Puppy - from 'breeder' or regular home?

[calypso726]

I'm aware that the Shiba is in the non-sporting group. I have been going to IKC shows for years, trying to adopt out rescue dogs. I was merely stating an example from personal experience. I just adopted out a Chihuahua puppy in the past few months. Right now there are 1,776 Chihuahua (toy breed) and Chi mix puppies on petfinder. There are 175 pug and pug mix puppies on Petfinder. I'm not here to argue, I merely asked the OP to explore adoption. Regardless of where they come from, too many dogs are put to death each day/month/year because of over-breeding, over-population. In my humble opinion, as long as there are dogs in shelters and rescues, there is no need to breed.

Like I said, the PP was talking about toy breeds and you talked about Shibas so I was somewhat confused. Yes, I agree the OP should explore ALL of her options including adoption.

I respectfully disagree regarding no need to breed as long as dogs are in shelters. I am no longer breeding so I have no personal stake. However, I do believe that everyone should have the option to bring a dog into their family that will fit the needs of their family. That might mean grow to a predictable size/weight, have a temperament/activity level suitable to the family's lifestyle, be hypoallergenic, have a reasonable expectation of good health through generations of selective breednig. It also means the option to have an expert that can tell the family if the breed isn't right for them and point them in the right direction to a breed that might be. Or, tell them they'd be better suited with an adult and not a puppy or kindly convince them that they shouldn't own a plant, much less a dog It means the option to have an expert as a resource for ALL of the dog's needs for life. The ONLY way to get this is with a reputable breeder.

There will always be dogs in shelters as long as the shelters keep importing dogs from other countries. If the shelters didn't have dogs to adopt out they woud shut down. When the demand exceeds the supply they transport from other shelters that have supply. They also import from countries like Mexico, Haiti, Taiwan etc. Here are a few articles so that those interested can understand what is really going on.

Clicky here

Clicky here

Clicky here too

 

[marie1203]

Just to clear up some common misconceptions.



* pure bred dogs have more health problems *
Not true. Dogs that do not have numerous generations of health screening behind their ancestry are prone to having more health problems. Vets DO tend to see more purebred dogs in their pratices with problems. But that is because they rarely get to see well bred purebreds from repuatble breeders.

You are contradicting yourself purebred dogs do have more problems that is why vets see them more. A very small percentage of purebred dogs come from well bred dogs and that is the problem.

Overall the purebred's initial cost is more than say the mixed breed dog. This includes purebred dogs from pet stores and backyard breeders and even rescue groups. The majority of the purebred dogs will have come from one of those categories. NONE of these dogs have proper genetic health screeing behind them and are essentially ticking time bombs health-wise. The family that spent this good money on their dog is more inclined to have the necessary means to take the dog to the vet. So when the bomb goes off that is where they go and THAT is the purebred dog the vet will see most often. There simply are not many reputable breeders compared to pet shop dogs and BYB dogs. So the vet MIGHT see ONE well bred healthy purebred Golden (in my case) once a year for shots. He sees 20 or more poorly bred ones with issues.

Mix breeds will be seen less often and the vet bills over their lifetime could be less than the initial cost of the purebred dog from a responsible breeder. I have 5 dogs 4 mix breeds one pure breed ACK register.
For all of those that keep acclaiming the ACK in this thread our ACK register dog has had so many issues. The AKC is just a paper they do not have any quality control. Most AKC dogs I know have extensive issues.
Our dogs usually see the vet only for their annual check ups (except for pomeranian AKC). ANY pet owner should be prepare for expensive vet bills while our dogs (4) never have shown genetic problem every day things do happen like one of our dogs got bitten by a black widow last year, this type of things happen and as a dog owner financially you need to be prepare.

*purebred = inbred*
WRONG! My husband is 100% "purebred" Vietnamese, but he is NOT inbred. Not one person in his family history has every married their father, mother, brother or sister

An inbreeding takes place between father and daughter, mother and son, sister and brother. Not ONE of my reputable breeder friends has taken this step. This happens a lot with pet shop dogs and also with the backyard breeder as they are often not familiar with the pedigree they are breeding into and just breed Fluffy to Spike down the street never realizing they were littermates sold to different pet shops.

