Stop *buying* puppies & kittens, animals are not a click-and-collect item!

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Even with reputable breeding it doesnt always guarantee a good healthy dog.

A lot of breeders okay-ed by the KC are inbreeding to get that 'perfect look' for the breed but the dogs back end is never right.

Is breeding ever 'ethical' I do wonder and I have a dog. This is just a pondering from me.
 
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I think I’ve had this argument so many times from people trying to justify how they purchased a dog, it’s tiring.
and they get equally defensive in almost supporting this horrific industry.

not almost, they are supporting it, you all are 🤷‍♀️
If it's tiring to hear, why did you open up this thread, invite people who have bought a puppy to respond, and then get annoyed at people like me replying about our happy puppies? Odd.
 
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We got our westie pup (May ‘19), I have to admit in hindsight it was probably dodgy, as the seller said “You can bring him back if you want to” - in reference to him barking.
Of course I wasn’t going to take him back, that was simply out of the question, this beautiful shaggy dog is part of the family, a living, loving being.
Ultimately that’s all anyone wants whether buying or adopting, some people aren’t cut out to dedicate themselves to another living creature, whether that’s a child, dog, cat or any other pet. (Or partner in some cases)!
At the mention of a Westie, there is the perfect reason to go and buy a puppy. This iconic dog is a dying breed and new puppy registrations are dipping year on year. There are many other breeds which are also dying as the fashion for designer mongrels takes over the dog world.

Our three Westies are not part of the dog world's problems.
 
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The fact that all dog owners over the last 12 months have been tarred with the assumption that they are all going to abandon and leave their dogs is so wrong. If you truly love your animals you will do everything for them!

Anyone going back to work in an office for 8 hours has options, dog walkers, daycare and even in my case I changed my whole career for my dogs. There's no excuse for leaving them alone for that amount of time.

I love my dogs and I got them both as puppies which I don't regret at all because they are my whole world and I give them everything they need but sadly not everyone has that same love and dedication to their pets.
 
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Even with reputable breeding it doesnt always guarantee a good healthy dog.

A lot of breeders okay-ed by the KC are inbreeding to get that 'perfect look' for the breed but the dogs back end is never right.

Is breeding ever 'ethical' I do wonder and I have a dog. This is just a pondering from me.
Some breeds are definitely a lot worse than others, pugs and English bulldogs are probably the best examples - interestingly some breeders are now trying to 'breed back' the English bulldog so it's a healthy breed again

We have a Japanese Chin (brachycephalic breed because of the nose being pushed in) and I was looking at Crufts to see their breed standards, our dog looks noticeably different from them in size and the forehead seems to be a bit higher with the nose a bit more pushed out perhaps, I reckon our dog is probably a bit healthier than those dogs for those reasons too tbh

Ultimately, you should be breeding for health rather than certain features
 
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Yeah I'm not sure, it would be interesting to know. When people bring cats back they tend to say 'our other cat clearly just won't tolerate another cat' which suggests they won't get another. Interestingly it's always people who also say they got a new cat and immediately introduced them to the existing cat without following any of the guidance we give on socialising cats...I can appreciate it's probably different for dogs though as they're much more of a time commitment. I always massively side eye people who say cats are 'too much effort' because they really aren't at all.
yeah especially as with cats you can keep (usually) them apart if they don't get on, in my experience anyway, just have separate litter trays etc
 
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yeah especially as with cats you can keep (usually) them apart if they don't get on, in my experience anyway, just have separate litter trays etc
People are just so impatient. With cats they will honestly almost always rub along together in the end even if they aren't best pals. The trickiest is if you bring an older cat into a home with a younger cat who was there first. We have two like this where they just avoid each other but it took a long time to get to that point. We also have a feral cat who took literally about a year to even be touched by us and not run away every time we approached her, but she's friendly as pie now. People just get annoyed that the living breathing creature they've just adopted doesn't slot in immediately...you try to explain it but it's like some people think you're just saying it to warn them.
 
