, so all in all it was a good experience.
:)

Thankfully we do not have the puppy mill situation in NZ. In fact I've never heard of a single puppy mill here.

I got both of mine from backyard breeders. There are only two show breeders in NZ!! and I only wanted pet quality dogs any way. Both were bred in home and handled.

Dougal is a 15lb monster with a very slight luxating patella - we do agility and the vet's suggested this is a good thing to maintain the muscle strength around the knee. I got to visit him every week til he was old enough to take home.

Dixie is healthy as a horse and about 7lb (which is plenty small enough for me!). She is bright as a button, bossy, and soo eager to please in the agility ring! I only got to meet her when we picked her up because she was a 9 - 10 hour drive away! She was docked which, if I'd had the choice, I wouldn't have had done. But other than that a lovely little doglette.

I bought Sasha from a breeder. My boyfriend was the one that actually found the listing for her. There wasn't much information as to if she was a good breeder or not so we definitely took a huge risk. It turned out to be a great experience though. She took excellent care of all the puppies as well as her own dogs and she was super clean. I would recommend her anyday.

I got Lola from a breeder. It was a great experience. I did a lot of research before deciding on a breeder that a friend of mine had purchased a yorkie from two years before me. My breeder was awesome. I was allowed to visit her home and see how the dogs were cared for. She constantly updated me with pictures and answered every question I had quickly. I'm grateful to her every single day because my girl is just so precious!

I got Twinkle from I guess what would be classed as a BYB - the lady owned a female and a male and the pups were raised in her home. Mum and dad are both KC registered and within standard size-wise but there are no champions in their lines. It was a great experience, we visited several times and were kept updated with photos and phone calls. She also called me several times in the weeks following and still emails me. Twinkle is from her mum's second litter, but I've since learnt that the breeder has had both the male and female fixed as two pups (including Twinkle) from the litter have exceeded 7lb We had originally considered a rescue, but were not approved as we have two young children. xxx

Why would you call this lady a BYB? .

All of mine came from breeders. My first one, Kissy i got as a puppy. I visited her at 2 weeks old, 4 weeks old and 6 weeks old. I picked her up at 8 weeks old. I couldn't stand to leave her one more time so the breeder allowed me to take her home. I had no clue they needed to stay there longer to get socialized. Five years later, I got Angel from the same breeder but she was a year old when i got her. She was going to be a breeder but was too small. The last three i got from breeders on YT!! :cheer: Princess from a breeder in North Texas (she is no longer on YT) and she was also a year old when i got her. Candy came from Natalie's Yorkies at 9 months old and Meiah came from Breny, Greens Treasured Yorkshire Terriers when she was 3 years old. I bought them all from just pictures and getting to know the breeders via email and phone except for Kissy. I have been very lucky that all my girls are healthy with no LP, allergies, phyiscal issues. Buying them when they are older will also give you an idea of what size they will be and if they have any issues, that would come out by then. I love getting the teenagers. All my girls get along beautifully and they are all happy girls. I highly recommend the wonderful breeders here on YT!!!

I got mine from a backyard breeder... I knew better than to buy a dog from a store in the mall or something like that, but I'm still not thrilled with the woman I bought Nikko from either. Besides the pup having giardia (which we are in the process of trying to get of still), my other complaints are pretty tame compared to many stories I've read on YT, but still - not thrilled with the experience.

Long story short though, I think a dog-purchasing version of dontdatehimgirl.com would be AWESOME. Not only would it be helpful to people who are looking for a pup, but I think it could also be helpful to the pups themselves. Some dog sellers might be more motivated toward higher standars of health and care if they knew there was a central place where anyone could view customer satisfaction ratings and reviews, and dog sellers who are already great could post a link to their own review on the site as a selling point.

Very very cool idea. :-)

Lauren & Nikko

All my Yorkies are rescued ones .

My mom got Mingtoy from a breeder . I got Miley as a birthday gift from my grandmother who is a Yorkie breeder .

Breeder
 

Hi! I got both of my girls from the same breeder in Lipan, Texas. She was wonderful and my girls are happy & healthy! Her and I still send emails back & forth.... she's been really good about staying in touch!

great idea, for a thread..
 

we got Avery from a lady, in our area, whose 2 yorkies had puppies! (we KNEW about pet stores, at this time.. but werent aware of byb or "accidental puppies") the lady was very nice, she doesn't normally breed her dogs.. it was an accident :cool: with that said... i could NOT imagne NOT having Avie baby!! (she is 1 year 7 months old..) She DOES have LP though, Luxating Patella's and needs to be on glucosmine supplements for this!! we are trying to avoid surgery for as long as possible.. other than that she is great! ;) Avery is my baby girl!! :2hearts2:

I found YT a month or so after we brought Avery home.. and LEARNED A TON!!!! :thumbup: ..so by the time we were ready to get Gemma, i knew what to look for in a breeder, etc. ..I did my research , had my list of questions, etc. etc.

we got Gemma from a show breeder.. which was something i wanted(not that i plan on showing or anything.. but i knew i wanted to go through someone who loves the breed, breeds for the standard, etc. etc. etc.)
we found her & after talking to her, liked her a lot, she was able to answer all the questions i had, we visited her home, she had plenty questions for me... etc. etc. etc.
we fell in love with all the babies.. they were so so sweet... :wub: but after we left i could not get my mind off our lil Gemmie Gem! ;) so after talking with the breeder, Gemma was the one we ended up bringing home! :)

we had a GREAT experience bringing Gemma home... she did SO well, from the start!! socialization, temperment, health, etc. etc. I could not imagine getting such a little one from someone who wasn't an excellent breeder.. being so little they need lots of attention (especially when they are puppies & you first bring them home) i will NEVER go through anyone who is not a reputable breeder, who i have researched, visited with, etc. (either that OR rescue of course! ;))

like i said, i learned so so much, after bringing Avie home.. this is why i think it is so important to educate people about pet stores, byb, etc. etc. i would hate for anyone to have heartache and sadness, let alone $ upon $ spent on something that could have been prevented, if they only knew what to look for, etc! ;)

I am an other so I need to explain.
I was on the waiting list at a BYB Breeders to get a yorkie and I wanted a female.
The breeder thank goodness kept on having litters of males.
So I happened to look in the bargin finder and listed was a female needing a new home and good with kids. I called she said she was not fixed and large and I know right then she needed to come home as other BYBs and even puppymillers get her to breed.

I pretty sure she a BYB special as well with all her genetic concerns maybe even a pet store girl but I love her and she safe with me rather then putting out more genetically messed up puppies or being dead do to her mental health concerns.
She is good with kids and she my best freind.

I would do it again if a dog was in need but no BYBS or puppy stores for me.
Rescue yes and breeders... after this girl they have to prove they understand putting out mentally well dogs not just pysically well dogs is important.

JL

Lily came from a BYB before I knew any better. The lady was super nice on the phone, but kind of misled me on how many dogs she had and that they lived in kennels out back. Needless to say it was quite a surprise when I got to her house. :( But you know how it is when you see a puppy and just fall in love. Thank goodness Lily has been very healthy (with the exception of 2 months worth of kennel cough which I'm sure came from her first home :mad: ) Live and learn I guess. I've certainly had a lot of good advice to give people looking for dogs since I've gotten Lily, so I just try to look at the whole experience from that light instead. :)

I got Zaira from a breeder that lived about 25 miles from where I live. I had seen their add in the double nickle paper several times. They had 3 females and 2 males that they bred. This was Zaira's moms second litter and the mom only had 2 puppies. Zaira was only 6 weeks old and they let me take her with the agreement that I would take her to the vet the next day and that I would put her on supplement milk along with her food for the next 2 weeks. They also asked me to bring her back after 2 weeks and let them see her. Which I did all of these things and when I took her back they put in a micro-chip at no additional charge. They were very nice people and I would recommend them to anyone. My experience was wonderful.

I got Tink from a rescue group. She was a throwaway from a puppy mill. the Mill owner was going to shoot her and her siblings if the rescur group couldn't take them! I'm sooooo glad to have her.:)

I read a local Newspaper article about a fund raiser for a local shelter. They had just become listed with petfinder, and I went on the web to learn more about the shelter. I spent 2 days looking at rescue dogs on pf, and my little man's picture appeared in a listing for another rescue. He looked just like the first dog we had 30 years ago. That dog was a Lhasa /terrier mix whom we refer to as our first born. I had never seen another dog who looked like him.
Our Chocolate lab passed away in July, and my husband was not ready for another dog. For me, the quiet was deafening!
Well ...within ten days Toby was ours. Daddy is in love with his "Little Little"!
His parents are both Yorkies(They came from pet stores) and had CKC papers(?) He lived in a single woman home with s**tzhua (that looks wrong) for a year and a half when he was given up, and was in a foster home for 6 weeks with nine other dogs, all breeds and sizes, when I found him. He was not actually in a Shelter, I would consider this more of a "private adoption". We are his third and forever home.

I bought from a petstore. I knew about puppy mills and stuff. It was an impulse buy. Luckily she's been very healthy. I'm glad I got Sapphire and wouldn't have done it differently. She's perfect for me no matter where she came from!

We got Snickers and Baxter from two separate breeders - both in Connecticut. It was a good experience in both cases, both breeders were experienced and bred for show dogs. We found them through the Yorkshire Terrier Club of NY.