Again you are talking about the minority of the purebred dogs out there.

Red is mine

Small, expensive purebred toy puppies rarely make their way into rescue programs unless there is a serious heath problem involved.

This is not true it depends where you live and you can always arrange transport . I work close with many rescues and the past month I seen 5 small purebred dogs come in. There are many small breeds in our shelter. There are many puppy mills being busted and puppies being put up for adoption.

I am sure that there are rescue groups out there that operate on a tiny budget. Many breed specific rescue groups are supported by the parent club and also by reputable breeders. The National Shiba club states on it's own website that if funds are needed over and above for expenses from the rescue groups to contact them and send the vet bills.

I don't know one rescue group that does not struggle or a rescue group that have an extensive budget. There is simply not enough money to rescue even with all the extra help to be able to help the over population of dogs (purebred or not). I can almost assure you that the National Shiba Club has a budget on the amount of vet bills that they help with and it is not enough.


Reputable breeders rarely make a profit. They are lucky to break even. The puppy millers make a profit, the back yard breeder usually makes a profit, the brokers make a profit. The reputable breeders I know have always supported rescue in many ways. Helping whelp a litter, donating equipment, participating in fund raisers, doing home evaluations, transporting rescues etc.

I agree with you 100%.

For the record I encourage adoption of shelter dogs and from breed specific rescues. Part of my interview process was to educate and that included informing the prospective families about rescue dogs as an option to consider. What I didn't tell then is that they would get a healthy dog. That is simply untrue. Most of the rescues had health problems some problems could be treated, like heartworm. That did not guarantee that the dogs would not develop something else down the line. What I DID tell them was that they would get a good idea on the rescue dog's temperament as he/she would have been fostered and properly evaluated.

I'm aware that the Shiba is in the non-sporting group. I have been going to IKC shows for years, trying to adopt out rescue dogs. I was merely stating an example from personal experience. I just adopted out a Chihuahua puppy in the past few months. Right now there are 1,776 Chihuahua (toy breed) and Chi mix puppies on petfinder. There are 175 pug and pug mix puppies on Petfinder. I'm not here to argue, I merely asked the OP to explore adoption. Regardless of where they come from, too many dogs are put to death each day/month/year because of over-breeding, over-population. In my humble opinion, as long as there are dogs in shelters and rescues, there is no need to breed.

I have to disagree with you. Breeding your purebred dog with another purebred dog does not help keep the breed pure, nor does it make you a responsible pet owner. There are enough purebred dogs already. There are zero reasons for a casual pet owner of a purebred dog to breed their dog except to try and make some money. If you bought your dog with no intent to show it, then your breeder was irresponsible. He or she should have insisted that you spay your pet as a condition of the sale.

Breeding purebred dogs should be done only by owners with a detailed knowledge of breed standards and a dedication towards improving the breed. This includs showing dogs, belonging to professional organizations and selling pets which are not show quality only to owners who agree to spay or neuter.

Your intentions make me

OP - I have two purebred dogs which I adopted from a rescue group and they couldn't be nicer or smarter dogs (both found on petfinder.com).

Very well said.

OP I am just wondering why you are so set in a pug? Is it the look you like or the traits of the breed? I find that most people are set on a look and do not consider the traits. Most times when this happen the dogs breed is not a good match to the owners lifestyle. Dogs should be pick on traits and temperament and not on their looks.

In my experience I seen more purebred dogs with behavior/temperament problems than mix breeds and that is because of the large amount of poorly breed dogs in the U.S so you should be very careful on choosing the dog. Rescue groups are usually the best way to go because the dogs are evaluated and you will have more of an idea of what you are getting.

 

[design_mom]

But were you adopting SMALL BREED dogs? The shelters were perfectly willing to give us a shepard or lab mix, in fact they were pleading with us to just take one, but large breed outdoor dogs are just not a good fit with our lifestyle. NO ONE was willing to adopt out a SMALL BREED(which is what the OP is looking for) to a house with kids under 10. The small breed part was always the problem.

