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collies4me - I'm not trying to pressure you at all, but I know of a baby male rough coat (i.e. fluffy) red and white border collie who has either just been taken into foster at our rescue or is still at a kill shelter. If you go to the rescue resources and dogs for adoption forum on this board, there's a picture of him on a thread I posted for him.

 

Like I said, no pressure, just want you to be aware of alternatives.

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Originally posted by collies4me:

Very interesting...IronHorse I sent you a PM

 

With the holiday yesterday - I have waited to mail the oontract/deposit. And I might have to hold on to it for now

 

Thank you for the honesty sara, I will have to discuss the findings here with my wife and see how she feels

Kudos for you to be willing to be informed. I, too, see many a red flag with this breeder, but do not have solid facts about them to be able to state anything for certain. But any good BC breeder generally has all the pups sold before they hit the ground.

 

Just keep in mind that you like the border collie for what he is. And what he is, is a result of years of breeding for good herding characteristics, not the color of his coat, which is what this breeder appears to be breeding for. If you buy from a color breeder, there's no guarantee that you will get a border collie that acts like a border collie, possibly one that just looks like one, albeit a pretty one.

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It is hard to break out of the "puppy buyer glass window" type mentality - and I agree and after doing research here it seems that the Border Collies have a unique yet protected breeding past.

 

On the flip side though, I have an equally hard time not justifying the puppy especially with its health, her parent's health.

 

My wife and I have discussed it, and we both were previous military, and it has been instilled that you take an adult's word as gold, and we told this breeder we would adopt this pup, and we are not people to go back on our word...

 

And I am sure I am not the only one here who has felt this, but after some of the posts here I feel guilty for wanted a pup in a breed and color that I have thought about for most of my adult life - leaves a sour feeling in general..

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I don't think you should feel guilty about wanting this pup. It sounds to me like you will give this pup a great home! Like you, I found this site essentially after we had the dog. Perhaps if you ever decide to have a 2nd dog, you will be able to refer to the advice you've gotten. Enjoy your puppy!

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On the flip side though, I have an equally hard time not justifying the puppy especially with its health, her parent's health.
Looking over the website, I'd didn't see any mention of health guarantees. Do they offer one with their pups?

 

Personally, I could not support or reccommend this breeder. But I do kind of understand where you are coming from, and wish you the best in you decision.

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Originally posted by collies4me:

Very interesting...IronHorse I sent you a PM

 

With the holiday yesterday - I have waited to mail the oontract/deposit. And I might have to hold on to it for now

 

Thank you for the honesty sara, I will have to discuss the findings here with my wife and see how she feels

Sent you an e-mail

hope it helps

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My wife and I have discussed it, and we both were previous military, and it has been instilled that you take an adult's word as gold, and we told this breeder we would adopt this pup, and we are not people to go back on our word...
I don't see anything wrong with politely telling the breeder that you are still discussing the purchase and you need more time. Caveat emptor .
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I'm curious... if you were to buy a car and looked it over and liked it, then found out it had the worst safety rating on the market, would you still stand on your previous verbal agreement? Seems more like deliberate gulibility verging on wilful ignorance rather than honourable behaviour.

 

I find it hard to believe that there are no quality, honourable breeders in your area?

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Well, now I have an idea where the red/white female in the SC shelter came from. 'Nuff said. :rolleyes:

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Thanks for all the emails - this has become alot more stressful than I thought it would be. My gut feeling is telling me to keep searching, which is sometimes more important than keeping my word

 

Seems more like deliberate gulibility verging on wilful ignorance rather than honourable behaviour.
Unless you have served, please do not speak to what constitutes "honourable behaviour"
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my wife and I received a response from the breeder this evening, she was not very happy at all about us asking about her farm/breeding process here on the boards. She was resentful, was her quote from the email that we asked the community about her practices.

 

My wife and I have followed our gut feeling, and are going to continue looking for the right breeder/puppy or even the adoption route if we can find the right match.

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Thanks for listening without getting upset with the posters.

