Internet Dogs?

[Spun Silver]

Does anyone have any experience, good or bad, with buying dogs over the internet?

It seems like there will be a significant wait before a litter of the kind of puppies I'm looking for is available in my area. Meanwhile, there are puppies available now in other states and as far as I can tell some of the breeders seem reliable.

I'm concerned about the effect on a puppy of traveling alone for anywhere from 3-9 hours, but the puppies are crate-trained so the sellers say they manage it fine.

My brother is a vet and he is neither super-positive nor super-negative about internet dogs - he says to be careful, pick a dog, and call him if there are problems.

Any knowledge out there?

 

[redhotcoach]

At one point I too was looking for a breed not available in my area, and was given the name and website of a breeder by someone who had purchased a dog from that breeder.

However, while the pictures and history of the dogs and breeder were available on the website, the breeder required all its purchasers to pick up the puppies in person so that the new owners could be checked out before the dogs were released. Smart on their part -- to care about just who is purchasing their puppies!!

As it turned out, the breeder decided to keep the dog we were interested in and so we did not have to make the 8-10 hour journey!

 

[Spun Silver]

I hope you didn't end up dogless!

As of now, it's looking like either they'll put the pup on a 2-hr nonstop flight - which doesn't sound TOO bad, IMO - or I'll make an overnight trip to the Midwest. I really hope the short flight for the dog works out!

 

[Petlover]

A friend of mine in Florida bought a beautiful white german shepherd puppy from a breeder in Ohio, sight unseen. She did do her research, however, and checked with some other breeders for info on this particular breeder. The puppy, Blitzer, was crated and put on a plan, was a wonderful dog, and lived with my friend for 11 happy and healthy years. When Blitzer went over the rainbow bridge, my friend checked with pet rescue organizations, and ended up adopting a wonderful 5 year old white german shepherd. So, be careful, do your checkup up on the breeder homework, and enjoy your puppy!

 

[Spun Silver]

Great story - thank you very much!!

 

[NJSk8Fan]

Spun Silver, just a suggestion...Have you tried signing up to a discussion forum for owners of the breed you are interested in? They might be able to help point you to a good, or away from a bad, breeder.
I belong to a JRT forum and there are some very knowledgable folk there. They also arrange transports for rescues and other good things.
Just be really careful that you don't end up with an unhealthy pup from a puppy miller.
Good luck on your endeavor!

 

[Grgranny]

I would suggest not getting one from Kansas. They have those puppy mills here and some have been shut down. I know there are probably good ones here but I sure would not want to take a chance.

 

[Wolfgang]

I would like to warn everyone about bringing any animal to New Mexico - to live, that is.
This is a state where meth labs are rampant, child predator laws are possibly the laxest in North America, and cock fighting is, if not still legal, still very much in force (it is part of the culture of La Raza.....), but if you own a rabbit or a dog over 35 pounds, or more than two cats (under 13 pounds each), you will be treated like a criminal and pretty much refused at any and every apartment complex, mobile home park, many home owner's associations, neighborhood associations, etc.
Owners of 'exotics' -which in NM means anything other than a cat or a dog - will have a hell of a time finding a vet who knows anything about them, and if they do, they will pay through the nose twice over, up and around and backwards for their services.
What you are supposed to do here is to get a 'guard' dog (meaning one of the so-called 'aggressive' breeds, throw him in the yard and pretty much ignore him.He is supposed to act as a disposable alarm system to deter the casual marauding hordes of thieves.If something happens to the dog - or you're about to get a ticket from animal services for abuse - you just get another one and start the cycle over.
Pet lovers, steer WAY clear of this place!

 

[Spun Silver]

Thanks for the comments. I did locate an online dog owners group, thanks for that notion, Patch. I didn't get much help on this one but maybe they'll be a good resource for other issues. Grgranny, I didn't see any Kansas pups but I did avoid Texas dogs out of the same concerns - they looked too much like mills to me. Wolfgang, sorry to hear that about your beautiful state, one of my favorite places in the USA.

Through sheer chance, my bf found that a colleague of his knows and recommends this breeder; same colleague also got her beautiful dog over the internet. That is cheering news. Anyway: the dog is coming via 2-hr nonstop flight. Prayers appreciated. I'll post an update.