First, let me say this: No responsible and caring breeder will ever sell his or her puppies to a pet store. Not ever, not even once. Responsible breeders care too much about their puppies to ever sell them to a pet store, where the only criterion that needs to be met is ready cash or a convenient credit card. Responsible breeders screen their potential puppy homes - they always do their best to ensure the safety and well being of their puppies. And, they do this for the life of the puppy. Once you take that puppy home, that is not the end of the responsible breeder's involvement. They will want to know how the puppy is doing, they will want to know if you need help, they will want to give you their time and help you to become more knowledgeable about the breed of dog you brought home. They will love to hear stories about the pup and will want to see many photos of the puppy with his/her new family. They will always be available to you, the puppy buyer, for advice, for encouragement, and for support. Their involvement does not end when the check clears - they are in it for life. These are some of the hallmarks of a responsible breeder. Now, on to the story...
This is a common story, a story about those cute little puppies that are in the pet shop window. This story is familiar to many who have bought a pet shop pup. A story that is the same, no matter what pet store the puppy was bought in, no matter what state, no matter what breed, no matter what cost. This is the story behind the pet store pups, where so-called breeders sell their crop of puppies to a store that doesn't care who takes the pup home. The breeders who sell their puppies to pet stores can be many things; they can be puppy mills, commercial breeders, brokers, or back yard breeders. The one thing they are NOT is responsible. For this story to be told, it does not matter which one of the above this particular breeder is - for it does not matter. What matters is that the breeder was not responsible, what matters is that the breeder was not ethical, what matters is that the breeder made money on these lives...
One day, there was a litter of 6 pups, four girls and two boys. The breed of these pups is of no importance - it can be any breed of dog - for no breed is safe from this. Now, in this particular litter, all six puppies happened to be healthy (a rare occurrence in these circumstances). Now, 7 to 10 weeks have passed, the puppies are still healthy, and it is time to sell these pups. The reason for doing this? To make room for the next litter to be born, of course.
It's not very common for breeders to sell their entire crop of puppies to one pet store; they usually sell them to brokers in different places and states. And that is what happens to these little guys - five of the six pups are sold to brokers who then sell them to different pet stores, and the breeder kept one female. It doesn't matter which pet store these pups went to, or what state, what matters is that they were sold to a pet store. The breeder certainly made a huge profit since no health or genetic testing was done, no research into the bloodlines of this litter, no puppy contracts were drawn up, nor screening of homes was done - all things that a responsible breeder will NEVER fail to do. This breeder has now washed their hands of the lives they were responsible for bringing into this world. Here is what happened to those pups...
Girl pup one: Sitting in a pet shop window, waiting for someone to come by. A little time has passed, and a gentleman inquires about this pup. The owner of the store is thrilled that this man wants to buy the puppy for the posted amount. Money changes hands and the pup becomes the property of Mr. Smith. Now, there was no reference check done on Mr. Smith before the puppy became his; it doesn't work that way with pet shop pups. The pup goes home with whoever wants to buy her. Unfortunately for this pup, Mr. Smith trains fighting dogs and he needed fresh 'bait'. He needs to be able to teach these dogs how to attack other dogs, so the puppy will be needed for fighting practice. Hopefully, this pup will have no spirit and she will not fight back. The ones that show spirit are vetted when they are torn apart and are thrust back into the fighting ring again. One life destroyed...
Boy pup two: Sitting in a pet shop window, waiting for someone to come by. A little time has passed, and a woman inquires about this pup. Money changes hands and the pup goes home with Ms. Johnson, to start a new life. Unfortunately for this pup, Ms. Johnson didn't do any research on this breed of dog; she wasn't prepared for many aspects of this particular breed. So, since Ms. Johnson is completely ignorant of how to deal with this breed, and she has no clue how to train or take care of a puppy, this pup spends the majority of his time locked away in a crate - only taken out when Ms. Johnson has some time to spare to play with him. Time goes by and the pup is now a dog with several problems all relating to over-crating and no socialization or training. This is just too much for Ms. Johnson, so she takes a trip to the local pound and drops off the dog. The dog is now back in a crate and he is so wild that nobody wants to adopt him. One day the dog takes a trip into the back room where there is a table and a syringe filled with blue liquid. One life destroyed...
Boy pup three: Sitting in a pet shop window, waiting for someone to come by. A little time has passed, and a couple inquires about this pup. Money changes hands and the pup goes home with Mr. & Mrs. Jones, to start a new life. Everything is great and the puppy thrives. Time goes by and this pup is now a dog, a member of the family. Mr. & Mrs. Jones also have a baby. The dog and the baby are great together, a happy family. One day the toddler is rushed to the ER with severe breathing problems and a rash covering his entire body. The culprit - the little boy is severely allergic to the dog. Mr. & Mrs. Jones try all sorts of remedies, hoping to keep the dog, all to no avail. Sadly, they take the dog to the local shelter. Days pass. Each time someone comes to the door of the cage, the dog bounds up happily, thinking that his family has come for him. Each time he realizes that it is not his family, the dog's head drops, his spirits sink, and he goes back to the far corner of his cage. Time passes. The dog no longer bounds to the front of the cage now; he knows that his family won't be coming back for him. Nobody wants to adopt a dog that spends his time in the back of his cage, refusing to come to the door to be looked at. The dog looses all joy in living; the only trip he has to look forward to is the one into the back room. His day comes, and he walks willingly to that back room, somehow sensing that his long wait is now over. One life destroyed...
Girl pup four: Sitting in a pet shop window, waiting for someone to come by. A little time has passed, and nobody inquires about this pup. This pup is sick. Sitting in a cage, day after day, with many other sick pups, this puppy has come down with several infections and ear mites. She goes into the back room of the pet store, where they keep all the infirmed animals. She receives minimal veterinary care, only enough to keep her going. As she perks up a bit the workers at the store move her back into the window, hoping to make that sale. Well, she is a bit older now, not as cute as those little balls of fluff that are in the other cages. Time passes. The pup is sick again. She makes the trip into the back room once more. A vet sees her; she has pneumonia now. It will be very expensive to make her well again, much more than what the pet store had originally bought her for. They keep her in that back room. She gets sicker by the day until one day they open up shop and find her stiff and cold body. One life destroyed...
Girl pup five: Sitting in a pet shop window, waiting for someone to come by. A little time has passed, and a family inquires about this pup. Money changes hands and the pup goes home with Mr. & Mrs. Brown and their 8-year-old daughter Sally, to start a new life. Sally just loves this pup, and the pup returns her love tenfold. Mr. & Mrs. Brown take Sally and her puppy to training classes and to parks where they can both play safely. The puppy has become Sally's best friend and Mr. & Mrs. Brown are thrilled that they made such a wise decision. Time passes. The puppy is now a dog and still is Sally's best friend in the world. One day, the dog has a problem moving around on her hind legs. The family gives it a few days, thinking that the dog pulled a muscle while playing. She doesn't get better, so it is off to the vet to see what is wrong. Sally goes along, she can't let her best friend go to the doctor's without her. After several visits, they find out that this dog has hip dysplasia. The vet informs them that there is no cure; eventually they might want to look into hip replacement for the dog. This will cost dearly to have this done. Mr. & Mrs. Brown explains this to Sally. Sally says that if it were her, wouldn't her parents want to help her to get better? The family decides to do everything they can to make the dog as healthy and happy as possible. Time passes. Sally comes home from high school rushing to her best friend. Sally still spends all her time with her dog. One life saved...
This is what the breeder contributed to the world:
Five lives on the open market - only one survived.
One life had joy - four had sorrow.
One life was happily ever after - four were sad tales.
Four lives were sacrificed - one life lucked out.
Do you still think that this breeder was responsible? Only for their deaths.
Oh, and that sixth female pup, the one the breeder kept? Well, she has already had three litters of her own, all before her second birthday. And the cycle continues...
