Re: [PyrNet-L] Pyr puppy wanted

[MagEBroD <MagEBroD@aol.com>]

Joe Gentzel posed a number of very good questions about what "average" people
will do when faced with expenses for vaccinations, surgeries, neutering,
worming, fencing, etc. relating to caring for a pyr. He asked if the dog would
be abandoned or put down or whether they would get a 2nd job?
Good questions Joe!
    Not sure what they had to do with my post, but will attempt to answer. If
you are asking me because I paid less for Albert than many do, then you may
remember that I wrote that the owners of Albert's mother had the pups
neutered, vet-checked, first shots, wormed,  and gave new owners med. for 2nd
worming a week later. They also did temperament testing on pups. They placed
them in loving homes & stay in touch & offer support often. If there were ever
a problem that an owner couldn't handle & dog needed a home I know that 3 of
us have offered to take a littermate. From my own experience I have already
had about $300 of vet bills in past 2 or 3 mos. As of this week it's paid off.
We did face the possibility of higher bills if surgery was necessary & were
ready to pay whatever was necessary. He is a member of our family.  Just as I
needed surgery myself in January - if Albert needed it, he'd have had needed
care. He did not need surgery, after all. I have had to work with vets for
years: whenever bill was high we make arrangements for payment plan or charge
it. He knows I always pay, because I'm a responsible person. If he had needed
surgary & it was very expensive we would've cancelled our trips to Cal.  &
later one to East Coast. Had fewer dinners out, cheaper birthday presents,
fewer theatre tickets, and waited to get Albert's pack a few mos. Would've
gotten my Great Pyrenees books & dog obedience books & tape from library
instead of buying them. Used proceeds from our annual garage sale. If needed,
I could have temp'ed or worked more for me and volunteered less. Hubby
could've worked overtime. Son (22) who lives here would've helped, too.
Whatever it takes, we'd have done it! We love this pooch & would do everything
we can to see he gets best care. Of course if we'd paid hundreds or thousands
more for our dog in beginning, we'd have even less to spend on care & have to
pay longer on bill. We would give same quality care to a dog of ours that's a
part of our family, whether it was a stray mixed-breed we rescued or whether
it's a purebreed that we had spent big bucks on. Just like if you had a child
who was adopted you'd give them same care as one that was biologically yours -
as you love them & they are part of the family.
   Even people on public assistance have been able to have pets and get them
vaccinated at low cost clinics, get help with getting them neutered & keep
them healthy & happy and have their pets add to the quality of life for their
owners. there are even programs to help Srs. to be able to keep their pets &
get help feeding them.
   It's too bad we can't have temperament tests for future pet owners! There
are people who blame all their problems on someone else or situations like
being short on money: alcoholics, drug abusers, child abusers, spouse abusers,
animal abusers, people who neglect their families or pets, or mentally abuse
them, etc. In reality these people have mental problems or substance abuse
problems. Even if they had lots of money, they would still be troubled people
hurting others in their spheres. Look how many rich people still have problems
and hurt those that love them. Making someone pay more does not guarantee that
they are caring, loving, responsible individuals. There are "Trophy dogs" just
like there are "trophy wives".  My hope is that everyone who has a dog or pup
to place in a home, tries very hard to find caring individuals. Whether or not
they have lots of money. And that they pose these excellent questions Joe had
to would-be owners before  they sell them the dog. There are some excellent
breeders out there that claim that that is what they want the most & will even
give away a pet to the right home. We know there are all kinds, though. There
are also the ones that only see the big bucks, too: puppy mills. Most are a
business & do want to make a profit and that's just good business sense. And
hopefully they are mostly very responsible breeders. And hopefully involved in
rescue efforts, especially if the rescue came from them originally. I never
meant to imply that breeders are greedy & I NEVER SAID BREEDERS ARE GREEDY,
although that keeps being attributed to me. I think that many breeders are in
it for love of the breed! Have no way of knowing what statistics would be on
this.  The people I referred to that I got Albert from I said weren't in it
for the money & didn't want to make a profit. That doesn't mean I think
breeders are greedy. I was referring to the fact that he's a physician, not in
the business of breeding dogs & didn't care about making a profit from the one
litter of pups. Only wanted to find good homes & homes where they would be
able to keep in touch with the owners & see pups again.
  One last point about people who may not want to spend thousands of dollars
for a pyr: Maybe they want it strictly for working with livestock & this can
be dangerous work, depending on where you live. They may not want to spend
that much, as the dog could get injured on the job. Or maybe the dog may not
work out as a Livestock Guard Dog and there is no guarantees given that a dog
will be well suited to working your livestock. So dogs that were bred to
protect livestock are sometimes priced out of the reach of those that want to
use dog for purpose it was bred for.