Designer Puppy Breeders - The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
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The Different Types of Designer Dog Breeders
Yes, it is a popular trend to get a designer or mixed breed dog. Animal shelters are overpopulated with these dogs, yet many people choose a designer dog breeder instead.
When you choose the breeder route to purchase a dog, understand that there are three types of breeders - the good, the bad, and the ugly.
What exactly does that mean? Good breeders deliver a puppy in the best of health, offer a solid guarantee, and provide excellent after purchase service. Bad breeders slip up on any one or more of these three criteria. Ugly breeders create unhealthy dogs under deplorable conditions, sell these puppies in pet stores, and should be banned from breeding anything, including their own offspring.
The two puppies pictured on this page are my Cockapoo pups. The one on the left, Simon, was purchased from a good designer dog breeder in PA. Alvin, the other pup, was purchased from a bad breeder in Missouri and transported to CT. These are my direct experiences with designer dog breeders.
But I know there's another type - the breeder who produces pups with a single objective - making a profit. Usually these puppies are bred without regard to their welfare and with minimal human contact. Most are sold to pet stores; others end up with owners who bought them online without thoroughly checking out the breeder. Hence, my tag for them - ugly designer dog breeders.
When you choose the breeder route to purchase a dog, understand that there are three types of breeders - the good, the bad, and the ugly.
What exactly does that mean? Good breeders deliver a puppy in the best of health, offer a solid guarantee, and provide excellent after purchase service. Bad breeders slip up on any one or more of these three criteria. Ugly breeders create unhealthy dogs under deplorable conditions, sell these puppies in pet stores, and should be banned from breeding anything, including their own offspring.
The two puppies pictured on this page are my Cockapoo pups. The one on the left, Simon, was purchased from a good designer dog breeder in PA. Alvin, the other pup, was purchased from a bad breeder in Missouri and transported to CT. These are my direct experiences with designer dog breeders.
But I know there's another type - the breeder who produces pups with a single objective - making a profit. Usually these puppies are bred without regard to their welfare and with minimal human contact. Most are sold to pet stores; others end up with owners who bought them online without thoroughly checking out the breeder. Hence, my tag for them - ugly designer dog breeders.
Designer Puppy Breeders - One of the Good Breeders
In August of 2009, after checking out several designer puppy breeders in Pennsylvania, I purchased a Cockapoo (Simon). I visited the dog breeder twice, saw the 8-week-old puppy, and talked at length about his background, the health of his parents, and her breeding practices.When the pup was 3 days old, his dew claws and tail were docked. She explained her guarantee, the type of food, supplements, and housetraining techniques to use, and the vaccinations he received to date.
This breeder and I continue to correspond via email about the puppy's care. Simon checked out perfectly with my vet and continues to get the required vaccinations.
You can read about Simon's puppyhood on Alvin and Simon's blog.
Designer Puppy Breeders - One of the Bad Breeders
IN April of 2009,I purchased a Bichon Cockapoo (Alvin) online. His puppyfind.com picture is shown here. It was my first online pet purchase and I did as much research as I thought was necessary. It wasn't enough.Alvin arrived with a urinary tract infection, an intestinal parasite, and a scratching/allergy condition. The first two conditions were resolved with antibiotics and medication to kill the parasites, but both took a month to correct with several rounds of medication.
After 4 months, ear drops, skin mite shots, and prescription food, he's still scratching. Interesting that the last email I sent to the breeder mentioned the scratching. There was no response and I haven't heard from her since.
Clearly, this breeder is not reliable and represents the type of puppy breeder dog lovers rant about constantly in pet forums. The dog breeder fails to meet two of the three criteria: delivering a healthy dog, and after purchase service.
You can read about Alvin's puppyhood on Alvin and Simon's blog.
Designer Puppy Breeders - Describing the Ugly Breeders
Who are the ugly designer dog breeders?These breeders' primary interest is the money that can be made from producing mixed breed dogs in bulk. They raise puppies who might never see the light of day until they're shipped to a pet store, live surrounded by their own waste in cages, rarely interact with humans, and are usually unhealthy (or near starvation like the poor pup in the picture).
Words cannot describe how much these dog breeders frustrate dog lovers. You can see an undercover look at puppy mills and the pet stores that sell the puppy mill dogs on Oprah's episode discussing the topic.
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Designer Puppys: Alvin and Simon's Blog
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Designer Puppys Blog Contents
Review - It's PAWSible Puppy and Dog Training DVD
FREE Puppy Training Ebooks
The Best of the Designer Dogs - Cockapoos
Designer Puppys Blog Contents
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by valmillsy
Hi: I'm a copywriter/designer and amateur photographer. Alvin, a Bichon Cockapoo, joined our family in April and then in August, we welcomed Simon, a... (more)
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