Purchasing a puppy?
buy a rescue..unless you have a specific need such as hypo allergenic or trainable as a service dog, mutts are great...
Formerlyjerseyjack said:
Why would anyone BUY a puppy?
Because animal rescues in the northeast have gone nuts.
I was turned down by one rescue after I was unable to produce vet records from 16 years prior and the vet had retired. They even confirmed with the new vet that the previous vet had been there during the dates in question, and the new vet told them he didn’t keep any of the old records. They were upset that I wasn’t able to produce vet records on my own.
Another rescue turned me down because I have children and the dog was large and *might* knock them down.
One dog was considered unsuitable for me because he had sat on a child once and was considered “aggressive” around children because of it. This dog hadn’t bit anyone, he hadn’t growled at anyone, but he sat on one child one time, and nope, I can’t be consider for that dog.
One dog, an 18 month old German Shepherd (still a big puppy basically) was mouthy (bad puppy behavior that needs to be addressed but not aggressive behavior) but he was also declared “aggressive” because of it and not suitable for homes with children. Again, dog never bit, growled, or acted aggressive but because he was “mouthy” and I had kids I was immediately disqualified from consideration.
We ended up buying a German Shepherd. I found a small breeder who allowed me to come to her home to see the dog.
And it isn’t just me. The president of the ASPCA was turned down when trying to adopt and ended up having to go to Texas to adopt a dog. I can’t afford to go to Texas to adopt, so buying just made more sense.
Formerlyjerseyjack said:
Why would anyone BUY a puppy?
And did you know that you would be instantly disqualified by most animal rescues in our area based on your age alone?
spontaneous said:
And did you know that you would be instantly disqualified by most animal rescues in our area based on your age alone?
Yes, and thank you for the excellent description of attempting to rescue/adopt - very frustrating.
That being said - any tips on how to find a reputable breeder?
snowmom said:
spontaneous said:
And did you know that you would be instantly disqualified by most animal rescues in our area based on your age alone?
Yes, and thank you for the excellent description of attempting to rescue/adopt - very frustrating.
That being said - any tips on how to find a reputable breeder?
It isn’t easy, unfortunately. I looked at the AKC website and started narrowing down from there. One thing that was important to me was being able to visit the home and dog to lessen the chance of a puppy mill operation. If they won’t let you come see the dog on site, run away, this also means you need to keep your search circle smaller geographically so you can actually go visit.
One breeder kept coming up on lists and I realized this guy had 8 week, 10 week, 12 week, and 16 week old puppies available. While it is possible that he was a loving and nurturing owner, it just gave me bad vibes and I crossed him off the list, breeding that many at once made me wonder how much attention he was able to give them or were they just a money making venue.
I ended up going with a woman who had one dog that she bred, and my dog was one that had faults which made her pet quality. Honestly, some of the “faults” in a dog are so arbitrary that for any pet owner you won’t notice. For example, my German Shepherd had a silky soft coat, but in a show ring that is a fault, so she’d never win any ribbons. I don’t care about how soft her coat it, and it doesn’t affect her health at all. I get so many compliments on her, especially her top line as she doesn’t have that sloping back that many German Shepherds have since her hind legs don’t sink underneath her. She is also bizzaro insane, but that is because she isn’t yet two years old and is still a puppy in her head 
There are often wait lists, but if you’re willing to buy an older puppy (one with faults or that was returned for some reason) then you might not have to wait as long. Most people want little puppies because they’re cute, I wanted an older dog. I was actually upset that adoption turned into such a sh!t show because I actually wanted to adopt a dog at least one, preferably two years old.
The Seeing Eye program in Morristown adopts out puppies that are unable to complete the training program, often for reasons that are trivial to people looking for a pet. They also adopt out adult breeding dogs and retired working dogs. They breed their own labs, German shepherds, and Golden retrievers. The waiting list is quite long unless you are willing to take a dog with health or behavioral issues or a senior dog (or make a really big donation). These are excellent dogs, carefully bred and screened for health, intelligence, and temperament.
https://www.seeingeye.org/puppies-dogs/adopt-a-dog/
Guiding Eyes for the Blind in New York state has a similar program:
https://www.guidingeyes.org/dogs-and-puppies/dog-adoption/public-adoption/
snowmom said:
A $25,000 donation could buy a lot of pedigree dogs - just saying...
Or you could try now and get lucky.
Or you could consider taking a slightly older dog instead of a brand new puppy.
Or you could think you've found a good breeder only to end up with a genetic cripple from an Amish puppy mill.
GFY. Just saying...
geez, this went dark awful quick.
kthnry said:
Or you could try now and get lucky.
