One to think on: Vetting buyers

Part of the learning curve of being a breeder is not to take things personally.

To stay in for the long hall, you've got to get thick skinned, realise nothing's written in stone, and that buyers whim change like MD weather, amongst other things.

Recently I was informed I had "Stolen" a puppybuyer. .

The buyer had talked to someone else about buying a puppy from a proposed (on paper) litter, an inquiry I had no clue of until I was accused of stealing the puppy buyer last month and this is something that happened back in September..

I never thought to ask the buyer if she was looking at another litter. In the grand scheme of things, does it really matter? A good puppy buyer will talk to numerous people before choosing a puppy. You should never buy the first puppy or from the first litter you fell in love with, I always tell people to look at a lot of puppies or litters before making a decision.

What I was concerned with is that her references turned out(and boy did they), that she treated her dogs well(boy does she), and that my puppy would be in a good home(Boy is she :)), not that the buyer had talked to someone else a few weeks prior about a planned litter.

The buyer's first comments in an email to me were along the lines "I love this bitch, i've been wanting a chinchilla with Silkenswift lines, she's just what I want". .it was out of the blue, from left field, I'd never heard of this lady before and had no clue who else in the breed she had talked to other than the two breeders of her boys. Our conversations revolved around her experience in the breed, her other dogs, my dogs, and my puppy, nothing else. . .

Puppy buyers are allowed to talk to other breeders and allowed to choose to buy from another breeder and as you grow as a breeder, you learn this, or you burn out with anger, frustration and the toxicness of letting everything bother you.

The PITA buyer last fall was not a PITA because she bought from someone else, that was her decision, she was a PITA because she wasted so much of my time before TELLING me she was looking at the other litter, so many months dicking me around until she finally told me she was seriously leaning towards that other litter. She was not upfront and honest with me and that's what angered me. I wasn't upset with the breeder, it's not their fault, but I was upset with the buyer for jerking me around. . .I'm not sure if the breeder said anything or even knew, it's the buyer that was wrong for not being truthful, for not being up front, she wasn't wrong for buying a dog elsewhere, that was her decision. Hopefully she's happy with her choice, I'm much happier with the home Ava eventually went to. Less maintenance :)

You just can't take it personally if someone chooses a dog from a different breeder. . it just happens.

OTOH, maybe it is a question to ask prospective buyers, so one can talk to the other breeders and find out if a red flag had gone up that caused them not to sell a puppy, as well as to make sure that you're not selling your puppy to end up in situation like the West Virginia Rescues of years before: http://www.nbrf.info/index.php?p=gallery&id=140

Two different breeders sold dogs to this home, each sold a male and a female, not knowing the other breeder had already sold them a dog. Granted, at least one of those breeders is not responsible, but asking around may help stop situations like this from happening.

I just never thought of it until this silly accusation was thrown at me, but now I wonder if I should be asking. . .13 yrs of doing this, and I'm still given things that make me think.

There's only one breeder i don't mind 'stealing' puppy buyers from, but any responsible Borzoi breeder is glad to take a buyer away from this breeder. . .she's a blight on the rear end of humanity. Her dogs are livestock, sold to anyone with a check that clears, and so many of them end up in rescue. If she doesn't have buyers, she'd stop breeding, but otherwise, I don't think about it.

It happens. . .unless you've got a check and contract in hand(and even then they may have legal rights to change their mind) a puppy buyer can change their mind. This is ESPECIALLY true when the litter is just planned, nothing is concrete such that there actually are puppies in utero, let alone that they are whelped, healthy, and ready to go. I can understand looking for other pups along the same line as you want if the litter hasn't even been conceived, as so much can go wrong: doesn't conceive, aborts the litter, emergency c-section resulting in loss of pups or worse loss of mom, not enough pups to go around, etc, etc.

I've got people interested in my next litter, will they be there and actually wanting one when the time comes? Who knows, i don't care, what happens, happens. . .and eventually all the pups will find their forever homes. It just may take a year or two LOL Aurora is still here, case in point :)

It's why you've got to have a thick skin and not take things seriously.

I explained to my accusor that I had had no clue and hopefully cleared things up. . but it's given me something to think about, and I'll have to ask my breeder friends their opinions on this. She's apologized, but it does make me think. .

Thoughts are appreciated

She's home

Gossip came home Tuesday night

How such a vibrant, bright, full of life, full speed ahead girl can be reduced to such an ugly tin box, is so beyond me.

Been owned animals on my own for 18 yrs now. . and have lost animals, way too many over the years, mostly to natural causes, only one of them 'all of a sudden', and that was a stupid yard accident on way too much ice. . but this has been the worse. .because there was no illness, nothing.

I keep trying to think of something she could've gotten into, but the three kitties that sleep with me every night are fine. . and we still wait the report. . the prelims were confusing at best. .

Each day is hard, a little easier than the one before, but still hard. . as Gossip was my shadow. Unless it was too hot for her to go someplace with me, or work, she went everywhere with me. . she helped me thru losing Obie, took me on so many adventures. If it weren't for her, I would not've rented the van last year and gone to MI to the Nationals, nor would I've rented the van and gone up to NH by myself. . most of the 47,000 miles put on my car in 3 yrs, were put there because of her, racing, shows, classes. . or just joy rides. . .she was my partner in crime, my copilot, my best bud. . .

