This is one of the most pervasive sentiments that puppy buyers,
especially families, express when they're looking for a dog. What they
really mean, of course, is that they don't want a show BREEDER – don't
want to pay the high price they think show breeders charge, don't want
to go through the often-invasive interview process, and think that
they're getting a better deal or a real bargain because they can get a
Lab for $300
or a Shepherd for
$150.
I want you to change your mind. I want you to not only realize the
benefits of buying a show-bred dog, I want you to INSIST on a show-bred
dog. And I want you to realize that the cheap dog is really the one
that's the rip-off. And then I want you to go be obnoxious and, when
your workmate says she's getting a puppy because her neighbor, who
raises them, will give her one for free, or when your brother-in-law
announces that they're buying a goldendoodle for the kids, I want you to
launch yourself into their solar plexus and steal their wallets and
their car keys.
Here's why:
If I ask you why you want a Maltese, or a Lab, or a Leonberger, or a
Cardigan, I would bet you're not going to talk about how much you like
their color. You're going to tell me things about personality, ability
(to perform a specific task), relationships with other animals or
humans, size, coat,
temperament, and so on. You'll describe playing ball, or how
affectionate you've heard that they are, or how well they get along with
kids.
The things you will be looking for aren't the things that describe just
"dog"; they'll be the things that make this particular breed unique and
unlike other breeds.
That's where people have made the right initial decision – they've taken
the time and made the effort to understand that there are differences
between breeds and that they should get one that at least comes close to
matching their picture of what they want a dog to be.
Their next step, tragically, is that they go out and find a dog of that
breed for as little money and with as much ease as possible.
You need to realize that when you do this, you're going to the used car
dealership, WATCHING them pry the "Audi" plate off a new car, observing
them as they use Bondo to stick it on a '98 Corolla, and then writing
them a check and feeling smug that you got an Audi for so little.
It is no bargain.
Those things that distinguish the breed you want from the generic world
of "dog" are only there because somebody worked really hard to get them
there. And as soon as that work ceases, the dog, no matter how purebred,
begins to revert to the generic. That doesn't mean you won't get a good
dog – the magic and the blessing of dogs is that they are so hard to
mess up, in their good souls and minds, that even the most hideously
bred one can still be a great dog – but it will not be a good Shepherd,
or good Puli, or a good Cardigan. You will not get the specialized
abilities, tendencies, or talents of the breed.
If you don't NEED those special abilities or the predictability of a
particular breed, you should not be buying a dog at all. You should go
rescue one. That way you're saving a life and not putting money in
pockets where it does not belong.
If you want a purebred and you know that a rescue is not going to fit
the bill, the absolute WORST thing you can do is assume that a name
equals anything. They really are nothing more than name plates on cars.
What matters is whether the engineering and design and service
department back up the name plate, so you have some expectation that
you're walking away with more than a label.
Keeping a group of dogs looking and acting like their breed is hard,
HARD work. If you do not get the impression that the breeder you're
considering is working that hard, is that dedicated to the breed, is
struggling to produce dogs that are more than a breed name, you are
getting no bargain; you are only getting ripped off.
-Author unknown
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