Farm and kennel??

Question

is this a puppy mill??I DO.

http://www.skeltonfarmandkennel.com/airedales.html
IF YOU SEE THE PICTURES CLOSELY
YOU WILL SEE CAGES OR KENNELS IN REALLY BAD CONDITIONS .

Answer 1

What concerns me more is the lack of ANY mention of health clearances and there is no evidence of showing or working titles. Some of the dogs are CLEARLY not good examples of the breed either.
Kennels and caging alone do not denote something bad, but it can be a bad sign.
The lack of concern with health issues alone would make me not go there!!!!!

It probably is not a"puppymill" so much as it is a BYB...backyard breeder. Just breeding to make money without investing much in the breeding program.

I did see where the parents of a recent litter were "pre-limed hip x-rayed just fine". Clearly, they are breeding based on prelims alone, which is not a great idea.

There are clearly some red flags there!!!!

I don't see any WORKING titles that would lead me to think they do anything but breed the dogs!!!!

Really, I have looked and all I see if a constant mention of "prelim hip x-rays"....not even OFA mentioned. A vet could have just looked at them and said they look OK. I saw not one that had an OFA number.
I am all for breeding non-show dogs that are for working, but when you do not take health into account...you are a BYB and not doing the breed any favors. Working kennels can still OFA and I am sure many do. These people do NOT.

I looked on the OFA site and only ONE of their dog...the ONLY Airedale...was listed. So, they don't do health clearances. BYB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 2

I guess I'm glad you never saw one of my kennels after my Sams decided to dismantle it!! My dogs might be in a kennel run a whole couple hours a day... but having a male who KNOWS I have an in season b*tch can create a lot of fence mangling.

This appears to be a WORKING kennel... with dogs who are actually doing the job they were created for. No, the dogs do not look like AKC show dogs.. but neither do most of the best hunting dogs (I believe this says bad things about the show dogs and not the hunters.. if you cannot retain the instinct the breed was created for, why bother?)

Edit: Some of their dogs have been OFA'd. I enjoyed reading their philosophy page. I do know that a LOT of people breeding working/hunting dogs have a different outlook on OFA (hunting/working ability comes before whether the hips are ok). I'm glad they're at least attempting to do some of their dogs.

Answer 3

No. Not technically a puppymill. I would call this person a backyard breeder. They say they offer a health guarantee, but don't mention how long it lasts. I saw nothing on the site stating what testing they've done on their breeding dogs to rule out genetic health issues being past to puppies. One thing that caught my eye is they say they are breeding to produce companions. While it is every breeder's dream to place puppies in great companion homes... Reputable breeders aren't just producing puppies to make more pets. They breed with a purpose to better the breed. By the looks of the breeding dogs they appear to be of pet quality only. A pet quality dog is just that. A pet and should not be producing puppies. I certainly hope these people sell their puppies with a spay and neuter contract and on limited registration, but I didn't see that on the site.

Answer 4

NOT a puppy mill set up home... just a hobby farm set-up which is common in the south. Their dogs are from working lines and from the little I know about Airedales they are good dogs.

We have 2 Airedales in our Schutzhund Club and they will be bred shortly. Is nice to have Titled parents if you are going to spend out good hard earned money.

Good Luck

H.O.T. Dog
Handler Owner Trainer of GSD's
Member U.S.A & A.W.D.F

Answer 5

No this is a proffessional Kennel where they breed one breed, from several unrelated dogs, which is how it should be.

Puppy mills have several breeds, and have a mum and dad with maybe a brother and sister of each, constantly producing puppies

Answer 6

no