House is so empty without her and Surya. . Dei & Tilly just don't exude the presence they had. They're quiet souls for the most part. . Gossip & Surya were the class clowns. .

Once I can handle it, she'll be put in an Urn more her style. . and ashes from her & Obie will be sent to have a heart pedant made to hang in my rear view mirror. .they were both my copilots. . .both curled up in the front seat of my cars(Obie in the 'stang, Gossip in the Neon). Found a place that will make beautiful glass pedants, and it just 'feels' right.




Pick up the rental car tomorrow and rush down to Bristol VA to pick up Secret. . not sure i'll be able to do the trip in one day, but going to try. On one hand, I hope she's nothing like Gossip in personality, OTOH, it would be nice to have some of that back. . .hopefully she will be ok with the cats.

Then it's back to the drawing board after I recover monetarily from the last month(No credit cards are good, but also sucks :P), health tests and stud dog shopping. . i have my eye on a few boys, unfortunately, one of them is way out west, another is too young( yearling), and the last isn't as keen on the bunny as I'd like. . even more unfortunate, there's no whole brother of Surya around. . .his half sibs are nowhere near as nice as he was, IMHO.

dealing with puppy buyers

Dealing with puppy buyers can be rewarding, but it can also be a big PITA. . .some puppy buyers are real accomodating, listen to what you have to say, some think they know it all, and have no problem telling you that. .

Over 15 yrs in Borzoi, I've come to terms that many show people/puppy buyers are nuts. . .and much prefer selling my pups to pet homes where they'll be loved and adored, no matter if they end up missing 5 teeth, have a gay tail or a bad bite. . .all they care about is that the puppy fits their household and has a wonderful temperament. Soo unlike the revolving door of the show dog world.

Some of the asinine reasons I've heard for returning dogs from show homes just make me want to scream. . there was the beautiful white & red bitch that I would've stole in a haertbeat, that was returned because she 'looked too much like Kennel X", another self black & tan bitch who was returned a year later because the show person didn't like black. . hunh?

A recent interaction with a 'show' person reiterated to me how much I hate dealing with show homes. . .not that I will turn away a good show home that'll keep a puppy forever. . but you have no idea if that show home will be such at first. . not unless they've proven themselves to you. And in 8 litters, I've had 2 puppies returned to me, and I think part of it is because of my hatred of placing in show homes.

This person contacted me earlier this year, in like Feb, asking about Chrissy, a few emails back and forth, then she disappeared. . I'm used to that, so I just blew it off, and went on with life. You can't take it personally when homes looking at puppies do that, it happens. They flake out, go elsewhere, change their mind, whatever. I can deal with that.

Suddenly she reappeared, asking if she was still available, a few emails, then wham, disappeared. I saw her at the Nationals, she didn't inquire on Chrissy, so once again, I blew it off. . .

Few weeks later, I get an email, can I stop by and see them? I really like Chrissy, blah blah blah. . sure, set up a time, came home and met with her, introduced her to the pups, spent quite a bit of time that evening with her, she fell in love with Aurora, really liked her, blah blah blah, granted I thought and still think Chrissy is the better bitch, but hey. . and as we headed back to the house, she dropped a bomb shell in my lap.

"I like her, but I kind of am in line for a pup out of Breeder Y's litter, not sure if I want one, I don't like the colour, but. . "

Wait a minute here. . .this should've been stated first thing. . IMHO. . There's just no way I'd go to a breeder's house, waste their time and then go oh well, your litter is my back up plan. . it's rude.

Whatever. . she left, swearing she'd make a decision in a few weeks.

Again, heard nothing from her, tho she talked to the cobreeder and a friend of mine. Figured she'd made her decision. . .whatever. . .that doesn't bother me. .

And then, again, she pops out of nowhere, "I'd like to stop by next week and see her again". Ok, fine, whatever. .but again all I heard of was how much she loved Breeder Y's puppies parents, balh blah blah. I dropped her an email and told her it seemed she'd already made up her mind, there was no need to stop by and see Aurora. . I'd rather she be in a home who loved her for her. .first love, not by whimsy,and I don't hear the same things coming out of her mouth about Aurora and her family. That's ok, there's plenty of types of Borzoi. She never responded to that email

Except she ends up calling and cancelling, didn't get out of her summer home when she'd plan, blah blah blah "let's make it tomorrow". Ok. . .at this point, I've about had enough, I feel like I've been ran thru a ringer by this person. . .the next day, she calls. . .now, she has to deal with Friday rush hour traffic to come see me, IMHO, wouldn't you leave early AM if you plan on meeting someone, to insure you get there in time? Already realised she wasn't serious, have no clue why she kept stringing me along. . .my two friends kept saying 'she's a wonderful home', yeah, but not sure I want to deal with this type of crap for the life of a dog.

She calls again, says she's not going to make it (Well duh, I'd already figured that out), but that she'd think seriously about which pup she wanted on the way home. . .later that night, I get a call "i've decided to go with the boy'.

