Why are people still "buying" dogs?

petchums.com

I know it's not fair to expect everyone not to buy off a breeder but we definitely need to see the number reduced greatly because there are far too many dogs getting euthanised in this country. The Irish Times wrote an honest article on Puppy farming in Ireland and it shocked me to know just how bad we are known for this across Europe.

So I don't really have an answer but I just wanted to say how frustrated I am to see such perfect healthy animals being destroyed when it could be avoided. With the run up to Christmas it's more important than ever.

I know I will be promoting adoption and rescue centers to anyone who'll listen, what else is there we do?

Shammy

increase the fines on puppy farmers by 10 fold, the ikc needs a kick in the ass too as they'll register anything for the right price.
I think peoples mentality in this country that if you have a female then you have to at least get her into pup once.

star-pants

I don't think that's a fair statement of the IKC or everyone wanting their b*tch to have pups.
I have two female dogs and they're never going to have pups and I've them neutered.
I bought both my girls, one at the age of 2 and one as pup from a breeder.

Not everyone can try the rescue route, we tried but my mother's terrified of most dogs (I got the breed we had when I was younger that she was ok with, who was a rescue) and they just ended up having to go back.

There is the mentality of wanting a 'new' dog, not 'preowned' but that's in people's head and you can only try and promote rehoming and rescue dogs as best you can.
Stricter on puppy farmers etc yes definitely and more of enforcing rules would be great.

boodlesdoodles

I agree with star-pants points but there is also the matter of some rescues being overly fussy with rehoming. Not letting a dog into a house where people work all day etc. To reassure myself a while back I recorded my dog on cctv camera(borrowed from friend) to see what he got up to when I left the house. I was feeling guilty that he might be suffering from separation anxiety. Five days in a row the little bugger was back in his bed within 5mins of me leaving the house. Nowadays, he knows the routine: kong is prepared and left in corner - cue Bailey bouncing back into his bed!!!!!! The guy loves his bed and at the weekends he's wrecked by 7 o'clock cos he's had us all day. I believe dogs adapt to their circumstances and what's created as a routine for them suits them.

Hellrazer

Ive posted my opinion and experiences with rehomes before.

And it comes down to exactly what star pants says.People want a "new" dog and not someone elses cast off(sorry couldnt think of a nicer way to phrase that)

With a new dog you have some idea of what youre getting whereas in my experience anyway rehomes come with a lot of "issues"

Now dont get me wrong here Im all for the rehoming of every dog out there but I wouldnt rehome another dog unless it was a small puppy.

The last 2 rehomes I tried were nuts.One jumped through a glass door to get at another dog and another one that I rehomed with a family member jumped from the top floor of a 2 storey house.

Maybe its just me that had bad luck with rehomes so my next dog will be either a pedigree Shiba Inu or a rehomed very young puppy.

peasant

petchums.com wrote: »

I know it's not fair to expect everyone not to buy off a breeder but we definitely need to see the number reduced greatly because there are far too many dogs getting euthanised in this country. The Irish Times wrote an honest article on Puppy farming in Ireland and it shocked me to know just how bad we are known for this across Europe.

To be fair now, there is a vast difference between good, honest breeders and puppy farmers. You can't just throw them into the same pot, or the same sentence, for that matter.

Not buying from breeders will not stop puppy farming, lots of their "produce" is exported anyway. What needs to be done to stop puppy farming is proper animal welfare legislation.
Currently the law has no handle on puppy farmers as long as their dogs aren't openly and blatantly living in abject squalor.
If the dogs are fed and watered and have a roof over their head, that satisfies the law and so puppy farming continues.

Introducing proper animal welfare legislation would solve all that (and many other issues besides it)

http://www.anvilireland.ie/fulcrum.html?ep=5

Paul91

boodlesdoodles wrote: »

Five days in a row the little bugger was back in his bed within 5mins of me leaving the house. Nowadays, he knows the routine: kong is prepared and left in corner - cue Bailey bouncing back into his bed!!!!!! The guy loves his bed and at the weekends he's wrecked by 7 o'clock cos he's had us all day. I believe dogs adapt to their circumstances and what's created as a routine for them suits them.

Sounds like my Tyson, he'd spend most of his time in bed, loves it!

As for buying from a breeder or getting a rescue dog, the last three dogs i have had have all been rescue, lab/collie, lab/boxer and the latest a German Shepherd, don't get me wrong they had issues (specially the GS who came out pregnant unknown to us - see my other threads) but saying that, my mother has a west highland terrier who has skin ad allergy problems as well as "temperment" problems, therefore i don't think you can guarantee a dog will be good just cos you get a pedigree as a pup from a breeder.

jimmyn

I fully support the wonderful work the shelters do, and would urge anyone to consider adopting from them, or helping out in any way you can.

That said, there are perfectly valid reasons why somebody would want an IKC registered purebred intact dog. Generally from a shelter, you'll get a neutered cross-breed.

Something should certainly be done about irresponsible, careless "backyard" breeding, but there are some very good breeders out there too. It's unfair to lump them all together.

I think shelters also need to take a more pragmatic view to adoption requirements. Many dogs are fine if a family works during the day. As long as they get the attention and stimulation they need when the family is home, and they are kept under control and handled responsibly, they will be better off than being stuck in the shelter.

PetrovthePrat

When getting our brat we visited the pound and DSPCA. Herself still gets upset thinking about the poor mutts stuck there,so I don't think we'll be getting a dog from anywhere but there. Other then working dogs,or top level competition I don't think there's a need for buying dogs. That said I haven't had Hellrazers experiences. Thankfully!