Who else thinks that www.puppyfind.com gets their dogs from puppy mills?

Question

The way I look at it, is that any good, reputable breeder shouldn't have to "sell" their puppies over the net. If the people on the website aren't puppy mills, then they are for sure backyard breeders.

Answer 1

I'm in 100% agreement with you! Any good breeder usually has a long WAITING LIST of people wanting their puppies. Mine (from one litter with champion parents and excellent bloodines) were sold before they were even born.

My advice to puppy buyers is always:
Find a good breeder by going to www.akc.org or talking to people at dog shows. You can also find info about the breed clubs on the akc site - they probably have a rescue group where you can get an older dog for less money. The best breeders will be members of their breed club, promoting healthy dogs with great temperaments. They should ask you a bunch of questions to make sure their puppy will be getting a good home. If all a "breeder" seems to care about is whether your check will clear, you can be sure he won't care a week later when the pup is dying from distemper or parvo and you want your money back.

Whatever you do, DON'T go to a pet shop, a flea market or buy one sight-unseen off the Internet!!!! You'll pay top dollar for what is usually a poor quality puppy mill dog. And you'll be supporting one of the cruelest industries in the country. The breeding animals are often kept in deplorable conditions - spending their entire lives in small wire-bottomed cages. They probably haven't been vaccinated against contagious diseases or tested for any health or temperament problems or genetic diseases - that costs money and cuts into their profits. A female is often bred every time she comes into heat. When her poor little body can't take it any more, she is often clubbed in the head and tossed into a dumpster or an open ditch. Most puppy mills ship their pups to pet stores at wholesale prices and many pups die before they even get there.

These so-called "breeders" have now figured out that they can use the internet to ship a dog directly to the customer and thus make more money by cutting out the middleman. If you buy a dog from out of state, good luck getting your money back if there's something wrong with the pup. These people count on you becoming instantly attached to the poor little guy and being willing to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars at the vet to treat whatever is wrong with him.

Answer 2

Puppyfind is only an advertising service.

A couple of the best breeders in my breed advertise on puppyfind. They don't HAVE to advertise there, but it is the responsible thing to do. They use the same strict criteria to sell puppies there as they would anywhere else.

I think it is a good breeders responsability to advertise in places that the pet buying public can find you. If no good breeders are advertising in the places people look, however are they suppose to be able to find a well bred puppy. Many pet buyers have no idea how to find a puppy and will look in the newspaper and on puppyfind. How can they buy from a good breeder if they can't find one?

I am sure there are many commercially bred dogs there, probably also some puppy mill dogs. But some very good breeders also are in there, as they should be! Good breeders need to be more accessable to the pet buying public.

You need to shop for a puppy on puppyfind just like you would anywhere else.

Answer 3

What is your idea of a backyard breeder?
My idea of one is:
Anyone who breeds their dog every single time they come in heat, starting with the dogs first heat and continuing until they are no longer able to produce a single living puppy.
Having several different breeds, enabling them to produce
"designer dogs" simply through incompeteance on their part.
Having no idea when or with which male the female was bred.
Weans the puppies at 4 or 5 weeks of age, hoping the female will come back in heat sooner.
Having all the dogs in small, nasty pens.
Providing no, or very minimal vet care.
Gives no shots or worm treatments.
Anyone who has no record of the people they have sold to in the past.
Anyone who only has a 24 hour health guarantee.
Anyone unable or unwilling to provide a lengthy list of references, including contact information for their vet.

Just because a person sells their puppies over the internet does NOT make them automatically fall into that category.
There are instances where the only option of letting the general public know you have puppies for sale is via the internet.
Every breeder does not have to ability to show a dog through to Champion status. And to be quite frank, your normal family can not afford a Champion quality dog.
Most families are completely happy with a puppy that the breeder is willing to stake their reputation on it being healthy.
Puppyfind does not "get" the puppies, all they do is provide (at a fee) a method of advertising your pets.
They have no control over what type of breeder a person is, they figure with all the warnings they post about SCAMS and what to be aware of, the general public will have enough common sense to be cautious.
So unless you know the circumstances behind each and every breeder, you might want to re-think your opinion.
I list my puppies on Petfind and NextDayPets. Both sites charge a fee, both sites have warnings posted everywhere to be aware of SCAMS and what to look for.

Answer 4

Many reputable breeders sell online. The key to figuring out whether or not it's a puppy mill, at least to me, is if they sell multiple breeds and claim to always have puppies available. I checked out that site and the first few breeders I looked at were like that. It's best to find a breeder that only sells one, maybe two breeds of dog. It's always a good idea to ask for vet and customer references. A good breeder is one that loves the breed and only breeds puppies that are up to standards and that have paperwork.

Answer 5

When I was looking for a Dane, I checked out a few of them at puppyfind. They did not even bother to answer by questions about pedigrees. That is where the backyard breeder go to see pups when they have outsold their area.
We just got a litter of nine from a backyard breeder. I guess they just got tired of it. The mom was 18 months old and it was her third litter. The pups were taken from the mom at 4 wks, dirty, skinny, and dehydrated. They were too bad to even sell. The mom was sold to another backyard breeder who already had a male.

Answer 6

I got one of my dogs off of puppyfind. The breeder had a nice kennel and lots of dogs. they were also located in a small town of about 1000 people, and miles from any large customer base. At least for them, it was necessary advertisement.
I can't speak for the rest though...

Answer 7

Honey a lot of these places get them from mills

Answer 8

I AGREE..i dont like people who recommend that site to someone who is looking for a dog!!!!

http://www.petfinder.com

SAVE A LIFE!!!♥♥♥♥

Answer 9

This is why I only go to the Animal Shelters. My babies are all wonderful dogs and they all were in shelters.

Answer 10

i totally agree with you! i know that i would only go to kennels i would never buy over the net