From: schalene@sequent.com (Schalene Dagutis)
Subject: Re: convincing people to go to responsible breeders
Organization: Sequent Computer Systems Inc.
Date: Fri, 21 Aug 92 14:26:50 GMT

In article <170kurINNpcj@moe.ksu.ksu.edu> terry@eece.ksu.edu (Terry Hull) writes:
>bets@matt.ksu.ksu.edu (Beth Schwindt) writes:
>
>>In the time I've been reading this, I've come to agree with everything
>>that is said about where to get a dog from.  I can see a problem with all
>>of this, though, because of something that I read several years ago and
>>that I know still goes on.
>
>>In her book "Every Night, Josephine", Jaqueline Susann talks about trying
>>to get a poodle puppy after she had finally been converted to the idea
>>of owning a dog.  She got lists of people to buy from, from friends who
>>bought from them.  She called every last one, wanting to see a silver
>>miniature male puppy.  Every last place, when hearing she wanted a pet
>>instead of a show dog, hung up on her.  She ended up with Josephine, a
>>black miniature that had been weaned early and was seriously ill from the
>>day she arrived, buying her from a pet store.
>
>This *is* a real problem.  In our kennel club, the leaders of the club
>advise newcomers against buying from a pet store.  At the same time,
>the ones that do breed usually only sell to their friends, and they
>almost *never* sell a dog to a newcomer to the breed.  After all, they
>want their puppy to have the best home possible, right?  There are
>exceptions, and some breeders trust their instincts as well as looking
>at the experience of the potential buyer, but these breeders are the
>exceptions, not the rule.  Also, if you want a dog from a particular
>breeder, you will usually have to wait a minimum of 6 months to wait
>for a litter with puppies available.  Lots of buyers don't want to
>wait 6 weeks, and would not even consider a 6 - 18 month wait.  Where
>do they go for a pup?  
>
Terry, this is so true....waiting for a puppy is difficult.  You're so
eager to have one.  I wish more breeders would remind people that a
puppy is only a puppy for a short while, but you will have a dog for a
long time.  It is a 10 to 15+ year commitment.  Waiting for the right
dog for you should be worth the wait.  Its not wrong for people to
look for another breeder who may have a litter available now or for
which the wait is not so long.....but first the buyer must be confident 
they are buying from a good, reputable breeder; and the breeder has to be
confident the buyer can handle the breed.  It may take time to find
this match....then time to wait for an available puppy.  The
responsible buyer should be willing to wait.   But how does one go
about educating the typical buyer?

>What is the solution?  Should breeders be encouraged to sell to
>newcomers who might not do as well with their dogs as the old-timer
>who wants to train and show the puppy?  What about the buyer who the
>breeder does not feel should own a dog of this particular breed?
>Where does he get one?  How will he learn if there is no breeder
>helping him along the way?  Since he is marginal anyway, he will
>probably have far more than his share of problems with the puppy he
>does end up purchasing.  
>
This reminds me of something that just happened in our obedience class
over the last two weeks.  A woman has a 10-month-old Beardie.   He'd
been becoming more dominant with her over the course of the last 6
months.  We could see it in our class.  Last week, he bit her so badly
she had to have 15 stitches in her forearm, which is also bruised from
wrist to elbow.  Luckily the woman realizes that it was her fault.
She'd let Duffy be the boss and when they finally came to a situation
where she needed to be in charge, he wouldn't let her.  Our trainer
had been warning her of this since Duffy was 4 months old.  But she
thought his behavior was cute.  She isn't planning on giving Duffy
away at this stage and our trainer is working with her privately two
times a week (at no cost).  But when I was talking to the woman about
the situation, she said she had a terrible time finding a breeder that
would sell her a Beardie.  Most didn't think she'd had enough
experience or knowledge about training one.  But finally, she found
a breeder who would sell her the breed she had to have.  

As buyers we should listen to people knowledgeable about "their" (to
use Chris' term ;-) ) breed.  Not every person is suitable for every
breed.  For instance, I love Rotties.  But in my heart I know I don't
have enought knowledge to winnow out the breeders who are taking
advantage of their current popularity from those who are working hard
to improve the breed.  I know I don't know enough to train one
properly yet.  (I learned this from all of Terry's insightful posts.)

In order to obtain what we really want from a dog -- a good, loving
companion (whether we show, hunt, or just have a furry body beside us
watching TV) -- we have to be honest about our abilities.  In the end
it doesn't really matter what breed we get if we can develop a truly
bonded relationship with our dog.  If we can't, then frustration sets
in and you spend less and less time with them -- even if it's the Lab
or the Dobie, or the Golden, or the whatever you always wanted.

>I know there are lots of hard questions here, but the problem is very
>real and the solutions are not easy from my viewpoint anyway. 
>
Yes, these are difficult questions.  But from now on when someone asks
me about a specific breed.  I'm going to ask them if they've really
thought through their breed decision.  Is is truly the right breed for
them?  Do they have the time and knowledge to have a bonded
relationship with that dog?  I'm more and more convinced the breed you
get isn't as important as how it meshes with your personality and
ability.  Perhaps breed clubs should develop a list of questions to
help potential buyers think through their decision?  

schalene