I wasn't angry, I was frustrated, and just sick of dealing with this person. . .sick of being screwed around with and sick of being lied to. . maybe she didn't lie to me, but lying by ommission is still lying to me. . .maybe she didn't mean to run me thru the ringer and screw around with me, but that's sure how she left me feeling.

Hope her baby boy turns out, despite what breeders tell you, there's little you can tell about if the dog is truly going to be show quality until all teeth come in and the bite settles. . .so much can happen, ask the lady who spent $1500 to import a puppy from sweden only to be missing SEVEN teeth. Her replacement puppy ended up having mismatched rear angles(one side straighter than the other) I had a puppy who was beautiful as a puppy, angles to die for, who grew up missing those angles. .

Buying babies as a show dog is a huge crap shoot.

If you want a show pup, buy an older pup. . .unless you have no problem putting a bunch of money and time into growing out a puppy to adulthood, training it, working with it, vetting it only to find out it's not show quality, at which point you either return the puppy to the breeder(if you have a limit law in your area) and get a replacement, neuter it and get another dog(if your'e not at your limit), or just neuter it and be done with showing (if you are at your limit), that's assuming your contract covers any of this.

Yes, it means more work if you get an older pup and have smaller dogs/cats in the household. . .but it's doable. My current setup the puppies don't interact with the cats, but the pups I kept have been introduced to the cats and ignore them. . . but it's really no more work than what you have to do bringing a young puppy in. You cant' just throw them and your other pets together at any time, it takes work.

Buying older doesn't make things written in stone either, you can still ruin a puppy you get as an older pup. . lack of exercise or improper exercise are just two ways you can do that. But at least you have a BETTER IDEA

And remember, 'show quality' at 8-12 wks just mean it has a good bite and both balls(if it's a boy). Our breed doesn't have breed DQ's beyond both testicles, so as long as they have both, there are breeders who call everything in the litter as 'show quality'. You can't tell anything about that age, IMHO. . I've seen dogs grow up and totally fall apart, and those who looked horrid at that age who grew up to be gorgeous specimens.

And most important: BE HONEST with the breeder from day 1. .don't dick them around, don't string them along. . .this incident was ridiculous.

This entire instance left a bad taste in my mouth about dealing with show homes. I now understand why breeders are termed as short/rude if they've had multiple instances with these type of buyers it could make someone jaded and not willing to talk with someone unless they are serious. .

Between this and the local nitwit who despite numerous breeders trying to help her, keeps buying from puppymills, then complaining about the dogs and then getting upset if you agreed with the fautls of the dog. . . Plenty of breeders (not me, I have enough headaches) in the area have offered her a show quality puppy, but she nitpicks them(not white enough, doesn't have a blaze, doesn't talk to her, etc, etc, etc). . .it all makes me want to scream

Not to say all puppy buyers are bad or wishy washy. . .every one of my puppies has gone into a great home, with great owners, even if the puppies had their 'issues', they worked with and dealt with them. . and love them. .but 99% of the ones I've sold have gone to pet homes, some are pet homes who dabble in showing or running, but these are homes that lvoe the dog, no matter what. .. and that's what I love about them.

So to all those wonderful homes my pups are living in: THANK YOU!!!

Not to say I don't have a few show homes lined up for Gossip's litter. . .but these are long time people who've got a track record of keeping dogs who don't turn out. . .if they're as nice as I expect them to be, Bonnie & I have no problem growing them out until the right home comes along.

Ah, the Joys of breeding. .

How is it, the idiot down the road can throw his dogs together and wham bam thankyou ma'am, they have a breeding and with little to no problem they have puppies?

Grins' girlfriend is in season. There were two that were being bounced back and forth, and although this isn't the one I prefered, she is a nice bitch none the less. She runs, the entire litter does, he improves her tank wide front, tho they're both moderate in the rear. Unfortunately,(fortunately? LOL) they're both full speed ahead personality LOL I've already got a name picked out for my studfee puppy LOL there might even be a blue :) YUMMY!! Hope so, her papa is a dilute.

Anyway, day 13, and nothing LOL. . .so much for the books. . .Does NOT help that we're attempting to do this when it's been 20-40 out, and I've still got this damn cold, tho now it sounds like it's trying to settle into my lungs, OH JOY!

It does make me laugh about the guy who'd wanted to breed to Dei but when nothing came on day 12, he swore something was wrong with his male and gave up. . .I got her bred, but it was day 17-21, nowhere near day 12. Only time'll tell if it took. If it didn't, she'll be spayed. She's already eight. . .granted, she's a young 8. . .LOL. She is unusually bitchy, put Gossip in her place. . so that's a good sign LOL Kyra only ever was bitchy when she was pregnant. .

We had visitors last weekend, and they didn't believe Touchet was 10. . yes, my golden girl turned 10 last weekend. And she spent it playing with the babies and flirting with Stardust :) Such a silly golden snausage she is. The longetivity of her lines is one of the reasons I wanted her, her father lived to be 12.5, her mother the last time I talked to Fern was still going at 12.5+.

Think Gossip & I are going to go hiking Sunday, maybe I'll take Dei, i'm not allowing her to rip roar around the yard, she has a bad habit of launching herself onto dog houses, which is bad on ice, so she's not getting a lot of excercise. She doesn't mind, she'd rather sleep in the house anyway. Loch Raven Reservoir is a wonderful place to walk, just been too damn cold to do much of anything, but it's supposed to be mid 40's this weekend, almost a heatwave! And with nothing else to do, sounds like a good plan. Get Gossip back in shape for this spring :) And keep Dei in shape.

Next weekend is a seminar, and picking up the 30 gallon salt water tank I'm being given. Coworker doesn't have time for it anymore, goign to try and figure out how to set it up as refugium for the 55, adds additional filtration as well as a breeding ground for the copepods my little Dragonnette needs to survive. . probably spend the next two weekends cleaning the tank. Salt water is a lot harder than fresh, not as bad as I thought it'd be, but it can be a PITA. . .especially if you don't keep up on the scraping of the algae. . need to get some more snails. . .expensive little hobby it is, but we enjoy it.

Bonnie's got a handyman tenant, which has me tickled pink. He's going to fix the Aframe, build a teeter for me, and with his help, I'm going to fence in an area at the top of the hill to work Gossip on the property :) Don't do it now, as I don't trust her off leash with all the damn bunnies and deer. it's nicely shaded up there, so it won't be too horrid come summer, but when it is, I can always go to Forest Hill and use that place. It'll be nice to be able to set up my weaves, which are currently in shambles, and be able to work them religiously. . .will also be able to setup jumps, with the shade it doesn't need quite as much mowing. . .I can't wait.

And wishing there was more rally in the next month. There's a hound show next month, I'd love to take Gossip and Umbra too, but it's NORTH Jersey, and weather this time of year is a huge ass crapshoot. May try Syracuse, see old friends, and show her there. She's looking nice, except for those damn spots. .

vet speaks out on PETA & Westminster

Couldn't've said it better. . PETA sucks, PETA is the Nazi's of the new world, please please please do not donate money to PETA.

Permission to crosspost: Only if you copy and past in a new e-mail and don't just forward~!!!!!!

Thank you Libbye Miller DVM for stating:

"Adorable mixed breeds" get cancer, epilepsy, allergies, heart
disease, and orthopedic problems just like purebreds. I see it every
day in my veterinary practice but mixed breed dogs aren't tracked like
the purebreds so they have a reputation as "healthier" that is actually
undeserved in many cases."

It is so sad that a lot of folks, including young veterinarians these
days, buy into the "hybrid vigor" baloney. The vet schools have been
infiltrated by the Animal Rights Extremists, who are teaching them this
junk science in order to push their agenda.

All animals have a certain amount of genetic load, which is to say
there is absolutely no animal without some genetic problem of some sort
of another. Know anyone who wears glasses? Has allergies? Thyroid
problems? Weak knees? Flat feet? A skin condition? Arthritis? A gap
between their front teeth? These are all genetic imperfections.

No human is genetically "clean." Neither is any individual of any
species on earth. So this idea that dogs should not be bred because
they might have a genetic problem, and that breeders are somehow "evil"
for breeding them, is ridiculous. Every single individual of every
single species has at least a few genetic conditions.

To use PeTA's logic, all breeding of all kinds (including having human
babies) should halt immediately. And to be honest, Ingrid Newkirk (the
woman who founded PeTA) does believe exactly that. She thinks that
humans should become extinct, along with dogs, cats, etc. This
ridiculous scenario is precisely what she would like to see happen.

So folks, if that is what you want...if you agree with Ingrid
Newkirk's whacky views, send your hard earned money to PeTA. They will
help to ensure you are not able to own a dog or cat or hamster or any
other pet in the future. They will see to it that you can't eat meat or
fish or eggs or any type of animal-based nutrition. They will work to
shut down places like Sea World, the zoos, etc. so you cannot observe
the many wonderful animals on the Earth. Eventually, once they
accomplish these things, they may turn their efforts to making it
illegal for humans to procreate.

If you don't agree with their extremist views, wise up and start
supporting those who truly do love, care for and enjoy interaction with
other species here on our little blue planet.

The fanciers of the breeds, those you see exhibiting their dogs at
Westminster and other dog shows, work very hard to eliminate serious
genetic conditions. They screen their breeding stock with every
available test. They research pedigrees before breeding into other
lines, to check for similar clearances in those animals. They
contribute money to research organizations to further the work being
done to track down genetic problems. They contribute blood, cell
samples, etc. from their own animals to help with DNA and genome
studies. They have made great progress so far, and they continue to
work hard at it.

Are there unethical breeders? Certainly, there are. Just as in any
group of humans, you will find the good and the bad. United States VP
Elect Joe Biden, for example, managed to find a not so good one when he
got his new German Shepherd puppy. I don't know who did his research
for him, but they obviously didn't do their homework if they were
looking for a responsible breeder. Joe has the right to get his dog
from whomever he wishes, but if he was trying to set an example of
purchasing from a responsible hobby breeder he went off the track this
time. That's too bad, but it was his choice.

