Re: [PyrNet-L] Re: [Pyr-Net]:breeding question/showing

["Thomas Sheehan" <tsheehan03@snet.net>]

Kelly,

You are wasting your time.It is impossible to talk to these people. Only
they, " In their Infinite And Superior Wisdom" have the right to a free
will. The rest of us lowly mortals must bow our heads and accept their
edicts. Even though The Marine Corps outlawed mass punishment over thirty
years ago, it is still alive and well; at least in the minds of these
intellectually superior beings.

Good Night,

Terry


----- Original Message -----
From: <Kshoffman@aol.com>
To: <pyrnet-l@pyrnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, March 11, 2000 9:46 PM
Subject: Re: [PyrNet-L] Re: [Pyr-Net]:breeding question/showing


> In a message dated 03/11/2000 8:33:29 PM Eastern Standard Time,
> kdbooth@mindspring.com writes:
>
> > What if everyone thought this way?  Rescuing or not rescuing abandoned
> >  animals won't change the ways of irresponsible owners or breeders.
>
> First off, I want to make it perfectly clear that I paid my dues by
working
> INTENSIVELY in rescue for about 3 years -- fielding phone calls, driving
all
> over a three state area, keeping in contact with various shelters and HS
> organizations, bailing dogs out of shelters and dogs tied up to trees or
dog
> houses in individuals backyards bearing their teeth at me, evaluating
dogs,
> vetting dogs, counseling owners who were having problems with dogs in an
> attempt to prevent yet another rescue, fostering dogs, training dogs,
> grooming dogs, and so on --- to the tune of thousands of dollars donated
out
> of my pocket and thousands of hours of my time donated as well.  I got bit
a
> few times. I shed an awful lot of tears. I witnessed Great Pyrenees
> displaying dangerous out of control aggression that should NEVER be seen
in
> this breed and sometimes even in puppies of only 6 months of age. I lived
ate
> and breathed rescue during this time. Rescue of Great Pyrs was intricately
> woven into my day to day life.
>
> So I know exactly how the system works and what types of people discard
dogs,
> and what types of breeders more or less don't give a hoot about what
happens
> to the puppies they produce once they shove that money from the sale of
pups
> into their pockets and send the ignorant new owners on their merry way.  I
am
> intimately familiar with all the various reasons why these people do the
> things they do, these irresponsible or uncommitted dog breeders and dog
> owners. In my area, we knew precisely where most of the rescued dogs were
> coming from.  We'd just keep bailing them out, they'd just keep churning
them
> out.  Didn't change a thing, and I came to realize my time and effort and
> money could be much better spent in ways that might make *more* of a
> difference to the betterment and long-term welfare of the breed, like
> educating the public on the nuances of these special dogs, like providing
an
> affordable quality option to potentially suitable pet owners, including
> providing a lifelong umbilical cord as far as following up on puppies to
> ensure a successful placement for life.
>
> I'm afraid Terry is right in that many potentially good pet owners get
> "turned off" by the prices charged and the attitudes of a number of
> club-affiliated "show" breeders, and so naturally if these folks get
turned
> off enough, they will go looking elsewhere and eventually hook up with
these
> less than reputable breeders types who provide zilch screening, no breed
> education, and not a lick of ongoing support and follow-up, all of which
> often equates to failed placements -- then we have yet another dog in need
of
> "rescue".
>
> During my time working rescue, I got so sick and tired of having to put
> maladjusted, improperly raised, and/or poorly bred and wholly unplaceable
> dogs down that I just could not take it anymore.  Especially so being a
> breeder of some really nice, lovely, healthy, mentally and physically
sound
> dogs who have just the most wonderful characters and dispositions and are
the
> cherished and prized companions and members of some really wonderful
families
> -- as couch potatoes, as working dogs, as show dogs, as therapy dogs.
Rescue
> just stopped making sense to me when I took a long hard look at what I was
> doing in trying to save all these rescue dogs, and then looking at the
> differences between them and my own dogs I was producing.  It was like
"What
> is wrong with this picture?"  I had to begin to question why on earth I
> should recommend that anyone should get a rescue dog over a
conscientiously
> bred dog from a dedicated and responsible breeder.
>
> You're exactly right.  The way the system works now, it doesn't change a
> darned thing with regard to how people view commitment to animals and how
> they treat them. Perhaps if irresponsible breeders and owners had to be
held
> accountable for their actions, had to suffer some consequences for their
> mistakes and/or lack of commitment, it would.  Perhaps if these types of
> breeders and owners didn't have the option to turn their no longer wanted
or
> inconvenient animals over to shelters and rescue organizations in the
first
> place, but instead had to bear the burden of either: a) going to the time,
> trouble, and expense of rehoming the dog themselves; or b) taking the dog
to
> their vet and having it euthanized if they can't find a good suitable home
> for it, then they will think a bit harder and longer about getting a dog
or
> breeding a litter the next time around.
>
> The type of people that dump their so-called pets (or unwanted puppies out
of
> a not so well planned litter) on shelters and rescue organizations (for
> whatever reason) in my experience find euthanasia a horrible and
distasteful
> fate for their dog, which they should, because it IS a horrible and
> distasteful thing. As far as I can see, this is generally the whole reason
> such owners or breeders discard these animals, shove the responsibility
off
> on others, instead of assuming what *should be* THEIR final responsibility
to
> a dog they no longer want -- they can't even stomach the thought of
> euthanizing the dog -- out of sight, out of mind seems to prevail.
Perhaps
> they need to experience that horror.  Perhaps it needs to hit a little
closer
> to home for them to realize they should never have acquired a dog or bred
a
> litter in the first place.  Perhaps they need to suffer the consequences
of
> their actions or misdeeds to learn a lesson.
>
> As awful as the thought of a dog being put to death (because its owners or
> breeders failed it) is, the fact remains it is not an illegal or even
> necessarily an immoral thing. Dogs as a species are not on par with humans
in
> my mind, and they don't necessarily deserve the same considerations and
> treatments across the board as such.  As much as I love the companionship
of
> dogs, and as huge a portion of my life that is devoted to dogs and what
they
> stand for, I am still able to recognize that dogs are not people.  This
does
> not make me a cruel or insensitive person.  I admittedly would prefer the
> companionship of dogs to any number of humans I've met in life, but still,
> that does not elevate the dog to the same status of rights and privileges
> that human beings are presumably entitled to in our society.
>
> Kelley
>
>
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