I purchased my dog from Petland. As I've said before, he is now 7-months and happy, healthy, and super smart.

I wouldn't normally adopt from Petland because I know they are "questionable" at best. But I'm a sucker. We were shopping next door and saw a cute little dalmatian in the window. I hate the store, but I couldn't help but go see the little guy. He was sooooo adorable. They wanted $850 for him, and I felt bad for the little guy. But I refused to buy a dog from Petland.

So anyway, a couple of weeks later we are next door again and I think of the dal, and peek in the window... and there he sits marked down to $100. What? I was pretty surprised. I asked why the sudden drop, and they told me he was deaf. This time I played with him and fell in LOVE!

I looked into deaf dogs, and found mixed reactions as to whether or not they can be good pets. I also found that many times they are put to sleep because homes can't be found. I read up on pet stores, and discovered that puppies that aren't sold quickly enough are returned to the puppy mills and backyard breeders. In my heart, I knew this puppy did not stand a chance. He was going to be put to sleep if he didn't find a good home, and if someone else adopted him without properly training him and working with his disabilities, he'd likely end up in a shelter or something. Even local dalmatian rescues do not adopt out deaf dals, so he didn't stand much of a chance of finding a good home.

As much as I hated to give Petland my support, I adopted him feeling certain that I was giving him a good life. For the $100, we got his first set of shots and microchip implant. We immediately took him to our regular vet to be checked out, and he was very healthy and happy. In the last 3 months we have taught him SO MANY hand commands, and he is THRIVING despite his disability. He is the perfect dog, and shows no signs of a bad temperament resulting from deafness. We couldn't be happier with him, and he was a much needed playmate for our older dal.

I guess my question is... was supporting Petland with that $100 the wrong choice in the grand scheme of things because it helps enable them to continue? Or was it ok to save my puppy's life? I just want opinions, it won't make a difference because what is done is done.