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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!allegra!alice!rabbit!hania
From: hania@rabbit.UUCP (Hania Gajewska)
Newsgroups: net.pets
Subject: Re: Pet shoppe clarification - (nf)
Message-ID: <3070@rabbit.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 18-Aug-84 11:29:28 EDT
Article-I.D.: rabbit.3070
Posted: Sat Aug 18 11:29:28 1984
Date-Received: Sun, 19-Aug-84 03:43:27 EDT
References: <47500002@convex.UUCP>
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill
Lines: 40

Thank you for posting the article about why not to get a puppy from a pet
shop on the net.  I sent a long reply, in the same vain, to the author
of the afghan request.  I also offered assistance with locating a breeder
in his area, as well as suggesting ways he might go about finding one
himself.

The main thing to remeber about pet shop pups is  the reason they are
there: someone is making money on them.  Most of the time, no attention
is paid to the temperament (or looks) of the parents, and very closely
related dogs (such as brother and sister) are often bred together, with
predictable results.  (I personally know of such cases).  The only people
I know who bought a puppy from a pet shop (on impulse -- their 15 year old
cocker spaniel had just died) have had to put it to sleep, because no
trainer or dog shrink could get it to stop biting everyone in sight.

Of course, when you buy a puppy from a breeder, you're not guaranteed
that it will turn out well, but your chances are far better.  If the
breeder exhibits dogs at dog shows, then he/she probably bred the litter
to produce show quality pups -- beautiful specimens with temperaments
to fir their breed.  Perhaps the breeder is looking to keep one of the
pups him/herself.  You can be sure that a lot of thought was given to
which dogs to breed, and which lines, looks, and temperaments would
go together.  The puppies were most likely raised with care, played with
and socialized, to produce stable adults.  This, of course, is not true
for all breeders, but since most of them end up keeping a puppy from
a litter (if there is one to their liking), you can be sure that they
are breeding dogs they could live with.  The pet public profits by having
the opportunity to buy those puppies from a litter which didn't quite
make the show grade, most often for reasons of no significance to the
pet owner.  These puppies have the same fine blood lines as the show dogs.

I am curious whether the person who posted the afghan article ever got
my reply to him, or whether it got lost in net-mail-land.  But let me
reiterate the offer that I made to him to all you other folks in netland:
I would be glad to locate a breeder, any breed, in your area.  I may not
always succeed, but I am always willing to try.

   Hania Gajewska

P.S.  I breed Airedale Terriers.  Any other breedres out there?