I had a very disturbing week, I learnt that since Christmas in my own breed that 28 had been in the rescue or rehomed..... I had never much thought about the rescue but I should have as I have a bitch myself that was bought to save her from a terrible home, and I took a bitch back from a couple who broke up .
I learnt that the number one reason for a dog being rehomed was a new baby,followed by relationship break up and a new house unsuitable for a dog, I was saddened by this as this surely could be avoided by both the purchaser and the buyer thinking the situations through before going into the dog ownership.
So before you think of having a dog ,try to visualise life for the next decade... you will be committed to walking, feeding and vets bills, kennelling while you go on holiday. Do your future plans include a family? is the breed suitable to have with a toddler? some breeds are known to be snappy and others jealous, a good talk with the exhibitors around the ringside of the breed of your choice, ask family and friends how the breed copes with the new addition to a family.... and think that little pup may grow into a huge dog......
Just as having a child when your relationship is rocky having a puppy should be no less of a commitment, if circumstances change and a job has to be taken by the one usually at home this could entail long hours spent alone for your pup, this leads to boredom and your normally well behaved dog can decide to punish you for being left alone, chewing and destroying the home and even resorting to forgetting their toilet training, if things are n't going well the time to get a pup ought to be shelved as this innocent creature is going to be around for the next ten years!!
Moving home can be unforeseen, family changes, job changes all necessitate the need to move home and maybe unavoidable housing in association houses. None of this can be foreseen but a bit of thought as to what's on the horizon could help this to be cut to a minimum, and if the purchaser is elderly a thought as to where the young dog will spend the rest of its days if the worst happens, arrangements with family could alleviate this problem.
Researching the breed you like reading everything about your chosen breed before you own one can save months of heart searching, just like humans not all of us like the same people, there can be a personality class with your dog too.
Well now its your turn to consider the homes your puppies are going to. From the time these little creatures are conceived you are taking responsibility for their well being, you may be only breeding the occasional litter, keeping a puppy for the show ring or a breeder who makes their living from dogs ,either way they were not arrived at by accident . For most people they will have saved up to buy the dog and in a very short time formed a bond with the pup, but if they have never had a dog before they may realise that it is much more time consuming and a responsibility than they anticipated , then the sad scenario starts where the pup starts being passed around.
There are contracts that breeders can take out with the buyers to help if circumstances change and they are unable to keep the dog, by taking the dog back and carefully rehoming or sometimes keeping it yourself you save a dog going on to experience the true story I now will relate......
Just after Christmas a breeder of a puppy phoned and asked if I wanted him for my breeding programme as he had a good pedigree and he was being resold by his owner for £100 he was 18 months old I said no but spent the next 3 days trying to rehome him with friends and family as they told me he had been relegated to the garden shed as there was a new baby it was cold and I thought he had just been put in his shed. .After drawing a blank on other homes I rang to take him myself just to get him away..but he was gone to Liverpool, I then discovered he had been in his shed about a year..
So just 4 weeks later my friend gets a call about a desperate family to get a bulldog rehomed.. yes it was Liverpool and it was the same poor dog, only now he had been treated by the vet for a chest infection and he had had 4 homes in that short time, the breed rescue came in and asked us to fetch him, he was not toilet trained and then he tried to mount the children continuously, but was a real sweet nature.The sad thing was the lady already loved him but her house was reeking and her child has a bad illness it was impossible to keep him, she cried as we bought him away.......... he's been rehomed properly now to a home that knows his problems, he was so thin he had sores on his feet and down his legs from urine burns, he was a sorry looking little chap.
It was a very upsetting experience but it was a valuable one, I will never let a pup go to anyone without a return contract , will double' vet 'any prospective owners and will always consider the reasons dogs get put into rescue when I talk to the people who ask for a puppy of mine.......the experience has left me with the sad feeling that if in my breed( numerically small,) how many of your puppies are awaiting rescue, and even how many crossbreeds since Christmas it is a deeply disturbing thought.
Before you Buy or Breed written by : Vicky Collins (Kezia Bulldogs and Shih-tzu UK)
15th February 2000