From: glenn@sloth.ncsl.nist.gov
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
Subject: Story for people looking for *CHEAP* dogs
Date: 18 Aug 92 14:22:10 GMT
Reply-To: glenn@sloth.ncsl.nist.gov
Distribution: rec
Organization: N.I.S.T
Posting-Front-End: Shinbun -- the OpenLook newsreader



To all those people looking for a *CHEAP* Dog!!!

I'd like to relay a true story that happened to my mother 2 years ago.
It is just another example to be careful when selecting a pet.

About 2 years ago, my sister-n-law to-be went shopping in a local
mall.  It was a common event for her to "look at the puppies" in the
pet store when she went shopping.  To her delightful suprise, she saw a
litter of puppies (labeled as mixed) for sale for $40.00.  She couldn't
believe that these beautiful (Bernese (sp?) Mountain dog looking)
puppies were sooooo cheap.   Without even thinking (oooops) she bought
one as a suprise for my brother as an Easter present.  Being, that they
lived in a 1 room apartment that didn't allow dogs, it sure was a
suprise, but still in was ONLY $40.00.  After a long conversation with
our mother, she agreed to take care of "Bernie" (she has two other
dogs), until they got a place that would allow dogs.

Well, Bernie eats like a horse and this $40.00 dog started getting a
little more expensive (Vet bills for shots, small damage to the carpet,
a large crate, etc.).  But he was now part of the family and these
things were expected of a large puppy.  As he grew older we noticed
that he was having extreme difficulty with his hind legs.  He couldn't
stand up, could barely climb stairs, couldn't run.  We also noticed
that his back legs were usually perfectly straight instead of bent at
the knees.  A trip to the vet led to X-rays where it was discovered
that this "CHEAP" dog didn't have sockets for his knee-caps in his back
legs.  The vet was furious that someone would let the parents breed
because this was a genetic defect and would have been painfully
obvious.  Anyway, the next step was an orthepedic surgeon.  He
recommended a two step process.  The first step was to work on the
stronger of the two legs and cut the bone and train him to use that leg
properly.  The second step was to repeat the bone cutting, but the
surgeon said that the second leg was far worse and that Bernie would
never be able to use it properly except for balance.  Well, the $40.00
dollar dog just ran up a bill of $1200.00.  Not a very cheap dog now.
Bernie is an extremely obedient, easy to catch, loveable giant of a
dog.  Unfortuneatly, because of his size and the leg problems his life
will be become very unpleasant as he gets older.  The end result will
be the sad but inevitable early death of a wonderful companion.  So the
total price of this $40.00 dog, a hell of a lot more than a dog from a
reputable breeder in cash, pain, and heartache, for both the dog, and
our family.

So please, I'm begging you, if you get a dog for the purpose of having
a pet and companion, don't breed it.  I'm not saying to not rescue a
dog from a shelter, just to becareful and to truly understand that the
price tag on a dog has nothing to do with the initial "down payment".

Rob G.
glenn@osi.ncsl.nist.gov


Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs