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Ask Yvette

Dear Yvette,

You say that people should get a dog from a reputable breeder or rescue group. What does that mean?

Jerry

Industry people sometimes take for granted that everyone knows what we mean. Sadly, many people get their puppies from a mill and never know it. In an unregulated industry, a savvy marketing person can take in the most educated individual. These people are so determined to make the sale that many people in animal rescue have been complaining that some puppy mills are calling themselves rescues. Bad breeders can be very difficult to spot.

Some places look immaculate and charge hundreds of dollars are some of the worst offenders. Their sanitized kennels and automatic feeding systems are a gleaming example of what is sometimes called an, “institutionalized breeding facility.” I just call them puppy mills.

It does not matter if you are going through a rescue group, shelter or breeder here are some things to look for:

Puppies are home raised with the family
When puppies are kept in barns or sanitized kennels they miss out on this critical exposure. They often do not bond well with humans and pose an increased bite risk. A dog that is not socialized is a wild dog. Kennel raised puppies usually have lingering housetraining issues. In some rescue situations, puppies may have been moved to a kennel after fostering, which is acceptable.

Know the Breeder/Caretaker
Brokers are for mortgages. Stores are for groceries. Animals are not things that you can take back and just exchange. If you are not dealing directly with the breeder – walk away. Breeders who care about you and the dog are not going to sell to the highest bidder unseen. They will want to interview you. Quality breeders place the dogs themselves.

Parents on Site
The mother of the puppies should be present. Pay close attention to the temperament she has. In rescue, it may be that the mother is absent for good reasons. Males may not be present if a stud dog was used.

8 weeks of age
Puppies learn how to become gentle with their mouths at about 7 _ weeks of age from their littermates. Bad breeders will try to home the puppies early to save on food costs. In return, you end up with a puppy that is rough with his mouth and lacks early dog-to-dog socialization.

Handling exercises
There is solid research that indicates that handling puppies for 5 minutes per day makes a difference. The really top notch ones will even start on crate training, housetraining and prevention based exercises.

Will say “no.”
If a puppy is not right for you, a good breeder or group will say “no.” Like it or not, quality groups will do the right thing even if it hurts their pocketbook.

Honesty
Many mills are making cash hand over fist selling designer breeds. They often have names such as, “cock-a-poo, shi-poo, labra-doodle, schnoodle.” These dogs are marketed as “purebred.” But the gosh honest truth is if your dog doesn't have a pedigree from the CKC, AKC, or UKC it is not a purebred. Frankly, you have a mutt. Don't get me wrong; I think mixed breed dogs are hands down some of the best dogs out there temperamentally. But honest breeders are not going to present a puppy for something it is not.

Yvette is an award winning pet writer and pet behavior columnist. She also is the author of Meeting Milo, a North American dog bite prevention program to reduce the approximately 2 million children bit by dogs annually. She is the owner of AwesomeDogs.ca and works as a behavior consultant in London, Ontario.

This column was originally featured in The Londoner
See more of Yvette... www.awesomedogs.ca
www.meetingmilo.com

Yvette has 2 dogs of her own, KIKI and KAYA. Take a look...

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