Giving Your Dog Up

Everyone that purchases a puppy from Crooked Creek Cairn Terriers, intends to offer the puppy a forever home. However, sometimes uncontrollable circumstances arise, and it isn't possible to keep the dog for the remainder of it's life. What do you do? Always contact your breeder first. An ethical breeder requires that you contact them first, and never surrender your dog to a shelter, rescue, or an environment that is not appropriate or best for the dog's well-being. Your breeder may be able to give advice to correct a problem, refer you to a trainer if the issue can be resolved, or assist you in placing the dog in a new home. Breeders get inquiries from people who don't necessarily want a puppy. So they have the necessary connections to find an appropriate home. It is also necessary for an ethical breeder to stay in contact with their puppies for their lifetime, to track any hereditary issues that may arrise. Shelters and Rescues adopt out animals and don't allow you to know where they go. So by giving up a dog, you are cutting the connection of the puppy back to it's breeder. To an ethical breeder this is heartbreaking. It happened to me when my customer breeched my contract and sent my puppy to a rescue that refused to let me have the dog back. It's horrible to know I'll never know the outcome of the puppy that I cared for and loved for the first 8 weeks of his life. Never advertise your dog or "give it away". People will pose as a loving pet home and later sell the animal to a laboratory. You'll also come across those that can't afford to purchase a dog and look for a "free dog", because that's all they can afford. The problem is, the purchase price is not the total cost of a dog and when they are unable to afford food and medical bills for the animal, they in turn give it up to a shelter, or abuse the animal by not providing adequate and appropriate care. If all breeders and pet owners were ethical, and ensured that their animals had adequate homes for their lifetime, we wouldn't have the issues of pet overpopulation. Just last week 1000 animals were killed in a shelter due to outbreak of communicable disease, and lack of supplies to care for the animals. We can do something about it! Lets spread the word, educate, and support responsible pet ownership! We can do it one breeder at a time, and one pet owner at a time. If buyers only buy from reputable, ethical breeders, the puppy mill market and bad breeder market will drop off, eventually forcing them out of business. We can make a difference by educating ourselves, our friends, our neighbors and the news will spread. The pampered pet trend is in our favor! Let's allow our love for animals to spread like a virus, infecting all those that come into contact with us! Have a great day and hug your pet! :)