That is true. Ours were bigger dogs.

My parents adopted a small dog (maltese/poodle mix -- under 10 lbs) from a rescue. Although they did not have small children living in the house, one of my mother's "qualifications" was that any dog they got had to be good with kids and she let the rescue know that (also needed non-shedding). This dog had been living in a foster home with small kids, and my parents were approved. My kids love that little dog. I don't know if it would be different if the kids *lived* in the house, but it was no secret that there would be small children around a lot.

 

[marie1203]

Like I said, the PP was talking about toy breeds and you talked about Shibas so I was somewhat confused. Yes, I agree the OP should explore ALL of her options including adoption.

I respectfully disagree regarding no need to breed as long as dogs are in shelters. I am no longer breeding so I have no personal stake. However, I do believe that everyone should have the option to bring a dog into their family that will fit the needs of their family. That might mean grow to a predictable size/weight, have a temperament/activity level suitable to the family's lifestyle, be hypoallergenic, have a reasonable expectation of good health through generations of selective breednig. It also means the option to have an expert that can tell the family if the breed isn't right for them and point them in the right direction to a breed that might be. Or, tell them they'd be better suited with an adult and not a puppy or kindly convince them that they shouldn't own a plant, much less a dog It means the option to have an expert as a resource for ALL of the dog's needs for life. The ONLY way to get this is with a reputable breeder.

There will always be dogs in shelters as long as the shelters keep importing dogs from other countries. If the shelters didn't have dogs to adopt out they woud shut down. When the demand exceeds the supply they transport from other shelters that have supply. They also import from countries like Mexico, Haiti, Taiwan etc. Here are a few articles so that those interested can understand what is really going on.

Clicky here

Clicky here

Clicky here too

There are reasons to breed dogs but not as many as they are being breed right now. Police dogs, service dogs, show dogs. As far as for allergies, temperament, etc this things can be obtain of mix dogs as well. There are many rescues that could give you a dog that fits the family. I think the main problem as that people choose a dog base on the look and not the temperament, etc that is what they should be looking for. I grew up in a place where there was a waiting list at the shelter and there was also no breeders in our county. Yes our shelter brought dogs from other counties, including many Katrina dogs I do not see anything wrong with that. The over population of dogs in the world is very hard to control and if shelter are able to help dogs from other countries that is great if they have the demand for it. I only get my information from reliable sources and the first article I would not call it reliable but bias to a certain view point. As a world power and one of the world leaders this should be a issue that we should solve and not have so many dogs be put down because of irresponsible humans. I think laws should be pass about breeding and puppy mills. But as long as organizations like the AKC oppose to such laws and there is money involve is going to be hard. We need more people to be aware of the problem and help be part of the solution. As for me I know I will never buy a dog as long as there is somewhere in the world one that needs help. Shelter are usually own by the government and don't make a profit so there is not money to be made just the need to help the animals.

"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated”
Mahatma Gandhi

 

[bedogged]

Red is mine



Quote:
Originally Posted by bedogged View Post
Small, expensive purebred toy puppies rarely make their way into rescue programs unless there is a serious heath problem involved.



This is not true it depends where you live and you can always arrange transport . I work close with many rescues and the past month I seen 5 small purebred dogs come in. There are many small breeds in our shelter. There are many puppy mills being busted and puppies being put up for adoption.


I have been involved in many puppy mill seizures and have never had anything but adults come from that source. We only accept and place purebred Yorkshire Terriers. We place a lot of dogs and the number of PUPPIES over the years I have received can be numbered on one hand and those have had a serious medical problem. I am in contact with many other toy breed rescue groups around the country and they report the same thing.

Since you work so closely with so many rescue groups that do receive a large number of purebred toy dog puppies, you might direct the OP to those purebred puppies that are Pugs? I'm sure that she would appreciate it.

 

[marie1203]

[QUOTE I have been involved in many puppy mill seizures and have never had anything but adults come from that source. We only accept and place purebred Yorkshire Terriers. We place a lot of dogs and the number of PUPPIES over the years I have received can be numbered on one hand and those have had a serious medical problem. I am in contact with many other toy breed rescue groups around the country and they report the same thing.

