Re: A little moan... [quote author=lynnelogan link=topic=5341.msg67289#msg67289 date=1397079188] off topic mad mud, my nephew had his parrot flown out to south africa with him, ... took time for them to be together after quarantine, it just shows how much our pets mean to us [/quote] It's good news like that that makes it all worthwhile
Re: A little moan... The sad truth is that the sooner a breeder sells a puppy the sooner they realise their profit and the less work they have to do for it. Decent breeders look after them for twice as long. I find the unregulated trade in living creatures deplorable
Re: A little moan... Thinking about it the nearest we get to the too-young pup problem is the many many greedy breeders who snatch the chicks from the parents and hand rear them. This produces wonderfully tame youngsters that are just soooo easy to sell. Inevitably as the bird matures it develops problems like screeching or plucking as it is utterly confused by its emerging bird traits with no parental influence to have taught them in the vital early days. Its akin to and as cruel as removing a pup from its mother far too early - the same deprivation that will affect the rest of its life. The difference being too-early pups generally don't thrive whereas hand rearing birds boosts the natural survival rate
Re: A little moan... Hello All, I am originally from India , I would like to put a little perspective to this from the other end . Though now living in Australia I have realized how wrong I was earlier . Its usually normal to get a puppy home at 1 month in India , I blame this on ignorance . When my friend got out lab in India , He didn't even know how old he was, as he didn't know his exact date of birth . They were told he was 45 days old , which clearly he wasn't , and the worst part is they got him from a Vet , They Vet was kind of the broker between the breeder and us. Am sure he got a share of the price paid . They didn't see the mother , They don't have any documentation about the pup or the mom . They didn't even know if hes actually a Lab or a cross . There is so much demand for Labs in India nowadays that people cannot wait to get their hands on them . The breeders don't want to waste time and effort looking after the pups and sell them off as soon as they are walking around and their eyes are open , Its a sad state of affairs , Very few good breeders .This was 7 yrs about but looks like things haven't changed yet .There are regulations but its not enforced strongly enough , Animal groups are more concentrated on strays and animal cruelty not many really look at this problem . I have seen many such questions on the main-site and Pippa constantly telling them that its wrong , But all in vain . But its good cause of Facebook and other social medias people are becoming more aware and hopefully things get better . Pippa you are doing a great job by not encouraging these people. Cheers Vish
Re: A little moan... It's so sad. I think your answer is a good one, Pippa, even though it is natural to want to try to help the puppy survive. But you're right, to do so is tacit admission that it's okay to take a pup so early from it's mom. Which clearly it is not.
Re: A little moan... I once had a rescue pup who had not spent the full 8 weeks with her mum. I had behavioral problems with her and made a appointment with the trainer at my house. After watching Holly potter around our kitchen for a few minutes she asked me if Holly was a rescue dog! Holly NOT having been trained by her mum didn't know how to learn. I gave her love, affection and an awful lot of training and she turned out OK (not to frighten anyone with a rescue pup)
Re: A little moan... Thanks Vish, that is interesting and helpful And thanks everyone for your support. I hope I am doing the right thing.
Re: A little moan... I feel the same way and despair is an apt word. The world has a long way to go before it resolves the issues with both domestic and wild animals. I have a particular pet (excuse the pun!) hate with bear-bating and bullfighting. Roger
Re: A little moan... I don't know how you cope with these sorts of situations. My breeder was less than forthcoming about our pups real age (we didn't know until we got her home and the KC registration papers through) though on the surface looked fantastic - parents hip scored and health tested, both parents and some aunts and uncles there too etc etc. there was just no way to tell that the pup was younger than we were told. I consider myself quite experienced with dogs, having worked in rescue kennels for 7 years and seen nearly every time of behaviour possible, and I struggle to cope with the behavioural issues my dog has that have come from her coming away from her litter and parents too early. Makes me wonder how first time dog owners are coping.
Re: A little moan... Our Labradors are very lucky. I think you are definitely doing the right thing Pippa. The more correct information that a pup of 4 weeks is too young to leave its mother that is given the more chance people will learn and maybe attitutudes in these countries will change.