Unfortunately, breeders like that may be a lot easier to find because
of their high volume and high profile. If you are looking for a nice
family pet from a breeder who will be there for you forever, you need
to do due diligence. You won't get that from a pet store. You won't get
that from the guy selling dogs out of his pickup truck in the WalMart
parking lot. You won't get that support from a high-volume breeder,
either. Yes, it takes a little more time and effort to find someone who
really cares and does all the work to breed the healthiest, happiest
puppies possible and then stands behind those puppies.

This is a living being that will be part of your family, hopefully,
for many years. Isn't it worth a bit of effort to find a breeder who
will be there for you and that puppy forever?

And guess what? Shows like Westminster are a very valuable resource
for finding breeders who do care and who use the best possible
practices, as well as for learning more about the various breeds.

Bravo to USA Network for broadcasting the Westminster Kennel Club show
all these years. May they enjoy continued success through the ongoing
inclusion of such programs. I will be eagerly watching this year's
show!"

Dr. Libbye Miller
Elizabethtown, KY

www.swissstarsaints.com

Thoughts

Kani's in season. . . And it's so tempting to breed her to Grins. She's never going to carry enough coat to show, since she's in season every 5.5-6 months, and goes down almost as naked as Kyra and only has good coat maybe 12 wks a year (6 wks at a time). She's young(3), she's probably more fertile than the other dogs we've been talking about breeding to him (all not due back in to next spring at least). The breedings we've had lined up either didn't happen or were cancelled. She's a lovely little girl, 27 inches tall, nice body, could use a prettier head(it's a Dutch head, not something I'm keen on on a bitch), lovely temperament, isn't as keen on running as I'd like to see her, but also haven't worked with her much. The times I've taken her, wasn't sure if she was running the squawker or running to me(tho Bob did say he thought she was chasing the squawker). What she doesn't have is confidence to do it(something Grins doesn't lack)

Thinking thinking thinking. . .

breeding

Breeding isn't for the faint hearted. It is hard, it is tough, it is heartbreaking. And it's expensive.
Yet people still jump into it.

Someone I know is looking for a 'wife' for her Borzoi. . . Let me start off saying this is a wonderful home, a good friend, but she is a novice.

This borzoi really has IMHO nothign to offer to the breed. . He has sibligns that are better than him, and sweeter than him. Hell, she was ready to neuter him 6 months ago, so not sure why the change of heart.

This person lives in a postage stamp yard which is not conduit to raising a litter of puppies, and I told her that last year, told her to do it right she was going to have to sell her house and move, but she can't do that, the house holds too many memories. Well, it's not set up for a puppy yard. It's not in a part of town I'd feel safe leaving a litter of puppies outside, her fence latch has been broken at LEAST 2 times. It's half concrete (privacy fence surrounded), half grass with a 4 ft fence. Hell, my itty bitty yard in TX was bigger than this one!

She got offended when I told her these facts. Suddenly I was saying she was a bad home(gods, why do I keep running into these people who take your word and twist it to mean other things?) and that's not what I was saying. I was and am saying it's not a good setup for a litter of puppies.

And she's got no clue how much money goes into puppies. I told her about the litter Tip came out of and the cost ($1500+), the nightmare Nancy's litter was(think she told me it cost her $5000), to my 2nd litter which cost me $3000 and that's not including food. I told her about emergency c sections($800-$1500 depending on where you go), losing your bitch, blah blah blah, but she's got it in her head I think she's a bad home.

I asked her what she was goign to do if she got a litter of 8 and still had 5 at 6 months? hell, my 2nd litter, using a proven stud dog to a proven bitch, I still grew out almost half the litter til they were 2!!! her house is not set up for them, nor is that yard, and got the 'Oh, I have friends who met my boy and want one just like him'. Yeah, we've all heard that, and when push comes to shove, they can't take one for whatever reason. And she's the type of person who's afraid of hurting others feelings and so will probably be unable to honestly say a friend of hers is not a good home for a dog. Hell, I love my mother, dearly, but I wouldnt' place a Borzoi with her! My sister, who I sent Sage to, wouldn't be a good home for a dog like Grins or Gossip. (love ya sis, but you're not! Yard isn't big enough!). Some homes can handle anything. . .

::Sigh:: When she had said she'd neuter this boy, I'd offered to co own 2nd pick bitch from the litter, as she wanted a show/performance dog. . .yet since a guy has come into her life, she hasn't shown the interest you need to have in order to do these things. . In fact, since she got hooked on this guy and lost her mom, she's gone to exactly one event, to watch a show. You want a top of the line show/performance dog, you need to be out learning, show some interest.

Let alone the fact no contact between us since January, yeah, I want to send a puppy to that type of home, . . btdt, got the pick bitch of the twilight litter in a home like that. So instead, 2nd pick goes to Sis if there's one right for her.

So now she's mad at me, but OTOH, I'm not going to be responsible for a mess because she doesn't want to listen. I should've realised this might be a problem when she refused to send her boy to camp for a week so he could get into shape to see if he'd run clean once that happened. She couldn't bear to be away from him. . .so she may not've been willing to listen to me on how to raise a puppy girl properly, which for a pet is fine, for a show bitch, it's not. . so now she'll go to Europe, which is another whole can of worms and problems. . .::SIGH: I've been there done that, wasted money and had wonderful pets.