Since you work so closely with so many rescue groups that do receive a large number of purebred toy dog puppies, you might direct the OP to those purebred puppies that are Pugs? I'm sure that she would appreciate it.
[/QUOTE]

The ASPCA of wake county seize dogs from a puppy mills about 6 months ago there was many puppies. By now they all been adopted, when they come by they come quick if she does research and looks in puppy finder she should be able to find some maybe not immediately but within a few months. Most of the dogs where toy breeds and small dogs. This is why I asked the OP why she wanted a pug most rescues and the ASPCA here do not adopt to someone because they want a certain breed, but they fill a survey to make sure that the dog fits their lifestyle.

 

[Eeyore98]

There will always be dogs in shelters as long as the shelters keep importing dogs from other countries.

Are you freaking kidding me? Your links point to national statistics which report that, including dogs intended for resale, somewhere around 400k dogs are imported in a year. The pet overpopulation problem involves MILLIONS. I was an intake volunteer at a shelter for years before I moved away and life got too hectic to volunteer in my new state. It was absolutely heartbreaking the number of dogs who got put down to make space for the multiple DAILY new admissions from surrenders, all of which came from our local area (and we weren't the only shelter serving this county, either!). THAT is the reality of the vast majority of shelters in this nation.

 

[MomtoGKC]

We went through this same decision about a year and a half ago. We had been waiting years to be ready to get a dog. This was going to be our first pet and we always assumed we'd adopt one because we loved to visit and donate to our local shelter. When it came time to actually get a dog we ended up going with a reputable breeder. The reason we chose a breeder was that we wanted to be pretty sure of what we were getting. We had decided (after a lot of research, pro/con lists, visiting dog shows and shelters) to go with a golden retriever.

I looked at our local golden rescue (the ones in other areas of the state won't adopt out of their area) and they only had adult dogs, we wanted a puppy. I looked at shelters and rescue groups- they only had mixes. I didn't want a mix because I couldn't be sure of what I was getting size/tempermant/heath wise. I have a DS who was about 5 at the time and I didn't want to risk getting a dog that had any sort of aggressive behavior traits.

When we agreed to go to a breeder we first went to a local dog show to get recommendations then e-mailed our local golden club to check up on the breeder we were considering. Once they responded and gave me a big thumbs up for one of the breeder I called her and we went fro there.

Our breeder keeps all of her dogs in the house, does extensive health testing on the mothers & fathers, has a long contract that requires that we get the dog fixed and insists on taking the dog back if for some reason we had to get rid of her. We paid a premium price for her and I think it was worth it. Am I guaranteed to have no health problems? Of course not. But I felt very confident with the fact that I was getting a golden that would most likely live up to the golden breed standards.

If I hadn't had younger children I think we would have gone with an older rescue or a mixed rescue, but for our situation getting our dog from a breeder was our best decision.

 

[robinb]

As far as for allergies, temperament, etc this things can be obtain of mix dogs as well. There are many rescues that could give you a dog that fits the family.

Those things can be obtained with a mixed dog, but things like hypoallergenic dogs can only be guaranteed with a purebred. For instance, a poodle mix can have a poodle coat *or* the coat of the breed they are mixed with *or* the worst of all worlds with hair that needs to be cut and an undercoat that sheds and "blows". You simply don't know what kind of a coat you will be have a "doodle" mix until the dog is older. You might get lucky and get the coat you want or you may draw the short straw and fall in love with a dog that makes you sick. THAT is the primary reason I went with a purebred standard poodle.

I think the main problem as that people choose a dog base on the look and not the temperament, etc that is what they should be looking for.

I'm sure that are plenty of people who don't do their homework and buy a trendee dog just because they are cute (puggles) or because of a movie (dalmatians and chihuahuas). The people who gravitate to reputable breeders are not those kind of people, though. I chose a breed that was best for my family (no shedding, not a small dog, good family dog, good with kids, smart, etc) and then found a reputable poodle breeder. FTR, I didn't get everything I wanted ... my poodle is as dumb as a stump .

