Infuriating article in the Times today.

[Beekissed]

Both need to be slapped around and no biscuit!

Agreed! I can't imagine paying that much for a dog and I can't imagine having a dog one deemed that expensive and not taking her on return, immediately. If she was worth all that, I'd stand behind my product and be more than glad to take her back if someone was not compatible with her. But first, I'd do some serious screening/matching with prospective buyers.​

 

[FourPawz]

Quote:
I totally agree. That's a competition schutzhund dog. If the buyer isn't experienced, with dogs like her, that dog, being a drivey, bright, intense and tough girl, would have had his number in about 15 seconds. In the right hands, that dog would be more than worth her weight in gold, in the hands of the average pet owner, she'd be a nightmare.

I prefer GSD's in what working shepherd folks call "the golden middle". Not intense enough for top competition, not aggressive enough to take the fight to the bad guy, but bright, trainable, loyal and calm-natured.

 

[jerseygirl1]

OK, I spent $150 for my GSD from the high-kill shelter in NY city, and he is worth his weight in gold! Like you said, that is a competition dog and needs an experienced handler. Both people should have thought this out better

 

[pdbantam]

...coulda bought a LOT of chickens for $7500...

 

[m.kitchengirl]

I was pretty disgusted by this article on both sides.

For the breeder to not properly screen owners - which must be the case, from so far away - is very scary with a dog like this. If you send a dog like that all the way across the country and get a phone call from the owner with concerns about their cat, well alarm bells should go off there. I would think a dog like that should be sold after meeting the owners, understanding what their home life is like, and maybe even running a few training sessions with the trainer and the perspective buyer. (And, maybe not sold to a home with cats or kids.)

I think there are too many dog owners who buy a dog for stature and because they think that their dog will "say something" about who they are. Too often people get the wrong dog for them, or should never have a dog in the first place. To spend that much money on a dog when you have no clue what you are doing or what to expect and then to send it back - which took some doing, he was thwarted in his attempt to abandon the animal once - KNOWING that no one is waiting for it (and he KNEW, as he had been turned down by the airline once) well, that is an beyond selfish and immature. This man's photo should be put at every breeder and pet store and shelter in New York.

Personally, I think they should both lose the $7,500 and the money should be given to animal shelters in Washington and New York. I also think the breeder should be investigated and the man who purchased the dog charged with animal endangerment.

I always say I should follow the news more, then I do and I get SOOOOOOO mad.

I am sure that is a wonderful dog. I love German Shepherds and have always thought them wonderful dogs - for other people. I would never own one. I just know they would take a push over like me for a fool immediately. I am also always wary of German Shepherds I don't know. Not because of the dog because, absolutely, there are no bad dogs. It is their owners I am afraid of, and the training, or lack of, that they may have had.

I was just so sad and ashamed of people (again) when I read this article. I didn't even buy my ducks without reading for a year and meeting every breed I could and ... I mean, how can people get such a highly specialized animal without having a clue?!

 

[OldGuy43]

First, I have no sympathy for people who spend huge amounts of money for a dog. There are to many wonderful, loving animals in shelters looking for a good home. I have even less sympathy for people who take large working breeds and try to keep them indoors, and less yet for lazy people who buy trained animals believing that the fact that they respond well to their trainer insures that they will do the same for them.

Red Bird came to us because the previous owner couldn't handle her and got tired of the loud squawking. Once she moved in with us it took several weeks for her to realize that, when the door was open she could come out of her cage. Another couple of weeks and she would sit on my shoulder. Is it any wonder that she became a one person bird? No one else was willing to invest the time. Trust and respect are not things you deserve. They are something you earn.

As for the seller, I don't have much respect for him either. He (apparently) misled his customer and than tried to weasel out of the deal.

 

[jerseygirl1]

Yup, when you adopt/buy a pet, you are making a promise to love it and take care of it forever

OK, I will stop now

 

[dainerra]

Buyer beware. The dog came from a broker with a reputation for misleading customers and other complaints. A broker isn't in the business of matching dogs with homes, they give the customer what they want. And we know how good the public is at wanting the things they need the least!

All together a bad situation for the poor dog

 

[FourPawz]

Quote:
In the world of specially trained and bred Schutzhund dogs, it's not unusual to see better trained dogs with advanced degrees change hands for more money than the dog in that article brought. You do not train a dog for schutzhund or Ring sport overnight and the skilled trainers in this discipline do not work for free. Many of the more highly trained dogs have to be imported from Eastern Europe or from Germany. Transportation and health certificates cost money. People purchase these dogs for their own reasons and most can handle and control their dogs. They give the dogs they've purchased great care and love.

It's wonderful for kind pet owners to adopt rescues that are honestly represented to those folks. Many abandoned dogs make wonderful 2nd chance pets, but there are those in rescue that will lie about an animal's behavior/emotional problems, just to "place" it, despite the pain they may cause the unsuspecting new pet parent. And, there are less than reputable "dog brokers" who are only too happy to separate the gullible from large amounts of money for a dog that's too much for them to handle.

There are folks who just want a pet. Others plan to compete in various sports with their canine companion. While adoption is wonderful, it is not the only acceptable route to take when seeking to share the next 16 years or so with a four footed friend.

 

[sourland]

Quote:
X 2 Right dog - wrong people. That kind of money for that type of dog the seller should have required that the new owner come to the kennel and undergo training with the dog, and the owner should have researched what they were getting into.