When getting a dog.....

Shanao

Just to add to that list: A breeder should always have as many questions for you as you have for them, if not more. The crowd we got our pup from asked us everything, from where the pup was going to be sleeping, to what we would be feeding him, to what we wanted him for eg: to show/breed etc. A good breeder will want to know where their pup is going and to ensure it is getting the best home as possible.

Also, dont fall into the trap of buying a 'teacup' breed. There is no such thing.

goat2

have a person got room for a big or small dog,small being easier to feed and clean up after,
do you want a short or long haired dog, short easier to keep,
will you be keeping it in the home,
do you have the time for the dog, puppies grow into beautuful dogs if you give them your time and attention,
are you ready to train dog to your liking, do you have the patience for that, as there will be accidents.
dogs are pack animals, be it a family member, they see the family as the pack.

ppink

Firstly it is important that if you suspect this is what is going on that you walk away.
Do not get suckered into to looking at feeling sorry and then buying a puppy from these places.
Analyse the situation, check the water/food/shelter. Take pics if you can and leave.
Then report the premises to ISPCA, and follow up on it!

It may not be obvious as to why not to "save" a Puppy Farm dog but here are some reasons:

• Your money is fuelling the industry
• you are at best saving just one animal and as a result condemning a lot more to this awful life.
• you are paying somebody and therefore rewarding them for this awful practice.

The very best thing you can do is spread the word. Make sure everyone knows the perils of puppy factories and report it to the relevant authorities.

It is important to note as of now there is nothing illegal about puppy factories but animals cannot be held sick in bad conditions.

Remember in Ireland we have people even daring to run as public representatives who own and run puppy factories..........farming dogs like battery chickens. If you pruchase from them then you are assisting them to farm dogs like this.

Zapperzy

Shanao wrote: »

Also, dont fall into the trap of buying a 'miniature' breed. There is no such thing.

Yes and no, there are recognized breeds such as miniature schnauzers and miniature poodles, however there are no such things as mini yorkies or mini bichon freise. There is no such thing as a teacup anything, if someone advertises there pups as teacups run away.

To add to that list again of how to recognize a puppy farm.

• The parents (and indeed the pups) should not be overly shy, if the mother runs away with her tail between her legs or displays overly submissive behaviour such as rolling over and peeing, ears back, tail between legs and crouched appearence, then walk away as you do not want a pup that already has come from an environment where fear is part of every day interactions with humans.

Whispered

Msking - this thread is about acquiring a dog in general - not about other threads. It's just that so many threads are pulled off topic and this one is intended purely as advice so in being vague and basically telling me to go read the thread you already have is not really helpful for this particular thread.

Shanao

Zapperzy wrote: »

Yes and no, there are recognized breeds such as miniature schnauzers and miniature poodles, however there are no such things as mini yorkies or mini bichon freise. There is no such thing as a teacup anything, if someone advertises there pups as teacups run away.

Yeah sorry I should have been a little clearer on that. The only recognized Miniature breeds are the miniature bull terrier, the miniature schnauzer, the miniature poodle, and the miniature pinscher. If anyone is offering some other breed as a 'miniature', walk away.

Whispered

Why are some miniatures legitimate and some not?

Shanao

Whispered wrote: »

Why are some miniatures legitimate and some not?

The recognized breeds have been around for a while, the miniature schnauzer dates back to the 19th century, and that has given it a century at least for breeders to breed out as many health problems as they can. The mini pin had been around two centuries before the doberman was created, so is not a miniature dobermann despite what people think. The standard bull terrier was actually the size of the miniature bull terrier when first created, but crossing with larger breeds led to the bigger bully we have now as well. (did some reading up on these not too long ago when I mistakenly said the miniature bull terrier didn't exist. Learned how wrong I was pretty quickly:P)

What people are doing now however is breeding runts to runts, with little to no regard for their health, and selling the tiny puppies as miniature or teacups. Miniature Jack russells, miniature yorkies, miniature chihuahuas, I've even heard people claiming they have miniature sheepdogs (even when asked did they mean shelties, they said, no its a miniature border collie). Our dog breeds have already been established and there's no need to forsake a dog's health just to make it smaller than it should be.

Galway K9

I will never forget the puppy farm i visited out in Elfin, Tipperary. Jesus the state of the pups, but as ppink said not to do, i did actually buy the 2 pups as couldnt bar leavign them there...Its a conumdrum alright:(

tatabubbly

Whispered wrote: »

Can anyone explain the exact process of taking a dog from the pound?

Just got myself a pup today from the pound. It's a pure breed jack russel pup who was surrendered the day before due to the owner not being able to sell them.

I already have a JRT so i'm full prepared for the training..

Basically (in donegal anyways), we went in and the people took us through to the back to the dogs. We were left alone to look at them. All gorgeous dogs, ones like a malamute pup (who was already taken), an akita, Alsasian and two pups. We asked to see our pup, we were left alone. I checked for fleas, worms, clear eyes etc.
Basically, we took the dog out and then filled in a form and took her home. It was a €33 charge and that includes dog licence. Taking her to the vets for check ups and vaccination and microchip at 4 today!

koneko

I would have an addition/extra info in there that explains that if an ad says IKC reg, this may not be true. Ask to see paperwork, in addition to seeing the parents and making sure they're happy/healthy dogs.

If a breeder claims he'll send you the paperwork afterwards, it's very likely that'll never happen, alarm bells should ring. Also, if a pup is vaccinated, the breeder will have the card with the date info and stickers, if he doesn't have this either, more alarm bells.