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I'm with you Jonov. I live alone in a forest and I have a dog that is fully recognized as a German Shepherd. She s from German bloodlines and knows thirty commands. I trained her myself.
$5K for any puppy is insane. I was reading a bit about Frenchies and it sounds like they may have paid a premium for a "designer" color? French Bulldogs are expensive because they often need to be delivered via C Section and require artificial insemination.
There are good legitimate reasons for getting a purebred dog. While there are plenty of shelter dogs that will make perfectly good pets, some folks need something different or want more control.
Getting a puppy insures that you are in control of the dogs training, and more importantly, socialization, from 8 weeks onward.
Getting one from a reputable breeder allows you to meet the parent(s), go over health records like hip x-rays, etc, allows you a much higher chance of guaranteeing a dog with certain behavior and physical traits, and people have no business shaming others for that.
People have no business bragging about how much they spent on a dog....that is tacky. I think if you are going to share that information, you are inviting judgement.
I am puzzled as to why someone would need to have a purebred dog when there are so many "mutts" out there........
Because your friend wanted to have a French Bulldog and not a pitbull mix with a mystery background. It's her money, her dog, and none of your business what she wants to spend her discretionary income on.
There are great dogs in the pound for people who just want a dog and any dog will do. Nice dogs, nice temperaments, good companions.
Purebreds are for people who want something specific out of a dog. They want a specific look or a specific temperament or a specific size. They want a pedigree of health screening. They want a dog purpose bred for temperament or to perform a specific job.
My son will be flying to Britain next year to pick up a British bred Springer Spaniel with 7-8 generations of field trial champions in his pedigree. That dog will do exactly the job he is purchased for. He will find, flush, and fetch pheasant and chukkar. Maybe a 5 year old half pitbull half Jack Russel Terrier from the pound could be trained to find and fetch game birds, but it would take a lot of work to train him and he might never learn to do it well, because there is nothing in his pedigree to genetically program him to perform that task.
That pound puppy might be a great companion for a different family, but he will most likely not going to do what my son needs a dog for. The British field trial spaniel will do the job with very minimal training and do it very well.
He will have at least 6 generations of ancestors who have certified hips, elbows and eyes. That pound puppy might have a mother with hip dysplasia and a father with PRA. Nobody knows because nobody knows who the parents are.
It is an urban myth that mongrels are healthier,. They have the same health issues and the same genetic problems that any other dog has. Except that with a pedigree dog you can do health research instead of not knowing anything.
It cost me $4,000 to get Pensive. You want to know why? Because I wanted a Bracco Italiano. There wasn't a Bracco in the local pound that had multinational champion parents with hunting dog titles on both sides of the pedigree. When I can get that sort of dog from the pound, then I will get a dog from the pound. Until that day, I will get the type of dog that I want to live with. My money, my household, my dog. You can get a dog from the pound if that is what you want. You'll probably get a good dog and if you don't care what sort of dog, you will be very happy.
I also volunteer in the shelter, and have forever. I think you'll agree that statement right there is why you should use caution adopting a purebred from a shelter that's an "owner surrender". If you see a dog there that otherwise would have market value, and the previous owner must have paid real money for it, there's likely something wrong with it. It may not be apparent in the shelter, but that dog is an escape artist, a voracious chewer, can't be housebroken, barks all the time, bites, has separation anxiety and wrecks the house if it's alone. Or it has a health issues, as you say, that are expensive to fix. People who own purebred dogs that are lovely, easy to own dogs are most often able to give them away to family or friends if they can no longer take care of them, or they sell them.
Of course, that same standard doesn't apply as much to strays, although still some. Dogs that get loose and no one puts enough energy into locating them at the city shelter during the stray reclaim time frame . . . aren't really treasured. Obviously, that's not always the dog's fault.
Of course, there are exceptions to these generalities. You can certainly find stellar gems of dogs at the city shelter.
That hasn't been my experience as someone active in rescue at all. Of course that's true for some dogs but I completely disagree that there is "most likely" something wrong with it. Often it's because the owners don't have time for it, it got too big, it's too old, they didn't research the breed properly or they have unrealistic expectations about the dog's behavior. For example, if you leave a young high-drive GSD in the house alone for several hours you will likely come home to a mess, you leave it alone in the backyard 24/7 it will try to escape or if you have two intact males, it's not surprising that they would fight; those things are not the dog's fault, they are the fault of the owner.
As to the topic generally, I have no issues with someone buying from a reputable breeder(someone who belongs to the parent club, does health screenings and puts working or conformation titles on their dogs) if that's what they want.
That hasn't been my experience as someone active in rescue at all. Of course that's true for some dogs but I completely disagree that there is "most likely" something wrong with it. Often it's because the owners don't have time for it, it got too big, it's too old, they didn't research the breed properly or they have unrealistic expectations about the dog's behavior. For example, if you leave a young high-drive GSD in the house alone for several hours you will likely come home to a mess, you leave it alone in the backyard 24/7 it will try to escape or if you have two intact males, it's not surprising that they would fight; those things are not the dog's fault, they are the fault of the owner.
