Animal buyers - Page 1

They make me want to rip my hair out.  They seem to have a good time tearing apart breeders but what about the buyers themselves?   

I am not even talking about GSD's, or anyone on this board, in this particular case so don't anyone get their panties in a bunch.  I'm talking animals in general and in my case, a cat buyer.

Why is it that some people, not all, feel to blame the previous owner or breeder for every little problem that comes along once they have the animal in their care?  Is it such a throw away society now that they can so easily say "you MUST take this animal back or else.........?"  What happened to having a tad of commitment when you decide to bring a new family member home?  Now it's to the point that they expect us to take the animal back and train it for them so that they don't have to spend the money on training bills.  Or fix the diarrahea so they don't have to spend the money on a vet.   Pup comes up with Coccidia or demodectic mange?  Do a little research and find out it's pretty common in pups that are under stress such as moving to a new home.  Both are easily treated without spending a fortune.  Oh but hell no, it HAS to be the breeders fault.  Pup acting out and nipping the kids and chasing the cats?  How about a little puppy class or two?  Don't have the time?  You had the time to surf the internet to find the perfect animal so how about a little more doing some work with that animal?  They don't come perfect and they don't come trained to your specifications right out of the box.

In my case, it's a cat that I specified could NOT be declawed.  They declawed her anyway and now she is pooping on their furniture and is aggressive to their other cats.  Surprised?  I'm not and neither should they be if they had taken the time to do a little research or read the literature I sent them.  They've had her a month and now they want their $400 back PLUS the money for the declaw I told them not to do.  I sent them some solid suggestions on how to fix the problems and I get a reply back saying they are too busy and their furniture too expensive to deal with it.  

I have friend that has a rescue and she adopted out a pup to the wrong person.  Pup came up with diarrahea, vet said must be Parvo (on the phone without seeing pup) and now adopter is threatening to sue.  Rescuer had pup tested and it was NOT parvo or distemper.  Just simple small intestinal upset.  Now she's in danger of losing her rescue and really is fed up with it all anyway and could care less.

So buyers, please stop and think before you accuse.  We work our butts off trying to get you the healthiest, most well adjusted animal we can.  It's up to you after that to raise that animal right.

Vent over.

Amen!  I couldn't agree more-people expect a dog like they see in movies without putting any work into it, good post!

I understand your frustration. I see this everyday in rescue. No commitment ever. But why are we surprised? People can't even make commitments to others anymore and at the slightest problem just walk away. This is family stuff as well as friendships. In my job as well as my hobby, which both include animals, I find only the rare occaisional person that wants to learn and be with the animals for the right reasons. That understands the lifetime commitment, the work, the lifestyle. Heck, I don't enjoy my dogs or cats to tear up anything but one, a lot of it is on me if I am not careful and leave stuff out, two, these things are not worth more to me than the companionship and enjoyment I get out of my animals. Having said this however, no more cats in the house after my old rescue is gone!

I hear you Goose.  I haven't bought new furniture for years because of the cats and dogs.  I happily accept hand-me-downs though.  Why buy nice stuff if there's a good chance the next litter of pups is just going to trash it?  It ain't worth the stress.

Yup, I know. I now have a futon.

I also think the problem is that everyone thinks they know best. And all the forums, boards, tv shows and stuff are part of it. Everyone thinks that they know. You never know by reading, watching or listening. You have to do. And over and over again. Then you take all you have read, heard, seen and done and maybe at the end of a timespan that is not short, you may be getting close. They don't understand that some of us have worked all their lives to get the knowledge we have. That we would not intentionally stir them wrong. And yes, everyone should educate themselves but not think they are experts. I don't know why they could not declaw the cat but obviously they thought they knew more than you. And that is what bugs me the most. This is why a contract with initials helps. Not the disrespect they exhibited for your knowledge but at least that they were made aware of the issue. Not the cat but it helps nail down the buyer. Let them initial that they acknowledge that you told them why this was not possible. At least that way they can't come back and say you never told them. Any of my rescues don't go out anymore without it.

I'll play a little devils advocate here.

So as a breeder "Seller" I always have a choice.. Do I want to commit my time and energy to these people. Because selling them an animal (my case GSD pups) is more than just the sale. When "we" have the experience and they don't, it is also the help we provide that is part of the sale. "right"?

If I see or hear "BIG PAIN IN THE ASS" "BIG PAIN IN THE ASS" in the back of my head while talking with the people I simply walk away from the sale and move on. You need to have the room and you need to be able to walk away from the $$$ at least for that day... If you can't yes you are screwed and need to deal with people that otherwise you may not want to... Sucky deal, yup but you put yourself in that jam now you are stuck in it (of course you can always choose to get yourself out of that position but that is another thread)..

I choose not to give myself big headaches over and over and over. I just send them to my breeder/trainer friends.   I do not live a lifestyle of wealth, so, I choose to live a stress free lifestyle.. When you have to juggle 10 pain in the ass's per week over & over & over and over the hair starts falling out, heart burn, sleepless nights, gray hair and having an overall sucky feeling, life starts to suck!!!

I just turned a Doctor away because he decided he wanted me to change my puppy purchase agreement. Sorry this is starting to smell like dog shit.. Bye, bye.. Not worth the headach.. What are the chances I would be able to make him 100% happy? Unsure, but the odds of him beeing a bigger problem down the road are higher when they are already a problem up-front....  He is a great guy and I know 100% that he would have taken great care of the pup and he had no problem paying what I am charging for the pup, but changing 2-3 things in my contract are out of the question, so... Bye, Bye... I already took a deposit from another buyer within 42 hours of making that decision...  It's not worth it...

Just my 2cents worth...

Dennis Johnson

Dennis, you are 100% correct. I have not let many a dog go to homes that I felt was not going to work out because of the peoples nature. And you have to be able and at liberty to do so. So with my rescues that is always a big deal. I am just glad that at least one breeder did not turn me away because I asked so many questions and wanted pictures galore. I am still annoying her to this day but got a wonderful dog out of it and would deal with her again in a heartbeat!