Breeding

I thought breeding was supposed to be EASY.

or at least, those who breed a gazillion litters seem to make it seem so.

Touchet definitely doesn't go by the textbook and has taught me a valuable lesson: Dates, dates dates. I will be marking down dates a bitch stands from now on. Day 17 and we got another breeding, in the pouring damn COLD rain, soaked to the skin, guess she just wanted a REAL man not a boy. .poor Wizard, screamed his head off the entire time. told him he'll get his chance next year, he was originally Dei's intended anyway

Off to spruce up da Goose, get on some dry clothes, and head to work.

Gossip & breeding

Gossip's all bathed up, blown out, drip drying a bit before I finish the act. I absolutely positively HATE showing a bitch in season. . .haven't done it in years, after Kyra was an idiot and flagged the damn tent post and the judge. What a slut lOL But that's why my newest problem is so frustrating, never dealt with it.

She's still flagging, she's still letting him mount, I wonder if she's got a stricture and that's the issue I had with the last litter, so I'll be throwing her, Mr Stud Muffin and Gossip in the van, heading to the show, following Vanessa back to her Repro vet for an eval and an AI.

OH JOY!!! What we do for puppies. Will have to make sure to have Gossip eval'd before we breed her, JUST in case.

Humpday news

Well, Gossip proved they're not known as bitches without reason: she's in season, 10 days before her debute after the injury. Going to the specialty beginning of next month wth Umbra and her is goign to be SOO MUCH DAMN FUN!!!

NOT!!!!

Progress is being made between Mr Wizard & Ms Touchet, lots of flagging, flirting courting, hopefully tomorrow the "deed" will commence in seriousness.

Spent some time working on Umbra's teeth. Of all the things I wish he had NOT inherited from his father, bad peridontal health is one of them. . .Rinka and Kyra both had great teeth up until their deaths, Garrett had horrid teeth before he reached 4. . .ick ick ick.


Waiting to see how much Bonnie enjoyed her first judging assignment.

Gossip's first show as an adult is this weekend. Hopefully she'll be a good girl. . and hopefully I can show with my bum finger. No idea how I did it, but managed to really f*ck up my ring finger on my right hand, OWWWWWWWW

No good deed goes unpunished

yeah, yeah, I know that's not the way it's supposed to go.

6+ yrs ago, someone new to the breed contacted me, told me she had been screwed by Kyra's breeder. She made me feel sorry for her, all she wanted was a performance dog, and she got two pets. And I don't mean show dogs sold as pets, i mean pets, horrid quality bitches. I had an abundance of boys in my most recent litter, one of which had had a show/performance home, until he had came up missing a number of teeth. He was keen as hell, but I had two brothers who were better put together IMHO, and better dentition, as well as better movement(he moved narrow in the rear). She told me all she wanted was a performance pet, that she had no desire to show.

So I sent her said dog. After people raved over him at a field trial, she asked if I would change it to full registration. If I truly thought this dog was a pet, I wouldn't've. The agreement was in exchange for my GIVING her this dog, and changing over his papers, that I would get a puppy, free of charge from a litter sired by him.

He finished a number of titles,and she bred him. I fell in love with a little girl who looked JUST like her Uncle Obie, my heart & joy dog, and fell hard. It was only after they were a certain age, after I was fully and totally in love with her, that she told me I had to pay for her

WTF?!?! When I pointed out our agreement, she insisted the cobreeder said I had to pay for this puppy due to all her vet bills. Right then and there, I should've contacted the cobreeder and asked her about this, but nope, stupid me, I believed her.**

Got said puppy. She was gorgeous, she was sweet as can be, temperamentally sound. She grew up like her father had, in a huge pasture, playing with my Greyhound and her uncle Obie who was great with puppies.

She matured beautifully bodywise, except for a cathedral front. Nothing to worry about, it's her age, I'll let her grow up some more, practiced her LGRA, tried to get her JC, but she didn't have the interest on plastic. Let her mature mentally some more, wasn't able to get her to practice due to lack of practices or trials ending so damn late I had to head home.

But she did run LGRA, unfortunately, other than CCNY, the nearest LGRA was 4.5 hrs away, and I was more into coursing, as there was more of that a lot closer, so she ran here and there.

Then the 'friend' started riding my ass to get her out, to show her, told her she was small and immature and was doing funny things with her front movement. She & I got into a huge fight over it. I was showing in one of the most competitive parts of the country, and if a dog wasn't a 'white dog', it had to be mature and ready to show.

Finally had a person I highly respect, who has put multile BIS/SBIS wins on various dogs, as well as handled a bitch to #1 Borzoi, someone who KNOWS what a show quality Borzoi is, and she agreed with me, little girl did not have proper Borzoi movement, decent reach, but too much lift.

That started off another argument, but I adored little girl, she was Obie's mini me, and so I kept her, even tho her movement wasn't perfect, she had a lot of good points about her, and with the proper boy, I could fix that movement.