As to the topic generally, I have no issues with someone buying from a reputable breeder(someone who belongs to the parent club, does health screenings and puts working or conformation titles on their dogs) if that's what they want.
^^^ I agree. I work at intake at a local shelter and dogs are dropped off for all kinds of reasons. Failure to research is a huge piece of it, or simply not thinking things through. For example, I've seen a number of beagles surrendered for being "too loud" (er, isn't what they were bred to be?). We recentlye had a German Shepherd come through that the owner said she paid $5K for but the dog was now full grown and too big (again, really?).
Although I work at a shelter I don't think there is anything wrong getting a dog fro ma reputable breeder (not to be confused with a puppy mill!). The most important thing is that a family select the right dog for them. If the right dog is selected, it stays with the family and is not turned in to a shelter. Ultimately, that is the goal. If a purebred fro ma breeder is right for a family because they know a certain breed and is comfortable with it, or whatever reason, then fine. Getting a purebred dog on a whim or because it is cute or a status symbol is not a good idea because it could end up in a shelter. Equally, I hate the returns we get - someone gets a puppy or dog from us at the shelter only to return it later. Understanding everyone has a point at which life intervenes and, a number of returns are preventable if the adopter simply selected a dog for the right reasons. I would much rather someone buy a purebred from a reputable breeder and keep it then adopt from us only to return the dog 4 months later.
It sure sounds like some of these arguments for purebreds are for "designer dogs" who look and act a certain way and come with a guarantee of sorts (and a high price tag.)
I am not a dog person and have no interest in owning a dog. But if I did, I would never care enough to have anything other than a good companion. I would not need this dog to look any particular way or do anything special other than be a dog. Seems like that may be a minority opinion.
There are excellent, practical reasons for getting a purebred of known pedigree:
- knowing what size and weight the dog will be when adult;
- knowing what behavioral tendencies exist, some of which are loathed by some owners yet sought by others;
- being safe from breed-specific bans;
- getting continued advice from the breeder (and a take-back guarantee if things don't work out);
- being able to consult references on known heritable issues or just differences from most dogs (e.g., greyhound thyroid levels normally running lower than in other breeds);
- knowing whether the dog will have massive coat blowouts twice a year but little shedding in between, or lesser but continuous shedding, or little shedding at all;
- having a better idea of the dog's expected lifespan;
- knowing if the puppy is likely to be slow to mature;
- having an idea of what the dog has been bred to WANT to do (so you don't get a high-energy dog that you will not work or exercise adequately)...
There are more such advantages to getting a purebred of good background. That doesn't mean it is a guarantee of satisfaction, or that a mixed breed would not meet your wants.
But the tired old chant of "Adopt a mutt" because there are so many of them or because they have a mixed--unknown--heritage doesn't hold much water. The reason to adopt a mutt is because a specific one has caught your eye and seems like a good match personality-wise, good enough a match that if later on you find out it gets bigger than expected, or it hates other animals and you have or want other pets in the same house, you work with what you got.
All of the above applies whether the dog is free, inexpensive, or cost thousands of dollars. I still think bragging about what you spent is crass, whether it is a dog or a thing.
All of the above applies whether the dog is free, inexpensive, or cost thousands of dollars. I still think bragging about what you spent is crass, whether it is a dog or a thing.
I agree with this. But even in this thread, there have been mention made of posters dogs/dog costs as if to justify/flaunt this. If you want a certain kind of dog and need to know all about its genetic lineage, whatever. But why is it important to bookend that with "I am flying overseas to get my dog worth several thousands?" That just seems like bragging and at that point, its sure not about the dog.
This reminds me of people who 'need' to have a Viking or La Cornue range but don't cook that much.
I agree with this. But even in this thread, there have been mention made of posters dogs/dog costs as if to justify/flaunt this. If you want a certain kind of dog and need to know all about its genetic lineage, whatever. But why is it important to bookend that with "I am flying overseas to get my dog worth several thousands?"
Because in fact in order to get a good working dog (especially one that is already trained for its work) you may need to spend a couple of thousand dollars, despite what some posters in this thread (who have openly said they'd never spend that type of money on a dog) have claimed. It's not true in all cases, of course, and most people just want a pet (a job for which the average pound puppy is completely suited, as lounging on the couch takes little talent or training). But for some people who have very specific needs, paying $5,000 for a dog may be entirely reasonable.
It sure sounds like some of these arguments for purebreds are for "designer dogs" who look and act a certain way and come with a guarantee of sorts (and a high price tag.
ALL working dogs (which is what all dogs were until very recently in history) are "designer dogs" in that they were specifically bred to have the aptitude to perform certain jobs. There's no such thing as a "generic dog" that can be trained to perform any and all tasks equally well.
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