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For what it’s worth (probably repeating other people’s stories!) we bought a puppy three years ago from a family who had bred their own show dog for the first time. She rejected the puppies and they raised them by hand so I doubt she’s had any more litters!
We looked at rescue centres but we have small children and it didn’t seem it was an option. Plus we also had the train of thought that if we got a puppy and brought him or her up with our kids they’d be used to each other. It was the right decision for our family, we all adore the dog and she will be loved and looked after as well as possible for as long as she lives. We won’t breed her.
Are we part of a bigger problem? Maybe. But a dog was brought into the world and we now own her and care for her, who knows what would have happened to her if we hadn’t bought her? All the puppies need a home somewhere and no charity had to spend money or resources looking after this particular one.
There absolutely need to be tighter laws on breeding and the way the mums are treated. Ideally if I had my way there should also be vetting for anyone who wants to buy or adopt a puppy from anywhere, charity or private. I’m always shocked seeing on film and TV in countries where people can go to a pet shop and buy a puppy, I guess the UK is better in some ways but worse in others!
 
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Yeah I'm not sure, it would be interesting to know. When people bring cats back they tend to say 'our other cat clearly just won't tolerate another cat' which suggests they won't get another. Interestingly it's always people who also say they got a new cat and immediately introduced them to the existing cat without following any of the guidance we give on socialising cats...I can appreciate it's probably different for dogs though as they're much more of a time commitment. I always massively side eye people who say cats are 'too much effort' because they really aren't at all.
Kittens can be a bit of work, but once they’re grown cats are a piece of piss to be honest. I’ve had cats pretty much my whole life and I don’t understand people who say they’re hard work either. I know Toms can be a bit of a pain in the arse but that’s why you get them neutered.
 
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Even with reputable breeding it doesnt always guarantee a good healthy dog.

A lot of breeders okay-ed by the KC are inbreeding to get that 'perfect look' for the breed but the dogs back end is never right.

Is breeding ever 'ethical' I do wonder and I have a dog. This is just a pondering from me.
defo , we got a king charles cavlalier who are known for all their health issues , breathing issues, soft palletes, heart mumurs and siezures but i wouldnt change her for the world. they have a life expanctancy of 9-11 years due to their health but weve managed to get her to 13 and only on 2 tablets. vets are so impressed how well she is doing and its down to diet and exercise really and knowing when she needs to rest
 
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Yeah I'm not sure, it would be interesting to know. When people bring cats back they tend to say 'our other cat clearly just won't tolerate another cat' which suggests they won't get another. Interestingly it's always people who also say they got a new cat and immediately introduced them to the existing cat without following any of the guidance we give on socialising cats...I can appreciate it's probably different for dogs though as they're much more of a time commitment. I always massively side eye people who say cats are 'too much effort' because they really aren't at all.
I have to hold my hands up to this , someone i knew was leaving the country and had a grey British shorthair , i had just lost my cat who was about 15 and being a cat lover i took him in , he is very placid but quite nervous , after 6 months my Mom passed away so things were tough and i wasnt giving him the attention in terms of play, i looked into getting another and people who i spoke to said British shorthairs are quite good with other cats and get a female , so i sought out a female whose owners couldnt look after her anymore , the couple i got her off said they would bring her round to the house to see if they got on, anyway they came round and put the female down and she was so confident she was walking around like she owned the place, the cats met touched noses and just did their own thing, so i had her , i did none of the usual separation as they just seemed to get on. Ive moved house since and they both took it in their stride, i now want to put a big cat run/aviary thing in the garden so they can go out but not fully out.
They dont cuddle up in the same space together , but they do time share a box :D i havent been able to unpack it , its full of records which had some old clothes on, and all of a sudden it became the male cats bed :D , i looked a couple of weeks later and saw the female in there :D so now they share it individually
 
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I have to hold my hands up to this
Don't worry it's definitely not a hard and fast rule! There are so many factors that come into it, I was just speaking generally/what we tell people adopting to be on the safe side. I don't tend to properly socialise cats we get now to be honest because we have so many they are so accepting of newcomers. If the new cat was nervous, older, feral, been treated badly etc I would act with more caution but on the whole if you have two young ish cats of a similar age and an ok background it's usually going to be ok, especially if they have lived with other cats before or gone outside. It's so lovely your two got along so quickly!
 
