<p>Who else but me is obsessed with the dog show?</p>
<p>By the way, note David Frei quoted here? When The Incomparable Uno the Beagle travels, he gets his own seat on the plane in the name of Uno Frei. Isn’t that quite the honor for David?</p>
<p>The REAL breeders, the responsible breeders, are the ones who sell puppies with spay/neuter contracts and clauses that state that the dog must be given back to them if you cannot keep it at any time in its life, run breed rescue operations, microchip and/or tattoo every puppy so that no dog they breed will end up killed in a shelter, breed only health-tested dogs from health-tested stock, breed only dogs with titles (working and/or conformation), etc. Do not lay puppy mills and uncontrolled breeding at their door. They usually spend time and money cleaning up the mess of puppy millers and backyard breeders who “only want to breed nice pets.”</p>
<p>And don’t even get me started on so-called “designer dogs.” :D</p>
<p>Yes those are the Jack Russels! Of which I have a very fat one who doesn’t jump. He sunbathes and naps. I am so excited we are having a party for the dog show. I will serve finger food.</p>
<p>The Puppy Bowl is always better than The Super Bowl. Love the collies in the Westminster and I am happy for the collie breed, that they are not as popular anymore. Purchased from an ethical breeder and concur with Consolation.</p>
<p>I love to DVR the dog show so that I can fast forward to the sporting breeds. There are getting to be so many new breeds that I can’t keep track of them!</p>
<p>Consolation has it right. Can’t say it any better.</p>
<p>Would only add that IMHO people have the right to own the sort of dog that they want when they want it. No one should be bullied into adopting a dog that doesn’t fit their family.</p>
<p>I love watching Westminster, the other dogs shows not so much. </p>
<p>My littlest pooch was rescued from a puppy mill where she had been used as a breeder for her whole life. I was asked to transport her for two legs of her journey to foster mom and fell in love with her, so here she is. :)</p>
<p>We always watch the show; I would love to go some time.</p>
<p>Our breeder says she is always thankful that elkhounds have never been wildly popular or fashionable. When that happens people get into breeding for the money and not for the love of the dogs and people buy dogs that are ill-suited to their lives or families. After 101 Dalmatians was remade many dalmatians were turned in after families discovered that the pups needed training and an owner with some experience. (And they are not always great with children.)</p>
<p>Now we have all these new hybrids bred by people who have no idea what they’re doing, beyond trying to make a fast buck. They end up with pups that don’t have the traits they’d hoped for (shedding _________doodles, for example) and they take them to the shelters. It’s very sad.</p>
<p>My cats have all come from the shelter but I love my elkie and as a B&B owner I wanted a clear idea of what to expect in terms of temperment. Our breeder does not let buyers choose their pups. She feels that, after being with the dogs for eight weeks she knows their personalities and will match them to new owners who have filled out a fairly extensive application. (She certainly did right by me :))</p>
<p>In all honesty, I prefer mutts :)------especially when rescued from a shelter. We had to put our almost 11 year old golden retriever/lab mix to sleep last July because he developed a very large abdominal tumor. The house felt so empty without a dog. Three weeks later, my son and I visited our local ARF shelter (a wonderful place where the animals are very well cared for). Well, right there in the main office was an adorable 3 month old yellow lab mix. Needless to say, she came home with us that day and has filled the house with joy ever since. After physically examining her and performing a few temperament tests, the vet raved about her and described her as an incredible puppy–smart, outgoing, and very healthy. </p>
<p>Regarding the Dog Show: We watch it from time to time, but I can’t stop thinking about all the discarded dogs in kennels hoping to be adopted that get overlooked because people want a pure breed. Sad.</p>
<p>I have a cockerpoo. I don’t know if that counts as a designer dog. If it does, somebody should tell her because she acts pretty “off the rack” as far as I’m concerned. Nothing fancy here. Just a sweet, lovable, loyal, funny animal like most dogs. I agree that people should get the dog that works for them. This one is my first dog ever and I needed to be able to predict what I was getting into. I also wanted to avoid allergy problems. Next time around, I might opt for a rescue, but I’ll decide then. Right now, I’m enjoying this little buddy very much.</p>
<p>The cockapoos were the <em>first</em> of the mixed breed designer dogs, and while not a recognized breed by the AKC, still a well established mix of the two breeds.</p>
<p>There are also a lot of different rescue groups and dogs available. Here in the northeast we seem to see a lot of imported hound mixes and bully breeds. There are also breed rescues, so if someone has a particular breed in mind, it is worth looking for the specific breed rescue.</p>
<p>I’m very partial to the herding group breeds, and Shelties in particular. I also really like a dog that is true to breed type, and that’s what I am going with!</p>
<p>I’m curious about breed rescues. How is that certain breeds end up in rescue situations? I know about greyhounds but what about others? For example, I think that cockerpoos are now running about 1000 dollars for a female (compared to the 300 I paid twelve years ago). How does a breed end up on a continuum where at one end someone is paying a ridiculous price and at the other end the dog is being rescued? Hope this question made sense.</p>
<p>I don’t want to offend anyone, but a cockapoo is a mutt, pure and simple, and no one should pay a premium for one. The same thing goes for goldendoodles, labradoodles, and all of the poodle mixes. </p>
<p>One reason for this is that NO GOOD EXAMPLE OF EITHER BREED will be used to produce such dogs. Why? Because the breed clubs ALL prohibit such matings, and any person who allows their dogs to be used this way with be thrown out. This means that the dogs used to produce these mixes are BY DEFINITION highly unlikely to be good examples of their breed. They are highly unlikely to have been health tested for generations. They are highly unlikely to have been shown in conformation, obedience, or working competition. Their major qualification for breeding is probably that they were an AKC registered --which means almost nothing–random-bred dog with an intact reproductive system.</p>
<p>I’m sure that your mixed breed dogs are lovely and you love them. But if you paid more than one would pay to adopt a dog from a shelter, you were ripped off. You are not alone. But do all dogs a favor and don’t fall for it again.</p>
<p>I’ve been to Westminster. Our family had show dogs and several were (in differing years) in Westminster. Won best of opposite, but never best of breed.</p>