Today I went to the pet store to get some dog supplies and decided to take a look at the puppies that they had there. For the record, I would never purchase a puppy from a pet store/shop. To me, it's wrong and I know all about the puppy mills and stuff, that's a totally different subject. Anyways, the puppies themselves looked pretty healthy on the outside which is always good. (Hate going to see puppies that look sick). I was appalled to see that they had breeds in there that aren't usually in pet stores! Great Danes, Akitas, A RHODESIAN RIDGEBACK! They're starting to get to more "rarer" breeds that aren't popular with families and I was completely surprised. I was also appalled to see that their mixes were so expensive. An english/french bulldog mix was over $2k! According to this pet store, they say that their puppies come from reputable breeders, but I obviously don't believe that for a second. I was pretty disgusted and didn't stay long.
What are your views on pet stores/shops that have puppies, or even small animals? Do you think it's okay to purchase puppies, kittens, or small animals (rodents, birds, reptiles) from a pet store?
Note: I should also add that the puppies are displayed in 4 large glass rooms according to their size. And they play/sleep together.
Akatsuki2012-10-18T13:47:05Z
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Rodents, birds, reptiles, fish, and so on are one thing. Buying dogs and cats from a petstore--NO WAY would I ever consider it!
The owner can claim that the puppies came from reputable breeders, but anybody can claim anything they want. Just because the puppies may have come from a clean home, from parents that aren't stuck in a cage and are sick, or from somebody who doesn't mass produce puppies does NOT mean they came from a reputable breeder. No matter how nice and clean the environment or how much the breeder loves their own dog, they are still a backyard breeder who is contributing directly to pet overpopulation and the killing of innocent lives.
The fact that they are selling such breeds is only going to lead to impulse buying by people who know nothing about the breed. This will only damage the breed's reputation if more and more of them are owned by people who don't know the breed and how to handle it, and the dog bites somebody.
I refuse to shop at petstores that sell cats and dogs.
My local pet store stills sells puppies but I have asked them where they get their puppies from because I wanted to know.
I had about an hour long talk with the owner who said that they buy from a breeder but that their breeder was registered with all the necessary associations regarding breeding dogs, they have their own vet that comes in once a week and they are regularly inspected (at random) by the relevant authorities. The owner also said that at any time a member from the public that was thinking of buying a puppy was welcome to visit the breeder so they could see first hand what the place was like and how the puppies were raised.
I too am against buying puppies from pet stores because most of them probably don't have such stringent controls for the breeder but as you can see, not all pet stores are irresponsible.
Seven years ago I bought my dog from a pet store (being non the wiser about puppy mills at the time) and although I love my dog dearly, from a health perspective, she is a reject and basically should never have been born. Sometimes I wonder how her litter mates are doing now and if they all have the same problems as my little one. I just hope they have loving and caring owners who will look after them, despite the short falls.
I totally support outlawing puppy mills and backyard breeders but I also support breeders who are doing the right thing so that we can have happy and healthy dogs.
Well it looks like you are already familiar with the disgusting ways dogs are treated in puppy mills. However, there is this cool new idea that has been going on here in Los Angeles. FoundAnimals opened a "store" for cats and dogs that come from the local animal shelters. It's absolutely awesome! It really does feel like you are buying a puppy at a store (which is surprisingly exciting and I can see why people still buy from stores). So people get that awesome rush of "buying" (adopting at a much lower cost that buying) a pet at a store, yet helping the shelter animals and helping to make puppy mills a thing of the past. Check it out! http://www.foundanimals.org/pet-adoption/adopt-shop
I personally think it's disgusting and cruel where these animals come from.
There's only ONE pet store I support, and it's LOCALLY owned, in fact, I'm on a first name basis with the owner. ANY and ALL his animals he breeds himself (he does NOT sell cats or dogs, but has info about adoptable animals from the local shelter). He's a major animal person, and no creature in his shop goes without vet care, even the rodents and fish. Well, okay, the fish he medicates himself, but, he has his vet tech, so it's still technically vert care.
He'll ONLY sell quality food where MEAT is the #1 ingredient, and if he can't answer your question, he'll phone an expert right then and there, put them on speaker, and have YOU ask them personally.
Sadly, he's slowly going under at about $20,000 in debt because of the big chain pet stores that have all the 'bells and whistles' that he can't possibly afford.
Anyways, don't but from pet stores that support millers, plain and simple as that!
I for one would never purchase a puppy or a kitten from a pet store, and never have in the past. As for smaller animals, there aren't too many rescues or shelters that would have them available for adoption, so I do tend to buy a hamster or frog or pet gecko from a pet store occasionally. With my breeder geckos, though, I get them from private individuals or a breeder. I have bought a rabbit from a pet store in the past, but that was before I knew that the local shelter had rabbits for adoption, as well as rescue groups. Most of my bunnies have been from individuals that couldn't keep them anymore. My current one is a shelter bunny.
I don't care how nice a pet store's set up may be with puppies, I simply don't shop there. That's why the pet stores that bring in adoption groups get my money.