I was recently floored when I learned something new. I mean, I get that they say you learn something new everyday, but some are more disturbing than others. I admit to be pretty naïve about most things. I don’t like sad or scary movies because they affect me for weeks to months, I’ve only been with one man (Biblically) my whole life, I didn’t start drinking until I was of legal age, and was scared by our D.A.R.E. program as a child and am convinced that if I try drugs in any fashion, I will immediately become addicted and sucked into a vortex of waking up in my own vomit and prostitution. So, it’s no surprise that I was the only one in the treatment area at my clinic who was even remotely surprised by this, but I was and felt the need to discuss this with you all.
We had a puppy in our clinic who was sick. He was a VERY cute puppy, a “morkie” or a Maltese X Yorkie … a “designer breed” if you’re fancy and optimistic, a “mixed breed” or “mutt” if you’re honest. (I’ll get to this later, don’t get too mad yet) These owners obtained this adorable mutt from Puppy City for a whopping $2500! I mean, I get supply and demand, but sheesh! Aaaaaannnnnddd this puppy came with the dreaded and deadly disease, Parvovirus. (Others from that same shop have come with Giardia or coccidia – both parasites that are difficult to treat and typically come from a dirty living situation – ie – the breeder) This is where it gets me; the owners did not have the money to properly treat the puppy because they didn’t even have the money to purchase the puppy in the first place. Puppy City will FINANCE people to buy a puppy they already can’t afford.
I get it, Veterinary care is expensive and, even for responsible owners, can get out of the budget. I mean, honestly, if I found out my 10 year-old large breed dog had bad cancer, I’m not going to be the one who drops thousands of dollars to give him/her an extra 4-18 months – I have three kids to raise and have to set my priorities. And I get it when a cat or dog finds you and sticks with you as a stray and you do your best, but just cannot afford that cruciate tear (ACL in humans) surgery ($5000-8000) and have to keep your dog on pain meds the rest of his life instead. What I DON’T understand is PURCHASING an animal when you don’t have the money in the first place. This goes for dogs, cats, cows, horses, etc, but also for exotics. Little tip for all you who suddenly can’t live without a sugar glider: find a vet that will treat your species of choice BEFORE having one shipped to you from Bangladesh – or where ever your exotic desire comes from – the closest *knowledgeable* vet may be 3-4 hours away and cost $300 just for the exam – it takes a special specialist to know what they’re doing for these guys.
People who accidentally get pregnant and have to live on government programs to help keep their little one alive and healthy are one thing – crap (errr, blessings) happens – but willingly going to purchase or even “rescue” an animal without the funds to take care of it (and there are no government programs to help) is downright irresponsible and frankly, not rescuing, just relocating. What typically happens in the scenario, is instead of owning up their irresponsibility, these owners will turn on the vet and use something called emotional blackmail to try to get what they want.
“What?? It’s going to be around $1000 to treat my puppy for parvo – a perfectly preventable disease with a simple vaccine series that I refused/forgot to get or tried to give myself from the feed store?? You monster, YOU are killing my puppy!! YOU are to blame for my irresponsibility!!” “So, I refused to get my female spayed because I read something on the internet, and now she has a giant sack of pus taking up her abdomen and rotting from the inside, and it’s going to cost $1500 or she’ll die??? You money hungry B**** even though it would have only been $250 to spay her on a regular appointment and not in the middle of the night when you have to call in extra staff in overtime, take up your time with your family, and when the dog is crashing and needs all sorts of extras to keep her stable during a PERFECTLY preventable disease” “Yes, I bought an English Bulldog for $5000 having no idea that they suffer almost every and any disease under the sun and will cost at least $1000/year to keep up with, especially when I don’t heed your advice and come back every 6 months with all the problems out of control again”
Any who, whether you adopt or shop, just make sure you are doing it responsibly. I’ve had several owners bring in a puppy they purchased and told me that after seeing the conditions at the breeder when they picked them up, they felt more like they were rescuing them. Unfortunately, if you are giving the breeder money, you are supporting their breeding program, only to breed more puppies and get more money. If you are truly concerned about the condition, call Animal Control. Don’t support their function. There are REALLY good breeders out there who actually care about the quality of the dogs they are producing, not just the color or size, or just because they have a boy dog and a girl dog and want to make money. There are breeders who actually have their breeding stock checked for common diseases like OFA certification to make sure they have genetically good hips and elbows, heart tests, full genetic screens to make sure your dog will live as long as possible. They also only breed the dogs that have the best personalities for the purpose they are bred for. Personality is very heritable and if you go to pick up a puppy and the mom or dad it barking it’s head off on the end of a leash and you can’t touch it, or cowering in the corner with “whale eyes” walk away, you don’t want that disaster. These wonderful breeders will charge more than what you can find in the “for sale” section of the paper, but they are SO much more worth it, and 3-4x less than the “designer” breeds – which *tend to have ZERO testing or care taken. *I’m sure there are very careful breeders of Doodles, but I haven’t met them.
Last note: animals are for life. If you get a dog/cat, you’ll need to understand that every time you move you will need to find a pet-friendly place. If you decide you need a tortoise or African Grey parrot – you’ll need to leave them in your will to someone as they may outlive you.