 

[NMW]

We went through this same decision about a year and a half ago. We had been waiting years to be ready to get a dog. This was going to be our first pet and we always assumed we'd adopt one because we loved to visit and donate to our local shelter. When it came time to actually get a dog we ended up going with a reputable breeder. The reason we chose a breeder was that we wanted to be pretty sure of what we were getting. We had decided (after a lot of research, pro/con lists, visiting dog shows and shelters) to go with a golden retriever.

I looked at our local golden rescue (the ones in other areas of the state won't adopt out of their area) and they only had adult dogs, we wanted a puppy. I looked at shelters and rescue groups- they only had mixes. I didn't want a mix because I couldn't be sure of what I was getting size/tempermant/heath wise. I have a DS who was about 5 at the time and I didn't want to risk getting a dog that had any sort of aggressive behavior traits.

When we agreed to go to a breeder we first went to a local dog show to get recommendations then e-mailed our local golden club to check up on the breeder we were considering. Once they responded and gave me a big thumbs up for one of the breeder I called her and we went fro there.

Our breeder keeps all of her dogs in the house, does extensive health testing on the mothers & fathers, has a long contract that requires that we get the dog fixed and insists on taking the dog back if for some reason we had to get rid of her. We paid a premium price for her and I think it was worth it. Am I guaranteed to have no health problems? Of course not. But I felt very confident with the fact that I was getting a golden that would most likely live up to the golden breed standards.

If I hadn't had younger children I think we would have gone with an older rescue or a mixed rescue, but for our situation getting our dog from a breeder was our best decision.

Your reasons for going to a good breeder invovled with and reccomended by the national organization are similar to ours. I had young children at the time and wanted to know that I was getting the best example of the breed possible. When we decided on an Alaskan Malamute I contacted the Alaskan Malamute Club of America and asked for breeders/members in my area and went from there. It took me a while to find one from a show breeder, but I knew it was worth waiting for. The pet store in the mall told me they could get an Alaskan Malamute for me in about 3-4 weeks or less. That is not a good sign. I'm sure that dog would have come from a puppy mill.

When I got our Bullmastiff puppy, I did the same thing. The national organizations website was great. I was too worried about health problems, aggression issues, etc to consider rescue. We just have too many kids in and out of our house all the time to worry about poorly bred aggressive dogs and the health concerns just plain scare me. I know that there is no way to insure that our dog will not develop a health issue, but knowing that he has been carefully bred/health screened for generations to further his breed and produce quality puppies makes me feel good.

Show breeders generally only breed their female dogs twice and then retire them from their breeding program. Plus, they may only breed 1 or 2 of their dogs a year. They are looking first for future show quality dogs to show and add to their breeding program. The rest they sell as pet quality to families that have been screened. This is why you might have to wait to get a dog from a certain breeder. Believe me though, if you have your heart set on a certain breed, this is the way to go. Good Luck on finding your Pug!

 

[marie1203]

Those things can be obtained with a mixed dog, but things like hypoallergenic dogs can only be guaranteed with a purebred. For instance, a poodle mix can have a poodle coat *or* the coat of the breed they are mixed with *or* the worst of all worlds with hair that needs to be cut and an undercoat that sheds and "blows". You simply don't know what kind of a coat you will be have a "doodle" mix until the dog is older. You might get lucky and get the coat you want or you may draw the short straw and fall in love with a dog that makes you sick. THAT is the primary reason I went with a purebred standard poodle.I'm sure that are plenty of people who don't do their homework and buy a trendee dog just because they are cute (puggles) or because of a movie (dalmatians and chihuahuas). The people who gravitate to reputable breeders are not those kind of people, though. I chose a breed that was best for my family (no shedding, not a small dog, good family dog, good with kids, smart, etc) and then found a reputable poodle breeder. FTR, I didn't get everything I wanted ... my poodle is as dumb as a stump .

My point was that there are plenty of rescues of specific breeds that can provide you with a dog that is hypoallergenic. I seen a few at our local shelter too. I am not saying everyone just gets a dog for their look but most people I talk to that is the case. One of the big reasons why there are some many dogs in the shelters.