Than my life went to hell. . .and her breeder suddenly became nice, offered to buy her back, told her I was thinking of sending her back, as I didn't know where I was going, let alone my dogs, she offered to pay me twice what I paid for her, I said no, I didn't pay that, she said you need it, take it.

So I did.

Really, if you think about it, she finally paid me for the father. .

And like I said, she offered and insisted I take it. . .needing the money due to what the idiot did, I did, returned lil girl, in good shape, happy healthy and silly, even tho it killed me. . .but it was best for her.

And now I hear from three different sources she's telling people I DEMANDED she pay me the money. One source I trust, one source who's a shit stirrer, and one who people I respect trust. Bullshit.

So much for friends, hunh?

teaches me to be nice to people, second time I felt sorry for someone, and second time I got burned. . .

thinking ahead

hard part about planning out litters for the next few years, is crap happens.

And you're back to square one.

And it's a suck ass place to be.

But sometimes it fixes itself easily.

Emailed Wizard's owner about Dei. . he'd already said I could use the handsome Wiz, I adore this dog, he's very sweet and well mannered, and keen as hell. I still laugh at the memory of him grabbing the bunny at the end of a Notra trial and racing towards the box with it tryign to figure out how to get in so he could do it agian. THAT's what Dei needs. He's also handsome, moves nicely, and holds his tail low, beautiful head and feet. And same pedigree as Grins basically, so would be what I wanted.

Bonnie plans on using Grins at least one more time, even if this one takes, and I'm going to talk to her about getting one of those puppies instead of Criven's. . .I got Grins for a reason, and it would suck not to have something of his to move on with.

Just means back to square one with Gossip, but she's only 3.5, so not like it's imminent lOL

yet mroe depression

Grins has been visiting a Repro vet with a friend who wants to use him, unfortunately the quality of his spermies is not as high as it should be :(

I hope it's just he isn't used much(this would be his second litter and hes' 5.5), and that it'll improve when he goes back in on Monday. .. but this is so depressing, since I want to use him on Dei next year :(

VENTING

why oh why don't people look up references of people they sell or buy dogs from?

I mean, COME ON. . we're there to help YOU out, to help YOU not get screwed, why do people ignore this?

Case 1) Big name OB(Other breed) person sells a puppy to scumbag Borzoi breeder, then sells her two more, without bothering to check up on her, without bothering to call BCOA or NBRF to find out what kind of person she is. Now it looks seriously like there's been a falling out, why? I'm giong to assume cuz Scumbag bred her barely 1 yr old male OB to her older girl. . .typical of Scumbag Breeder. . .and if Big Name Breeder had asked around, she'd've been TOLD so.

Case 2) Breeder breeds to a dog I bred, without coming to me to ask what health problems/structural faults are behind him, has a large litter, and OMG, every single structural fault I could've told them would appear(Dam has the faults, and the sire's dam's line has the same faults) haev shown up in that litter. . .and I could've told them that. .if they'd asked. This same scenario plays on over and over and over. heck, even when you do ask, it sometimes will bite ya in the butt anyway, BTDT, but at least you ASKED!!!

Case 3) Breeder is contacted by a puppy buyer of mine, who speaks highly of me, but do they contact me to ask me about puppy buyer? No. Thankfully, this is a wonderful puppy buyer I'd recommend to the gods if need be, but you just never know.

Case 4) breeder sells a puppy to a buyer out of state, without asking friends if they know this person, or doing a homecheck. Puppy is returned a year later in horrid shape, so underexercised, because puppy'd been living in an itty bitty run, no proper excercise, lots of forced excercise(long walks).

Case 5) Buyer goes and buys a puppy from breeder X. . .without askign for referrals from people who've sold or purchased a dog from breeder, including a friend that had. When given people buyer NEEDS to talk to about the Breeder, refuses to. . .

and the list goes on. . .then there's the people who do ask for referrals and then go and buy the dog anyway, only to come back and go, I'm sorry, you told me so . .. ARGH

And there's the people you DO ask, who say nothing, even tho they know bad things, because they're afraid. Instead of sending you on to someone who CAN give you the truth, they clam up. .

COME ON PEOPLE. It's for the betterment of the dogs and the breed and to encourage new people to come into the breed. if they come in, get hooked up with a scumbag and get hurt, they may leave the breed, and sorry, just look at the recent BCOA letter, we NEED new blood. .

I have had two breeders ask me what's behind my dogs, one when she had an oops between two siblings, not before she bred to their sire, but at least she finally came and asked. And i've had numerous people, after they've been lubed, screwed & tattooed, tell me they wish they'd listened to me in the first place before dealing with a breeder.

And that leads me to the next gripe. Why the HELL do people insist on buying baby puppies as show/performance dogs? Often times before you know if the testicles are there and going to stay, and many times before you even know what the bite is goign to be like. You can't tell what's going to be a performance dog until they're much older, and that is something I've learned from someone who's been doign this since the 70's, so I think her word is pretty much written in stone. And you have no clue on confirmation at this age either, I proved that with Beau, beautiful 8 wk old puppy, developed into a pet quality adult. .

