Animal Rights & Pet Debates

To make a short story long.... (ok, I hope not)

I'm taking care of a neighbor's pets and horse while he's gone to Pennsylvania with his girlfriend for a Breast Cancer walk.  She had a double masectomy earlier this year.  I'd do anything for them.

No one mentioned a female lab dog there.  Figured it was an oversight.  I felt lucky to have found it under a shed by her crying.  On a 6 or 7 foot heavy duty chain.  Plenty of water and food when I went over, so I thought she just wasn't eating much (the water is in a trough, she could drink that for a month of two)... and then today I run into the son, a meth head, who asks me to take the dog.  That she was his, registered lab bred by a Ducks Unlimited dog.  (I think I've heard of that, but not sure just what that means).

He wants me to take the dog as he no longer has time for her.  Said I could make $2500 off it by selling puppies.  That's not why I would do it, but it sure would help towards the costs of these animals I take in.  I would take her simply to get her off that damn chain, hidden away from all human contact except when food is put out.

I just don't know what to do.

I've only sold a couple of dogs before.  They were strays and I charged $5 at the flea market.  I would question these people until I was as sure as I could be, that it would be going to a good home.

I don't want to sell dogs, but I can't keep the puppies.

I have a feeling my friend doesn't even know the dog is there.

What do you think?  Are lab puppies easy to sell?  I guess they'd be pretty easy to give away.  I almost feel like a backyard breeder even thinking about considering this.  I don't know how to register the puppies, but I guess I could figure that out.  I sure don't want people coming out here cause I've had problems with strangers I have invited before for animal reasons.

Anyway, guess this is long, lol!

Any advice would be welcome.

zz

There's no way you could earn that much off those pups after the costs of raising them to an age that they'd be sellable. Labs are common dogs for back yard breeders. They're considered the all american dog and great family pets. Go pick up a copy of your local newspaper (or one for the nearest town) and you're likely to see someone selling them for as little as $75 a pop.

It doesn't matter where that dog comes from. They're not gonna sell worth a damn. The only papers that matter in the US are AKC registration. Anything else is a bullsh*t registry. I'm not sure what all is involved in registering a litter but I do know that you need information/paperwork from both parents. Just knowing who the mother dog is does you no good. Even with papers you'd be lucky to get much for those pups.. Certainly not enough to make it worth caring for them for 8 weeks.

Do you know the dog is pregnant for sure? If so, is there any chance she's in the beginning of the pregnancy? Can you get her in to be spayed in the next few days? I'd take her just to get her off that chain too.. But you're not gonna make money off pups.

If you do bring her home, get her in and have her spayed. If she is pregnant it amounts to a doggy abortion but it's better than the possibility of being stuck with a litter of pups because nobody wants them.

Turdle

I'm with Turdle in that unless you have the actual registration papers on this dogs the puppies aren't worth much.  Ducks Unlimited doesn't actually breed dogs but they do have breeders that are members that breed dogs but so what?  Doesn't mean their dogs are any better than a lab whose owner isn't a Ducks Unlimited member as if they're all AKC registered that's what most are looking for.  Dealing with the AKC can be another nightmare as well.  I'm not quite sure if you're saying he's already bred her to a sire from a Ducks Unlimited member or that she was bred/purchased from a Ducks Unlimited member.  Either way it's not worth that much in the grand scheme of things.

Breeding dogs is a lot of work if you do it right and if you don't then your just another backyard breeder that has no business bringing more dogs into the world when so many are killed each year anyway.  A good breeder doesn't breed for the money, they breed to further the breed.  After the costs for the care involved they don't make that much money anyway.

JMO, Lynn

 

Thank you both for answering my questions.

I didn't know what a Duck Unlimited dog meant, for one.

I don't know if I can handle another dog, spaying fees right now, and I definitely don't want puppies. 

She's a handful.  She's bigger than my female lab, and she jumps all over me when I feed her.  (I didn't know the son was feeding her, also)  She's big enough that she almost knocks me down.  I can't make her stay down.

When I mentioned spaying to him today, you would have thought I said aliens had just landed.  He's known for getting dogs, and then handing them off onto his father, or wherever he can get rid of them.  I don't understand why he keeps doing this.  And with his drug habit, and lack of a job, I'm curious where he got the money for the dog, or to breed her.

I'm going to think about this for a day or two more.  Told him I'd call by Monday evening.

Thanks again.

zz

The only thing I could glean from her being a 'ducks unlimited' dog is that she's from pure hunting stock.. Hunting labs are a bit different from the average lab you see in town. They've got a LOT more energy and a LOT more drive. They need to to actively hunt. From the listings on the Ducks Unlimited page it looks like those dogs can be everything from good hunting stock that's already been started on hunting to back yard breeders churning out two or three breeds of pups with a puppy always ready to be sold.

If you don't think you can afford the spay cost or handle her, then don't do it. The last thing you need right now is to end up with a stray coming along and knocking her up and you getting stuck with 8 or 9 pups. A lot of my breeder aquaintances aren't breeding at all currently because cute little puppies just don't sell right now.. And many of these are the small breeds that are so popular in recent years.

Turdle