 

[calypso726]

Red is mine

* pure bred dogs have more health problems *
Not true. Dogs that do not have numerous generations of health screening behind their ancestry are prone to having more health problems. Vets DO tend to see more purebred dogs in their pratices with problems. But that is because they rarely get to see well bred purebreds from repuatble breeders.

You are contradicting yourself purebred dogs do have more problems that is why vets see them more. A very small percentage of purebred dogs come from well bred dogs and that is the problem.

Overall the purebred's initial cost is more than say the mixed breed dog. The family that spent this good money on their dog is more inclined to have the necessary means to take the dog to the vet.

Sorry, apparently I was not making my point clear enough. Most vets will see MORE purebred dogs than they will mixed breed dogs. However, the number mixed breed dogs they do see is NOT proportional to the number of mixed breed dogs in the population compared to purebred dogs. The reasons more purebreds will be brought to a vet has to do with financial means and percieved value not number in dog population.

The mixed breed dog's initial cost was somewhere between free and very little. Many people get a free to good home dog and do not have the financial means necessary for proper vet care and will just allow them to get sick and die rather than bring them to the vet. Some people are of the mindset that "it's just a dog/mutt you can always get another" and there is no percieved value for the animal nor investment that will be made on it's behalf even when they have the money. The vet never sees these mixed breed dogs. They see the lucky ones whose owners value them as family members and do have or will spend whatever necessary to care for their companions. But there are many more unlucky mixes than there are lucky ones in the population and there are many more mixes out there than purebreds. That was my point.

 

[marie1203]

Sorry, apparently I was not making my point clear enough. Most vets will see MORE purebred dogs than they will mixed breed dogs. However, the number mixed breed dogs they do see is NOT proportional to the number of mixed breed dogs in the population compared to purebred dogs. The reasons more purebreds will be brought to a vet has to do with financial means and percieved value not number in dog population.

The mixed breed dog's initial cost was somewhere between free and very little. Many people get a free to good home dog and do not have the financial means necessary for proper vet care and will just allow them to get sick and die rather than bring them to the vet. Some people are of the mindset that "it's just a dog/mutt you can always get another" and there is no percieved value for the animal nor investment that will be made on it's behalf even when they have the money. The vet never sees these mixed breed dogs. They see the lucky ones whose owners value them as family members and do have or will spend whatever necessary to care for their companions. But there are many more unlucky mixes than there are lucky ones in the population and there are many more mixes out there than purebreds. That was my point.

I have never seen statistics but I have to disagree I found that the people (not all but many) that own purebred dogs (badly breed) are very ignorant in dogs overall and many believe a vet is a waste of money that is why the spend little money on getting their poorly breed dog. I find many people that have mutts have rescue their dogs one way or another and take really good care of their dogs. Of course that could vary largely from area to area but around here hunters treat their dogs very poorly and they are all poorly breed dogs.

 

[adventure_woman]

OP here again. To be honest, a lot of the reason my DH really wants a pug is for their look. His first choice would have been a bulldog, but for many different reasons I squashed that idea. I am definitely a small dog person - I have never cared for bigger dogs (the only bigger one I like is the golden, but I don't think we have enough space in our house for one!). So anyway, we came across the pug, and after researching them, determined that they would be a good fit with our family.

I don't know what we are going to do. It would either be from a show breeder or shelter though.

 

[Andrea from PA]

When our family was faced with this decision, we went with a breeder.

My youngest child did not meet the age requirements for some of our local shelters.

My middle child has asthma and we were restricted to certain breeds.

The breeder cost more, but provided a health warranty and took care of basic shots.

In the end, I just ran out of patience and did not want to continue to wait for a shelter dog who fit our family.

I would 100% again buy from the breeder. I would also 100% again start by looking at shelters.

 

[scra]

All the points about looking at adopting or rescuing before breeders, and about avoiding back yard breeder situations, are good. I would also add the following:

Are you prepared for the health problems that pugs (even well-bred pugs) often suffer from? Eye problems, nose problems, stomach/intestinal problems, and hip problems are all common in pugs due to over breeding and inbreeding in that particular breed. These problems can end up costing you a lot of money in vet visits, special diets, surgery, medication...