I have bought 4 puppies at a young age, and had ONE turn out. The one I saw in the flesh. Rio was a giant, sweet, pet. PC was a midsized, sweet, pet, and Yanna was a wonderful sweet pet. . .none of them were show quality, none of them were real performance dogs (on plastic, yanna'd chase a squawker, but not plastic), and I bought/picked them all out at a young age(Rio-5-6ish wks, PC at 4 months, Yanna at 4-5 wks). You just can't tell. Oh wait, there was a fifth puppy I picked out, but didn't buy, she grew up to be gorgeous, and missing SIX teeth!!

Youngest I've sold a puppy to a MAYBE show home(they'd show him IF he turned out) was 10 wks, but they had to have that puppy when he was 2 wks old. Unfortunately, he didn't turn out, but did they learn? Nope, they've bought two more young puppies, but they're mainly a pet home will dabbles in performance/showing. . . I knew that unless he was vicious, or tried to bite a human, he wouldn't come back to me.

But most people who want show dogs, don't have room for 'just a pet' (nothing against just a pet, people, I've had a few of those myself, but currently don't have room for one that does nothing but take up space). . .so I don't understand the need to get a puppy as young as possible, I know what fuels the breeders. . .but the buyers just boggle my mind. I don't want my puppies coming back, so I refuse to sell to a for sure show home, they want a puppy younger than I'll let a show pup go, they can go elsewhere.

::SIGH:: it's as frustrating as the people who go to a show only breeder for a performance dog :P

Bone cancer

Sucks.
I hate having to call puppy buyers and say "Your puppy's "(Brother/Father) just died of bone cancer. . .::SIGH::

It's even worse because there's no test, no known inheritance, nada. It's a guessing game, and now I have it in two of the three ways I've bred.

Kyra, Rinka & Garrett, together at the bridge again

Garrett was a goober dog. Sweet, loving, a bit snarky over food, but adored his people. His previous home hated him and gave him to me. He came to me under socialized, under handled but sweet as can be. He'd never seen linoleum, didn't know how to act in the house. I'm not sure if he was ignored in his former home or what, but he acted like he'd never been out of his yard

In limited showing he picked up 5 points, and finished his Can Ch, he sired a litter for me, the twilight litter, giving me my very first BBE champion, and he sired a litter of two in Canada. Shortly after he came back from his stint in Canada, he almost died from a prostate infection. . .but I nursed him thru that, and then neutered him, and placed him in a wonderful pet home. His coat was hell to deal with (his nickname was Pig Pen) and the fear everytime a bitch came into season just made me think it was the best thing to do.

I got an email from his home the other day, that he'd been put down due to bone cancer in a rib. . .he would've been 9 this July. . .Such a sweet suckup boy. . .Emailed his sire's owner, and it looks like there's two, maybe three of the litter left, another sister died recently, haven't heard back from her owner what took her.

But, I'll take bone cancer over bloat. At least with bone cancer you have time with the dog, and if you're a good person, you take advantage of that time, spend a lot of time with your buddy, Obie went everywhere with me this time last year, he went to the Nationals with me, even when I was told I shouldn't do that to him, but he absolutely positively loved it. He schmoozed with all his buddies, I got to see him on the beach, watch him frolicking on three legs, and got to spend some good quality time with him. Losing him sucked no matter what, but at least I had the time

Bloat doesn't give you that. . if you're lucky, you catch bloat, but then you have to make the decision do you have $3000+ for emergency surgery that may or may not save your dog. If you're unlucky, you come home to a dead dog. . BTDT. . I'll take bone cancer, at least you get to say goodbye. . but they both suck giant turkey eggs.

And now I sit worried, looking at Umbra wondering if the cancer bomb will take Garrett's goober son away from me. . .hoping it won't happen. . .and trying to find a line I like that doesn't have cancer up close so I can take him to it, in hopes of continuing on with that litter. .unfortunately his first litter didn't nick like I'd hoped :( but that's the game of breeding.

Damnit, I miss my Obie :( And I know Lisa misses Garrett

show people can be so damn stupid

Grrr . .why do people get hung up over stupid cosmetic faults. . .they can have no problem with dogs with faults that affect the ability to run, will rave over a dog that is not properly put togother, but can't get over the fact a dog has GASP slate grey pigment. can you tell the difference in this text? Nope, just like a slate grey pigment dog you often can't tell the different from a black pigment

It seems like show only people always forget the last paragraph of the standard, when they nitpit dogs for having small, non performance related faults. .. forget what my friend calls them, but I call them Novice problems, as any one can pick out a dog with missing teeth(well, almost anyone anyway LOL), or missing pigment, or gay tail, it takes a lot more knowledge to pick out a dog with an improper front or movement. . .

Anyway, the most important part of the standard when looking at it as one piece, imho is

Any deviation from the above described dog must be penalized to the extent of the deviation keeping in mind the importance of the contribution of the various features toward the basic original purpose of the breed.

Now, would someone please explain to me how slate grey pigment affects the original purpose of the breed. Oh yeah, it DOESN'T!!!

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I just don't understand some days.