my vent on designer dogs

[Reachoutrescue]

I actually just read this post. It sickens me how people can breed these wonderful pure bred dogs and create a mutt....yet call it a designer dog! We rescued a "Goldendoodle" about 2 yrs ago...nothing but health issues. She did find a great home, but she still has some small health issues, the vets says "due to improper breeding". DUH!! I was at an adoption event and an older man had a really cute puppy. I asked if he was just a plain old mutt, cuz that is what he looked like. He said, very firmly, "NO! he is a Labradoodle", I asked where he "adopted" him from. He said, "oh, I didn't adopt him, I bought him online and had him shipped to me"....Okay, hello???? What that man does not know is his sweet "Labradoodle" probably came from a back yard breeder, aka a PUPPY MILL!! He said he paid $1200 for him. Poor old man. I just said he was really cute and sweet and walked away. Later that day, I got an email about some "Labradoodles" being in a local kill pound....if that man would have just looked a little harder, he could have had the same MUTT for only $60 with vaccines and neutering. People just make me sick.

[Catlady711]

He said he paid $1200 for him. Later that day, I got an email about some "Labradoodles" being in a local kill pound....if that man would have just looked a little harder, he could have had the same MUTT for only $60 with vaccines and neutering.

Yes, but it's all in the advertising. Bill something up as 'rare' or do some fancy webpage with a bunch of bologna on it and wham you got yourself a money maker raking it in off of a bunch of uninformed buyers. Some people are easily swayed and if you use a bunch of big words and talk like you know what you are doing and throw in a few fake 'testimonials' it's $$$ city. Sad but true.

I think more people should reserch stuff before spending money, from pets to homes, to appliances etc. The problem is with the web allowing everyone to have any webpage saying whatever they want, the hard part is sorting out the sources of the information, which sadly many people do not do well. And some people breeding/selling these mutts are just as uniformed as their buyers are because they got suckered into thinking they had something special.

[Jessika]

I have a feeling I'm going to enjoy working at a clinic just to do that... hehe.. write down "poodle / cocker spaniel MIX" instead of "cockapoo". Because that is "technically correct" in "medical terms"... hehe.

[catfancier]

Bulldog / Shih-Tzu cross?

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Lol... if that ever happened, who would be proud to answer the question of 'What breed of dog is that?'

Doing a little further reading on the original website quoted, they make a relatively good point that 'Designer Dogs' differ from mutts in that their pedigrees can be traced. But that's about the only good reason I can see for a 'designer dog'.
My partner's parents bought a "spoodle" from (basically - though I will give her the benefit of the doubt) a BYB for an amount of money up to $1,500 (can't remember exactly what). She is now two years old, and goes absolutely mad over torch beams, laser lights and shadows, to a point where it becomes an obsession. She is as daft as a half-brained cockatiel (no offense cockie owners), has been through 2 rounds of puppy training yet is still as stubborn and disobedient as an untrained dog, and has even once bitten my partner's dad on the hand.
They absolutely adore her, and luckily they treat her with a firm hand. She has not bitten either of them since that one incident, but I don't fully trust her.
Her parents are a cavalier king charles spaniel/poodle cross and a purebred poodle.
Yeah, not the best example of a good family dog. Good on you for the vent!

[lute]

I have a feeling I'm going to enjoy working at a clinic just to do that... hehe.. write down "poodle / cocker spaniel MIX" instead of "cockapoo". Because that is "technically correct" in "medical terms"... hehe.

It's really kinda fun. When you get a new dog in the clinic and ask them their breed. Right in the middle of their rambling just say "Oh, it's a mix". They shut right up and automatically know you aren't interested in their high priced mutt.

When you get those PROUD designer dog owners they sit in the waiting area and go on and on...and on about just how great this dog is not they have "crossed" these breeds together. If we're not real busy I always put in my two sence. If someone has a Labradoodle and talks about how they don't shed I always mention the time the petstore I worked for got a litter of Labradoodles in. Those puppies shed worse than any puppy there. They had that nasty nappy hair everywhere. Or I just talk about what PUREBRED dogs have these same characteristics. They never have a response for this.

[catfancier]

When you get a new dog in the clinic and ask them their breed. Right in the middle of their rambling just say "Oh, it's a mix". They shut right up and automatically know you aren't interested in their high priced mutt.

You do need to be careful when you talk about the pet owner getting the impression you aren't interested in their high priced mutt - especially if you work in a clinic. Their high priced mutt and its health is exactly what you should be interested in!
Not trying to flame or berate you for your comment, just wanted to raise a concern. If I was a "joe public" pet owner and the nurse/tech/receptionist at the clinic made a disparaging comment to me about my choice of pet, I would probably take my business elsewhere.

[lute]

You do need to be careful when you talk about the pet owner getting the impression you aren't interested in their high priced mutt - especially if you work in a clinic. Their high priced mutt and its health is exactly what you should be interested in!
Not trying to flame or berate you for your comment, just wanted to raise a concern. If I was a "joe public" pet owner and the nurse/tech/receptionist at the clinic made a disparaging comment to me about my choice of pet, I would probably take my business elsewhere.

I don't say it rudely. I am interested in the health and well being of any dog breed or mix. I just hint that It's only a mutt. Nothing special.

[catfancier]

When you see the amount of animals as we do in clinics or working with pets the 'designer dogs' do collectively end up in a particular group.
Having said that, all pets are highly unique and special in their own individual ways. I always like to think that I treat all my client's pets as the unique individuals that they are.