I phoned an ad in the paper for some cocker puppys for sale. The breeder sounded ok, told me they were kc reg. I thought he was someone who's pet dog had had pups. However when I turned up at his place there were kennels and different breeds of dogs.
The advert said, "3 black puppies" but he had two litters of cockers as well as two more about to give birth.
The mother was lovely. The pups are not ready to leave for two more weeks. After showing me the parents kc reg certificates i paid a deposit.
However, I felt uneasy on my way home. I searched google for the name of these kennels and couldn't believe it. They have had all sorts of complaints ranging from selling kc reg puppies but the owners not receiving the kc and finding out their pup is a cross. One puppy i read about had fits and has alsorts of medical problems. They were even in the sun newspaper when a bitch puppy was sold as a male  The kc papers also said it was a male.? The lady who bought her had requested a male and found out off the vet it was a girl.

Obviously my head is telling me to run a mile. But I can't stop thinking about this little pup I chose. The "breeder" sells about 8 different breeds, all live in kennels. Is this a puppyfarm?. I would give you the name of the kennels but I don't know if this is allowed.

Sounds like a puppy farm and you should run a mile or two.  If you want a cocker, give a call to the breed club and ask for any avalible current litters.  this way you will only get breeders who abide by the KC and clubs code of ethics.  You can ask to see this too so you know what the breeder should and shouldn't do. :)

Your head is telling you the right thing.  If you do buy the puppy it will just give him room to breed yet another litter and the whole process starts over again.  Why didn't you look up a breeder from here?  I can assure you if you did and went to visit them, you would find a much happier, healthier environment for both puppies and mums.  A totally different experience and hopefully a new friend with your breeder.  Why such programmes like Rogue Traders last week do not try and educate people on how to buy a puppy amazes me.  Be prepared to go onto a waiting list to get the right puppy - you rarely get what you want just when you want it, so be patient.
Please try and get your money back and look again for a puppy - it will be hard I know but in the end it will save you perhaps years of heartbreak and expense should the puppy become ill as soon as you get it home etc.

Your head is telling you right - this is indeed a puppy farm, and one with a publicly-known bad reputation. Did he show you any health certificates for the parents? Cockers need annual eye examinations if you want to be as certain as you can be that your chosen pup won't be blind by the age of 3 or 4.

Ask for your money back (although be prepared for him to refuse) and get a cocker puppy from a reputable breeder via the breed clubs.

It sounds like a Puppy Farm.  This will be hard for you, after seeing the pups, but please DO NOT buy from this place.

Go to the Cocker Spaniel Breed Club.  Please make sure that the parents have been health tested for PRA (blindness) & FN (kidney disease).

Good Luck.

go with your head and not your heart ...plz dont get this puppy you could end up having to pay alot out in vets bill's this is so sad and ppl like this should be stoped !!!
you will loose your money but in the long run this will be the best thing !!!!

can i ask how much did he ask for to hold pup for you ?

it makes me feel sick ...this happend to me along time ago and the pup had to be put to sleep because of all its health problems , now im not saying this will happen but it could !!
good luck xx

Definitely a puppy farm!!!
I wouldn't touch it with someone else's bargepole!!

Mick

Definately a puppy farm, and a sizable one too by the sounds of it.

Forget the deposit and walk away. As suggested ring the breed club and find out about about reliable breeders who have pups/pups due. Far better than paying this guy to keep on churning out pups.

Stay away. Don't give this man your money. I could never give money to anyone who was cruel to dogs and that's what he is. You may be thinking about the pup you saw, but think how much harder it will be if you take it home and them have to watch it die. If you buy this pup you will be the very reason that more pups will be bred by this horrid man. Go to the breed club and ask them to help you. Here is the link

http://www.thecockerspanielclub.co.uk/lookingforapuppy.htm

> Go to the Cocker Spaniel Breed Club.  Please make sure that the parents have been health tested for PRA (blindness) & FN (kidney disease).
>

The above are DNA tests, and you should see certificates from Optigen for the PRA and Antigene for the FN.  I believe they should also have clinical BVA/KC eye certificates, and if parents hip scored that would be a bonus (not many appear to do this).

Grace,

I have sent you a PM :-)

At least one of the parent's should be DNA Optigen and Antagene FN tested clear, this way at worst you will get a carrier but not affected, better still if BOTH parents have been tested clear.

I know it will be hard to do, but I would see if you can get your deposit back (probably won't if a puppy farm) try not to think about the pup, because the more people that buy the more they will breed poorly bred pups.

Please take the advise of the above post and look at the Cocker Spaniel club listing.

Good luck!

Walk away and go to the breed club .
It is only by people not buying these pups that these people will be stopped .

RUN, RUN, RUN ....... - even if you lose your deposit (which I would imagine that you will) you will lose a lot less in heartbreak than taking on the puppy.

For everybody who feels sorry and pays for puppies like this, you are allowing the kennel owners to continue to perpetuate the misery.

Oh - and I would also let the local Trading Standards authority know .....they may well have a file on them, and all information they receive can be ammunition in shooting down a set up such as this.

Margot

I have sent you a Pm.

Hello, and thankyou everyone for your advice. Im not going to buy the puppy. I've read the bbc inside out programme on these actual breeders (thanks Elvee). Its shocking! Its so sad that these dogs ahve to live their lives this way. I feel so sorry for them and for the puppies. Aww those poor puppies, I want to take them all away.xxx

Hi Grace!

What a horrible experience, I'm soo glad you have decided not to go ahead.

The people that run these awful establishments think themselves in a 'win-win' situation... Hoping they can either con potential buyers with promises of 'KC Papers' (that rarely materialise) and those they fail to con they rely on that persons 'guilt' and feelings of wanting to then 'rescue' the puppies.
     To think that you are 'rescuing' one of these dogs is actually (long term) absolutely not the case what you are in fact doing is fueling the 'Puppy farmer' and confirming to the puppy farmer that people will always take their dogs no matter what (Hence the 'Win-win' for the puppy farmer)..... and so they keep churning the poor pups out and treating the bitches in a most cruel manner, and the suffering continues :(

excellent decision grace, you'll find the pup for you from a good breeder :)

> Hoping they can either con potential buyers with promises of 'KC Papers' (that rarely materialise)

And often these so called KC papers turn out not to be Kennel Club registration papers when or if they arrive, they usually supply a "pedigree" which has as much in common with your pup as your pup would have with a bus! I have seen a "registration certificate" which the owner was told was a KC registration certificate, and it said they pup was a cocker spaniel, the pup was clearly a cross bred dachs, it also said it was a male pup, it was a female pup, the top line of the pedigree was clearly "lifted" from somewhere as one part was a well known pedigree labrador kennels, the bottom was from a staffordshire bull terrier! Mmmmm would you trust these people? I know my answer....

Another puppy farmed cocker has turned up at a local dog club, it was rehomed by the RSPCA, who said they had assessed it and it was safe with other dogs, other pets and people. It will bite people, and bitten the owners several times, the dog trainer a couple of times, it is not other pet safe and at club is determined to have a go at other dogs.