 

The puppy is adorable but yes I have to agree that I would be concerned with the number of litters (of color). It also tells you something about the breeder if they get upset when you ask them questions about the breeding practices.

 

Good for you for choosing to continue looking.

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Kudos to you both on your decision! I'm sure you'll find just what you're looking for from a more solid background.

 

Just thought I'd ask - why did you decide to go with a pup? Alot of us here do rescue in some form or another (personally I transport dogs to foster homes for a local rescue since I can't foster), but many others have been through the whole puppy search and buying process as well, just curious is all.

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Congratulations on making a decision! Even if it wasn't the one you thought you would make in the first place.

 

Good luck and best wishes for your puppy/dog search! I hope you find the perfect fuzzy friend soon.

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Thanks all - it was very frustrating at first, but my wife and I already feel better in a way...

 

We just hope that pup has a good life wherever she goes...

 

 

In Regards to adopting...I had a bad experience adopting when I was younger, dog passed away at a very early age (2 years), we adopted him as a 11 month old, and died a horrible death by addisons disease...

 

My wife and I are still looking and we are located in the Jacksonville, FL area, so if you see anything I do not, do not hesitate to IM/email

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Originally posted by collies4me:

In Regards to adopting...I had a bad experience adopting when I was younger, dog passed away at a very early age (2 years), we adopted him as a 11 month old, and died a horrible death by addisons disease...

 

I can understand why an experience like that would make you hesitant to adopt again.

 

But puppies from breeders can have the exact same types of health problems, and even behavior problems.

 

I got a puppy from a breeder once. There is no dog in the universe that I will ever love more than I love him. There is no dog in the universe that I would literally try to move heaven and earth for.

 

But he has some "wires crossed" in his brain and he will never be a completely normal dog even though he has come a long way. For all his life, there are times when I have to watch him simply be afraid of the world that he lives in because there is something not right in that otherwise wonderful head of his!

 

That's my breeder dog. My two mutts, who are adopted, are all that dogs should be. And so far my newly-adopted Border Collie seems to be the same.

 

I think that with any dog, it's a gamble. We want them to live long, healthy, happy lives, but there is no guarantee - even with a puppy from a breeder.

 

I'm not saying that you shouldn't go to a breeder, even though I am biased as a volunteer for a rescue and a still-glowing-new-adoptor!! But even if it's not time now, I hope you will consider giving it another chance someday.

 

I wish you the best in your search for a puppy! I hope you find a great one soon!

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Originally posted by collies4me:

my wife and I received a response from the breeder this evening, she was not very happy at all about us asking about her farm/breeding process here on the boards. She was resentful, was her quote from the email that we asked the community about her practices.

If she's not thrilled to have you investigate her reputation, then I suppose you have your answer. I'm sorry your first experience with the breed was somewhat negative.

 

Although it may have saved you heartache in the end. I have a dog who was bred by a high volume "backyard" type breeder. (It's a long story - I worked in a pet store for a brief time during undergrad.) Anyway, I love the little guy (he's a Lhasa), but he's had more health problems than any of the rest combined. So if this breeder was less than reputable, you may have escaped repeating something similar to your sad past experience.

 

I sure hope that little girl (and her sibs) all wind up with good homes, though.

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I wonder whether it's wise to actually mention breeder names publically. That's Eileen's call, but I feel a little helpless when a name comes up that I could mention something about, but am reluctant to do on a public forum. But if I just leave it, there's people out there who now have the positive side of things only. :rolleyes:

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Thats a good point. Because even if you Pm the person all the lurkers don't get that information and as she said only get one side. I guess all we can do is point to the "puppy buying tips" on the site and the "read this first" section and hope for the best... But yes free advertising for less that savoury breeders is crappy.

 

Sara

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Hi there,

 

First of all, well done on coming here and taking the advice on offer. I am by no means an expert, but can't help feeeling you have done absolutely the right thing.

 

Aside from everything people have mentioned,

I looked at the pups on the site. Again, I emphasise I am not an expert, but they just don't look quite right to me - especially 'Jim' - just curious to see whether my gut feeling ( and it's no more than that) is right - or not...

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