Deb and Ed M wrote:
You are right about some backyard breeders just wanting to make a buck, but the same can be said about some rescues and shelters. I've seen firsthand how someone can adopt a pup from a shelter and end up with a dog who's anything but what was described. One of my daughters adopted a "poodle and daschund cross - should mature around 20 lbs" and got a 60 lb Aussie and GSD mix....LOL!!! At least my "designer mutt" won't give me any surprises.
I will concede that there are "shelters" out there that are really "for profit" enterprises disguised as pet rescues, and that "adopting" a pet can be risky, not only that one might not get the dominant breed that one thinks one is getting (I know a woman who brought home a young beagle mix, only he turned out to be a very young treeing coonhound, a much larger dog), but one can be getting a dog with health or behaviour issues as well. However, buying a dog can also be fraught with these same issues when the buyer does not do their homework, whether the dog is a pure breed or designer mutt. Some breeders are using dogs that just should not be breeding, be it for a designer breed, or an AKC registered breed. Just knowing the breed(s) of the puppies does not make for a guarantee of health, temperment, conformation, etc.
dturm wrote:
I often laugh at the breed people assign to puppies. It is very difficult to tell what mixes are included in a puppy under 3-4 months of age. So much easier to see when you monitor body changes as they mature, but it's still a best guess.
Doug, DVM
We have a rescue by us, they used to have most of their medium to large dogs listed as "shepherd mix", "lab mix" or "am staff mix". They have gotten better at identifying breeds now, but it still is often anybody's guess looking at a dog.
