@jengosmonkey
LOL this is a really important convo to be having! I'm honored that it takes place on my thread 😆 and yes, I absolutely agree with the points y'all are making.
People do need to know where their pups are coming from and whether they were responsibly bred. To think of it coldly, I wouldn't buy a house without looking into its history and possible problems, or I might face ridiculous stress, expense, and emotional trauma from subsequent issues that come up later. As a consumer, one should do their homework not only on the breed but on the breeder.
A breeder who produces puppies carelessly is basically a horrible human being in my book. It was a huge, thoroughly thought out moral decision for me not to adopt but to buy a purebred puppy, as I've worked with rescues before. I took this step with the possible goal of being a custodian. If a breeder is irresponsible in all the aforementioned ways, not only are they producing dogs with a higher possibility of suffering, muddying this ancient breed, and swindling people, they are needlessly taking potential homes away from dogs that need one AND frequently causing dogs to be abandoned! If there weren't any PMs or BYBs, imagine how many people would get schooled by rescue folk and responsible breeders into taking dog-parenting seriously before they ever took one home!
Sorry for the rant; I COMPLETELY understand the internal screaming that happens within some of you when you find out a pup is from a mill or crap breeder. If people like you and I keep yelling about it, we will change a few minds, which make all the difference to a few dogs which is better than no dogs 🙂
Hello from Philadelphia!
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I just got my first Basenji's (which I have been wanting for about 15 years now) and expect to be on this site quite a bit! About 8 weeks ago I met my two new pups (yes two, but they were both "left overs" from a breeder and needed homes!) and so far it has been a bit of a whirlwind.
Hudson is my tri-male from a litter 1/2015. He is super willing to please, is very excited to learn new tricks, but has been having some interesting bowel issues. (I plan on posting on the health board in a bit). He snores, but boy is he a cuddle bug.
Hazel is my red female from a litter 12/2014. She is much more "textbook" basenji (from what I read). She is the only dog I have ever known to run AWAY from the dog park in the midst of having fun. After being gone for 4 days, and then to the doggy ICU here in Philadelphia, she is now regaining strength, even though she has a little doggy cast (that has been replaced 5 times in the last 2 weeks along with 6 different cones of shame). I cannot wait to get this cast off to get some of this puppy energy out!
I plan on posting on the health board re: putting on weight, intermittant bowel issues, training, crate training, agility, and possibly lure coursing. Looking forward to pick your brains!