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If it's tiring to hear, why did you open up this thread, invite people who have bought a puppy to respond, and then get annoyed at people like me replying about our happy puppies? Odd.
oh no the tiring bit is arguing with customers who’ve purchased a dog that get defensive if they called out on it.

But buying a puppy via a reputable breeder from kennel club isn’t exactly the same as buying one from a dodgy guy out the back of a car is it? I think that’s why people are getting so defensive.
I think like a doctor or a dentist needs to train in order to offer a service a breeder should be made do similar before they’re allowed sell any animals.
 
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I think like a doctor or a dentist needs to train in order to offer a service a breeder should be made do similar before they’re allowed sell any animals.
Agree with this. Found the thing you posted about the potential legal changes really interesting. I would really like to see it be made compulsory to have licenses to keep animals and also mandatory to have insurance.
 
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Don't worry it's definitely not a hard and fast rule! There are so many factors that come into it, I was just speaking generally/what we tell people adopting to be on the safe side. I don't tend to properly socialise cats we get now to be honest because we have so many they are so accepting of newcomers. If the new cat was nervous, older, feral, been treated badly etc I would act with more caution but on the whole if you have two young ish cats of a similar age and an ok background it's usually going to be ok, especially if they have lived with other cats before or gone outside. It's so lovely your two got along so quickly!
I was very lucky , there is 6 months between them in age, they do the usual play fighting after a chase , but its usually slapping each other from different levels of the cat tree :D
 
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Agree with this. Found the thing you posted about the potential legal changes really interesting. I would really like to see it be made compulsory to have licenses to keep animals and also mandatory to have insurance.
I think it is only a matter of time, in the UK at least, I was reading today that they are thinking of making microchipping of cats compulsory, so I imagine there will start to be more rules relating to pets generally which I would really welcome
 
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I think there is nothing wrong with paying for a breed you want but i would probably do what i did with my cats and take one on that someone couldnt look after anymore , you get the breed you want , you are giving the dog a home that you know is a good home instead of it ending up anywhere or in a dogs home. However i would look at housing a dog from a dogs home first, ive took cats in from cats homes ever since i was a kid, the only reason i bought a pedigree breed cat this time is they are indoor cats , i didnt want the stress this time of a cat being near a road, cats from a cats home tend to be strays so they love going out, keeping them locked in would be cruel so i chose a different option.

All that matters is that you love the animal you have no matter where it comes from, i think thats the main thing , not someone like Katy bleeping Price who always seems to have them end up dead :mad: :mad: , that witch should never own any animal, if you dont know the dog is down the back of a sofa then it shows that you arent looking for it, dreadful person, she seems to have dogs and then get rid of them when she gets bored, didnt she have a really expensive trained guard dog, that was perfectly trained and obedient , then a week with her it became a loud barking dog she couldnt be bothered to keep trained, so all the effort put into the dog and she just neglected it.
 
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Really there’s always going to be bad and good owners. Whether you buy your dog from a breeder or adopt isn’t going to reflect on you as an owner as that’s a really small thing when you consider that many dogs live up to 10-15 years

I’m sure there are rescue owners who could be better as there are people who bought dogs that could also be better🤷‍♀️

At the end of the day it’s the actual breeders who are responsible for the breeding and to some extent ensuring that the puppies go to a good home (though it understandably cannot be guaranteed), just as shelters are responsible for ensuring the same things
 
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I think it is only a matter of time, in the UK at least, I was reading today that they are thinking of making microchipping of cats compulsory, so I imagine there will start to be more rules relating to pets generally which I would really welcome
I hope so, as it always seems to me that cats get largely forgotten in the microchip arguments. I also remember a time when certain vets would neuter cats free of charge, not sure that happens anymore which is sad imo.
 
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I hope so, as it always seems to me that cats get largely forgotten in the microchip arguments. I also remember a time when certain vets would neuter cats free of charge, not sure that happens anymore which is sad imo.
I have seen the local vets offer neutering for free for people from certain postcodes, though they seem to be going around the whole area slowly so there is that

My friend from London said that they have a similar scheme but he had to prove that he was under a certain income which seems a bit unfortunate tbh, he wasn't exactly 'well off' either
 
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