nOT ALL PET STORES ARE BAD!

[mrose_s]

I am sick of everyone saying to NEVER buy from a pet store, I got my rabbit from ours and would probably get a puppy if I knew it needed a home.

This is because I live in a small town, our 1 pet store is owned by poeple I know personally and I happen to know that the puppies that come in are from litters in town, unwanted litters that may otherwise be sent to the pound or dumped. surely this pet store must be better, I know there are no puppy mills around here, I know the owner gets the puppies out and plays with them and looks after them very well.

I just wanted to say, dont stereotype all pet stores as stores that buy from puppy mills.

 

[Fran27]

Well he gets them from backyard breeders, and they are probably not health tested either, so it's really about the same.

I shouldn't say anything because I got Boris in a place like that too, when I didn't know better. It is better than most petstores because the pups get some attention at least, but it doesn't mean the pups are more healthy.

 

[bubbatd]

I imagine it's better than a chain store, but the poor pups are still from a poor breeder. I do feel sorry for the poor babies... but you put as much time and money into any dog. That's why I'd rather be assured from the beginning.

 

[Doberluv]

Anyone who supports back yard breeders and irresponsible pet owners who let their dogs run loose and get bred, adding to the overpopulation of dogs and cats is adding to the problem, not the solution. They may not mean to be doing this. Their hearts may be in the right place. They're trying to help, but when irresponsible people breeding their dogs know that they can always dump them at the pet store for someone else to be responsible for, then it makes it even easier for them, enables them more. Maybe if people stopped helping these idiots out, they'd start being more careful.

I don't have a problem with rabbits, parakeets or fish as long as they're cared for well. That is not the same thing as the horrendous overpopulation situation with dogs and cats.

 

[mrose_s]

well also, look at it this way, i am not sure if there are any reputible breeders in my area (i doubt it) and the nearest place where there would be is 300kms away! Imagine shipping 8 week old puppies for three hours like that.

I know backyard breeding is bad, but atleast these pups do have somewhere to go!

 

[RD]

mrose you don't get it. No responsible breeder who cares about their puppies will sell to a pet store. Most of the pups you get at a pet store are -very- poorly bred, even if they aren't the product of puppymills.

If you don't mind the breeding on a dog, and just want a cute companion, GO TO A SHELTER and rescue a dog. They need homes too.

 

[Richie12345]

Don't get one from a petshop. Don't buy a pup just cuz you feel sorry for them. You are supporting Petshops and they will continue to mistreat the poor pups...

 

[Ash47]

I agree with Doberluv 10000%. The vets or the "good" pet stores that take in animals are not always in the right though. I think that they know people are not spaying/neutering and that it is just another way to make a quick buck. Sad but true. People are mean greedy beings.
On the other hand, I know that there are some people who really are doing it to help out, but in all reality, they are just helping the problem out. They are enabling the irresponsible people to keep on allowing their pets to breed.

mrose,
Are they accepting only pure-bred dogs/cats or are they accepting all breeds and selling them for reasonable prices? Do they get them vet-checked? There is a Pet Supermarket near me and they work with Save Our Strays and take in cats and kittens. But, they get a vet check before they are allowed to come in. And the adoption fee all goes to SOS. So in this case, I see absolutely nothing wrong with it.

 

[mrose_s]

I see where you are coming from but i find it very hard to say no to loving dogs because they are part of a bad system. It isnt their fault they were poorly bred.

I want to say, this is something we have created, and dogs are going to die and suffer if we just say no to them. I know it will stop the problem in the long run but I find it very hard just to accept that because we have made a mistake these puppies may die.

 

[mrose_s]

I agree with Doberluv 10000%. The vets or the "good" pet stores that take in animals are not always in the right though. I think that they know people are not spaying/neutering and that it is just another way to make a quick buck. Sad but true. People are mean greedy beings.
On the other hand, I know that there are some people who really are doing it to help out, but in all reality, they are just helping the problem out. They are enabling the irresponsible people to keep on allowing their pets to breed.

mrose,
Are they accepting only pure-bred dogs/cats or are they accepting all breeds and selling them for reasonable prices? Do they get them vet-checked? There is a Pet Supermarket near me and they work with Save Our Strays and take in cats and kittens. But, they get a vet check before they are allowed to come in. And the adoption fee all goes to SOS. So in this case, I see absolutely nothing wrong with it.

they take in all breeds and mixes, I would say they would HAVE to be vet checkd or the shop just wouldnt work.

 

[mrose_s]

oh, but i will find out, go in and talk tot eh puppies, then innocently asked "are they wormed and checked?" halfway throgh a conversation

 

[RD]

Mrose, it's not an issue of whether or not those puppies deserve love. Of course they do! However, in buying them and paying a large amount of money to a pet store, you are creating a demand for those puppies, and that means more mills and irresponsible breeders, pumping out more poor quality dogs in an attempt to make money.

 

[moe]

I would rather travel a long distance to collect my pup from a reputable breeder than to go to something local that has irrisponsible breeders left overs for sale which is basically what pets shops sell. I drove over 3oo miles and back to get both of my dogs, they travelled in the back of the car with me being made secure and were happy to go this distance, saying its wrong to ship a puppy 3oo miles is riduculous, most major pet chain stores take in puppies that are quite a long distance from the store, how do you think those pups travelled, in comfort in someones lap I dont think so, they were probalby shipped in cramped boxes with other pups heading for the same store, rose tinted glasses come to mind in my opinion when ppl, go on about pet stores being good, if pets stores didnt exist, people would have second thoughts about breeding, how it is at the moment if they have no takers for their litters well that not a problem they can just sell them to the pet shop and just plain get rid of the pups.