Are you prepared for potential temperament problems in a pug? Again due to over breeding and inbreeding, bad temperaments are more common in pugs than in many other breeds.

Please do not choose a dog breed just because you think it is "cute." Consider whether a pug is the RIGHT breed for your family, a family with two very small children.

 

[robinb]

My point was that there are plenty of rescues of specific breeds that can provide you with a dog that is hypoallergenic. I seen a few at our local shelter too. I am not saying everyone just gets a dog for their look but most people I talk to that is the case. One of the big reasons why there are some many dogs in the shelters.

BUT ... those purebreds in the shelters do not (by definition) come from reputable breeders. A reputable breeder would take the animal back rather than have it go to a shelter. I had problems with an aggressive pet rat and the breeder took her back. In that case, the rat was poorly bred and the "breeder" received the mom already preggo but STILL took her back. I was also looking into adopting a retired Japanese Bobtail show cat (a breed which is good for people with allergies) and I was in contact with a breeder from California who had a cat in the Midwest that ended up at a shelter because the owner died. I was consider adopting the cat from the shelter but it was too far away. The breeder paid for the cat to be flown back from Kansas City all the way to California. My contract on the cat I eventually purchased and the contact for my poodle both clearly state that I am to return my pets to the breeders if I cannot keep them. So, it makes me think that animals that do end up at shelters are generally poorly bred from puppy/kitten mills or backyard breeders.

 

[jodifla]

OP here again. To be honest, a lot of the reason my DH really wants a pug is for their look. His first choice would have been a bulldog, but for many different reasons I squashed that idea. I am definitely a small dog person - I have never cared for bigger dogs (the only bigger one I like is the golden, but I don't think we have enough space in our house for one!). So anyway, we came across the pug, and after researching them, determined that they would be a good fit with our family.

I don't know what we are going to do. It would either be from a show breeder or shelter though.

I agree with PP who said to go to the dog show coming up at Cobo Center. It's really fabulous...and you will be able to see dogs firsthand and talk with breeders about them and what kind of dog would fit your family.

I've been twice, and it's on my to-do list again!

 

[jodifla]

I think rescues are OK if you don't have small kids in the house, or other considerations like allergies. I've looked quite a bit on petfinder, and they often have "rules" like you must have a fenced in yard, etc. Or you can't have kids under 10, etc.

I adopted from a rescue. It didn't turn out well. Dog was much older than I was told, and was a medical mess that cost us thousands. It also was snippy with young kids. We only ended up having her a few years, then we had to put her down because of her health issues.

I also adopted from a backyard breeder where they owned the two pets. BEST DOG EVER! But did have a lot of health issues after he hit about 8. But he lived to about 15.

Next time I'm much more likely to get a puppy from a breeder I can socialize.

 

[marie1203]

BUT ... those purebreds in the shelters do not (by definition) come from reputable breeders. A reputable breeder would take the animal back rather than have it go to a shelter. I had problems with an aggressive pet rat and the breeder took her back. In that case, the rat was poorly bred and the "breeder" received the mom already preggo but STILL took her back. I was also looking into adopting a retired Japanese Bobtail show cat (a breed which is good for people with allergies) and I was in contact with a breeder from California who had a cat in the Midwest that ended up at a shelter because the owner died. I was consider adopting the cat from the shelter but it was too far away. The breeder paid for the cat to be flown back from Kansas City all the way to California. My contract on the cat I eventually purchased and the contact for my poodle both clearly state that I am to return my pets to the breeders if I cannot keep them. So, it makes me think that animals that do end up at shelters are generally poorly bred from puppy/kitten mills or backyard breeders.

Mostly but you will be saving a life. The amount of money you pay for a well breed dog will mostly offset vet bills except in rare cases. The biggest point I was trying to make is that pet owners do not go the well research route many here have said they bought their dogs from backyard breeders I don't see why not go to a shelter or rescue. Well breed dogs are very little minority out there.