Or you could consider taking a slightly older dog instead of a brand new puppy.
Or you could think you've found a good breeder only to end up with a genetic cripple from an Amish puppy mill.
GFY. Just saying...
Also, some rescues will not consider anyone who does not have a fully-fenced in backyard (I don't think electric fences count, but that could vary by rescue.)
There are some breeds with known health issues and a rescue cannot tell you if a dog's parents were tested for genetic issues before breeding. A reputable breeder should have done such testing and can provide a prospective buyer with documentation. Someone who wants a dog of one of these breeds might want to know this before falling in love with a dog.
I fully support rescue, but it isn't always as simple a process as one might hope.
I saw this post and though I’d sign up to reply rather than just hover around as I have been.I’d highly recommend LongMeadow Labs, http://www.labradorpups.com . The breeder Mary is based in Virginia but her mother is in Livingston so when we got our pup we went there to collect (nice short drive). Well bred dogs and not a puppy mill. Our dog (nearly 4 now) is amazing with our son who has autism and epilepsy and even warned us of two seizures (he’s not been trained for it). She has a private Facebook group where many of us share photos and updates on the pups too.
Not sure if she has any pups available at the moment as depends when there is a litter but worth asking and even waiting if you want a good lab.
cody said:
Also, some rescues will not consider anyone who does not have a fully-fenced in backyard (I don't think electric fences count, but that could vary by rescue.)
There are some breeds with known health issues and a rescue cannot tell you if a dog's parents were tested for genetic issues before breeding. A reputable breeder should have done such testing and can provide a prospective buyer with documentation. Someone who wants a dog of one of these breeds might want to know this before falling in love with a dog.
I fully support rescue, but it isn't always as simple a process as one might hope.
I was willing to take on the unknown health history/ genetics of an adult or young adult German Shepherd. I just couldn’t seem to get approved for any large dogs because I have kids, apparently I should have something like a pug or a beagle. Oh, except the one place that refused me for not being able to produce 16 years of health records for a dog that had passed away three years prior. I still can’t wrap my brain around that. I can’t even produce my own health records going back 16 years.
We fostered two dogs over the summer through louieslegacy.org. They did a background check and contacted 3 people. If you foster you generally have first choice if you decide you want to adopt the dog. They have a few dogs up for adoption. A couple are lab mixes.
jfinnegan said:
We fostered two dogs over the summer through louieslegacy.org. They did a background check and contacted 3 people. If you foster you generally have first choice if you decide you want to adopt the dog. They have a few dogs up for adoption. A couple are lab mixes.
Aren't the rules for fostering the same as for adopting?
drummerboy said:
jfinnegan said:
We fostered two dogs over the summer through louieslegacy.org. They did a background check and contacted 3 people. If you foster you generally have first choice if you decide you want to adopt the dog. They have a few dogs up for adoption. A couple are lab mixes.
Aren't the rules for fostering the same as for adopting?
Rules vary by rescue. One place I applied for wanted three references and contact information for the current veterinarian. I was actually approved at two places, just not for large dogs because I have children. I was denied at one place because I couldn’t produce vet records.
Some rescues deny people automatically after age 65, where others will consider on a case by case if the person has multiple backups in place in case of their death. Some want home owners only, others will allow renters if they have written permission from the landlord to have pets. The president of the ASPCA was turned down because both he and his spouse work full time and would be dependent on a dog walker during the day so the rescues he went to thought the dog would be alone too long. But then a friend of mine was turned down because her spouse works while she stays home, meaning she would be home with the dog all day, and that rescue said that with only one income they weren’t confident in her ability to pay for the dog’s care.
My goofball. In the beginning she knocked the kids down multiple times, which I knew ahead of time would happen. Guess what, we didn’t give up on her. She still forgets herself sometimes (she‘s still a BIG puppy), but has definitely calmed down a bunch and knows she won’t get pets unless all four paws are on the ground.
What an adorable pup! Fantastic that she's settling down so quickly.
Here's some info for anyone who's interested in fostering or adopting a puppy, copied from the SOMA for Animals Facebook page:
CALLING ALL FOSTERS!!! We have 10 adorable puppies and one adult dog coming on
transport September 27th! Please PM me if interested in fostering or
adopting one of these precious babies. You can also visit Lost Paws
Animal Rescue and submit a foster or adoption application.
drummerboy, with louieslegacy the rules for fostering and adopting were the same. The only difference was on the adoption application you had to agree to pay the fee and pay an even larger fee if you end up wanting to return the pet you adopted.
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Thoughts on how to find a reputable breeder? Looking for a lab puppy