Mo

 

[YorkieLover]

If these people are having accidental litters then why not take them to a place that adopts them out and doesn't sell them??? If these people are selling their puppies to a pet store who inturn is selling them to the public, well it is just another case of a byb making money and a pet store making money. What is going to stop these irresponsible pet owners from having these accidental litters if they are making money off of the pups?

 

[poeluvr]

i hear what u guys are saying...it is not right to get a dog from a pet store.... though i have a hunch..no matter what there will always be back yard breeders..i know you guys are just hoping by not buying them there wont be as many...but i guess people who get there dogs from a petstore...its there choice. they probably didnt do any research on where to get a dog if they are getting it from a petstore(most people who get dogs at petstores get them on a spur of the moment...and there will always be people like that). If there dog gets 3ooo$ worth of health problems a year or even 15000$ then perhaps THAT person will learn the lesson.
Me too, am hoping that this will turn into an Iams situation, (where people stop using the popular stuff), but in this case, people hearts play into this which makes bad news for us trying to stop them and goood news for petstores.
Petstores are evrywhere and very popular, and convienent, and sometimes cheap...i sadly dont think this will be stopped for a long time.
I hear what mrose is saying, i do agree that i bet a lot of these pups would be in a very bad situation if it wasnt for the help of ur kind pet store taker(but i must say if hes getting them off the people for free, if he was that kind they would only cost for the upkeep of em' not the actual dog). I know in the long run its not helping solve the problem , but its helping these puppies, and even though it may cause many to have serious injuries, many will at least have the love care of their owner, and i bet people who have these dogs will do more research next time.
i myself experienced it. i got one of my dogs (him and poe were the only ones ot from good breeder) at a petstore, i was VERY Little so of course when my mom asked if I wanted him my hand shot high in the air. He died at 4. Althoughi guess u can say i didnt learn my lesson getting poe, though i was scheduled to have this one at the pound beforehand(the owner came for it), and i also was sceduled to get a choc. lab(many health issues when born) from a reputable breeder those failed. i vowed not to get one from a petstore. poe was on the verge of being put in the pound. i know i still in many ways did the wrong thing, though if it wasnt me it would be some1 else gettin him from the pound......who knows what theyd be like, I had the money for any major health probs that could come up. And this dog no matter what is here on this earth. i got poe for 100$ in the end, but his first shots were done, practically making me only pay for those vet bills. I still dont agree with her for threatning for him to be in the pound and all , but im glad i ahev him

 

[gaddylovesdogs]

All those puppies in pet shops do deserve love - they deserve it just as much as puppies from shelters and reputable breeders - but if you buy one of those puppies, you are supporting puppy mills. You're supporting animal abuse and neglect, you're NOT helping.

http://www.stoppuppymills.org
http://www.peta.org/mc/factsheet_display.asp?ID=45
http://www.nopuppymillscanada.ca/back_yard_breeders.htm
http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/Fair/1901/chart.html
http://www.heroswaggintrain.com/bybreed_pm_book.htm

 

[poeluvr]

All those puppies in pet shops do deserve love - they deserve it just as much as puppies from shelters and reputable breeders - but if you buy one of those puppies, you are supporting puppy mills. You're supporting animal abuse and neglect, you're NOT helping.

http://www.stoppuppymills.org
http://www.peta.org/mc/factsheet_display.asp?ID=45
http://www.nopuppymillscanada.ca/back_yard_breeders.htm
http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/Fair/1901/chart.html
http://www.heroswaggintrain.com/bybreed_pm_book.htm

that is right, that is what i have learned, i had no idea beforehand how bad pet stores were

 

[Fran27]

I disagree LEA. I do agree that buying from petstores in general won't make a difference, because there is much more at stake. In this case though, it will. If that guy doesn't sell his puppies, he won't accept puppies from those people anymore, and they will realize they can't make money off puppies anymore, and might end up with lots of puppies they don't know what to do with, and they will stop. It's not the same scale - puppymills couldn't care less if they lose a petstore to supply.

If the puppies are not bought then what? They will probably end up in the shelter, then people will be able to adopt them without encouraging the breeders that are only in for the money. That's a big difference.

 

[moe]

Its all supply and demand, puppy suppliers be they BYB or actual farms, they will supply as long as the pet shops will demand, the petshops demand because people buy from them its as simple as that, take the joe public away by them not buying from the shops, then the shops will demand less from the farmers and BYB's then the farmers and BYB's will think again before breeding their next litter. its got to stop somewhere, and even if many people are impulse buyers, if the pets are not there in the petshop to buy then the impulse breeders will have to start to do their homework to find a breeder.

Mo

 

[poeluvr]

I disagree LEA. I do agree that buying from petstores in general won't make a difference, because there is much more at stake. In this case though, it will. If that guy doesn't sell his puppies, he won't accept puppies from those people anymore, and they will realize they can't make money off puppies anymore, and might end up with lots of puppies they don't know what to do with, and they will stop. It's not the same scale - puppymills couldn't care less if they lose a petstore to supply.

If the puppies are not bought then what? They will probably end up in the shelter, then people will be able to adopt them without encouraging the breeders that are only in for the money. That's a big difference.

but the question is: we dont know if these are mistake pupies that are being born, and they are giving them to the petstore free of charge, because they dont know what to do with them, and had no intention to make puppies..also maybe the pet store guy is onlyt selling them for 100$ bcuz thats how much their upkeep is...who knows...ur point is good,, but until i know all the fact i disagree with u. actually it is not about agrreeing or disagrreing in many cases i do agree with you fran, if u read the above post. my point is no matter what the only ways some will learn is the hard way...like me