Financing Puppies???

I'm continually surprised at how pet stores keep surprising me. And not sure why I'm surprised...

A new sign in the window of the local puppy mill pet store in the mall now reads "Financing Available". WHAT??? Let's face it, if you can't afford to buy the puppy, you certainly can't afford to care for a puppy!

You finance a car, a house, appliances. Notice a trend here? Those are THINGS! You do not finance a living animal! You need to put time and thought into any purchase, especially something you will have for the next fifteen years. Do you know that most people put more thought and research into buying an IPod or a camera than they do into what breed or type of dog they will get? A dog should never, ever be an impulse purchase. Time and time again I have seen people buy a dog on impulse only to discover that their lifestyle does not remotely match what this dog was bred for and a terrible relationship ensues.

Please, please, please stay out of the pet stores. You may feel you are rescuing a puppy, but in reality you are paying people to continue to treat dogs in a deplorable manner. I worry so much for the puppies purchased by people simply because "He was so cute" or "He was on sale", or the one that makes me the most ill, "He looked sick". At no point in time is it okay for someone to sell a sick puppy. At no point in time is it okay for someone to make money by selling sick puppies. At no point in time is it okay for someone to end up with thousands of dollars of vet bills because someone made money by selling a sick puppy.

I also worry about the dogs kept at the puppy mills where these puppies are created. Puppy mills are just that, they churn puppies out as fast as the poor mothers can have them. By purchasing a puppy from a pet store you are paying someone to keep doing this. They are bred on their very first heat cycles, when they are still puppies themselves, and bred every single heat cycle until they are too old, too sick, too worn out or something goes wrong. By purchasing a puppy from a pet store you are paying someone to keep doing this. At that point they are killed, and not humanely. By purchasing a puppy from a pet store you are paying someone to keep doing this.

And don't ever listen to the people working in the stores claiming these dogs came from a breeder, because the sneaky term for a puppy mill is "commercial breeder". These dogs often come from the midwest and the south. Basically there is absolutely NO reputable breeder who would EVER sell their puppies to a pet store. EVER!

If you have already purchased a puppy from a pet store, what is done is done, but don't do it again!

If you take the time to research the breeds you might be interested in, seek out a reputable breeder, check references and health clearances and meet the parent dogs you will in the long run most likely end up with a healthier, happier dog, and you will also have a reliable person to turn to with questions on your dog. Try going back to a chain store with rotating teenaged staff who are paid minimum wage and try to get any reliable information!

Okay, off my soapbox for today!

Vick has won an award! Huh? WHY???

I am so saddened and disgusted today to see that Michael Vick has won an award for courage. http://community.comcast.net/comcastportal/blog/article?blog.id=sportsblog&message.id=2475&jump=true#addcomment

Please pardon my rant here as I am just beside myself. I simply can not see how someone who was convicted of taking part in such a horrible chain of events can not only be free and back to making ridiculously large sums of money, but also be receiving awards.

Not for nothing, it takes a pretty heartless person to choose to kill a dog for sport. It also takes an awful lot to kill a Pit Bull. And for someone to beat it to death, that is an act of horror I can only begin to imagine in my worst nightmares.

I am an open Pit Bull admirer. I think they are generally nice dogs once someone has put the appropriate time into training them and understands that they are strong, smart, active dogs who do have a tendancy to be aggressive to other dogs. With people they are typically sweet, affectionate, loyal and the only way they will hurt you is with their non-stop tails and tongues! To take these animals and turn them into killing machines is simply beyond heartless. To then torture the "losers" to death (and let's face it, there are no winners when it comes to dog fighting) by attaching extenstion cables, plugging them in and tossing them in a pool, that is just a crime that screams of someone being so sociopathic that they need to be locked up and have the key thrown away.

Vick may have "paid his debt to society" but he will never be able to pay his debt to morality.

New Carrier for my Blog!

Hello! If you have followed my blog on Karen Pryor's site, welcome back! I will now be posting my blogs here because it is easier for me to access!

There are lots of exciting happenings at Puppy, Please! for the upcoming new year. We will be relaunching our Agility and Rally classes, as well as regular seminars on introducing existing dogs to new babies. Having just become a mother this July (to the incredible Gracie!) I am now able to add "been there done that" tips to the class! This is in addition to our regular puppy and dog obedience classes.

Give us a call and check us out!

In the meantime, have a wonderful, dafe and happy holiday!

Jessica