I was stood at a show this weekend, minding my own business (well actually i spose I wasnt 'cos I was earwigging!!) but any way.....i watched this couple with two toddlers come in wth a rottie pup, which, to be polite, was clearly a pet rottie...it was about 5 months old, tailed & not particularly quality. I didnt take much notice til I saw them approach a tibetan mastiff woman & talk about their suitability to own one......she was incredibly straight talking & pretty much said what I would have said (albeit she was far more patient & tactful than i would have been!!)  Anyway about an hour later, same family, minus rottie, now walking around with the tiniest wee puppy you have ever seen. i was intrigued so went for closer look, it was I would say, a papillon x maybe with JRT, and it looked about 8-10 weeks old  The show manager intervened, but he was told it was an 18 month old chihuahua they had just bought!!!!   Another hour or so went by & then another TN owner arrived, one with whom they had obviously spoken about a pup & the last i saw of them she was talking all about the litter......it was a most peculiar thing, felt most uneasy about this family with their 2 pups, toddlers & now another massive dog on its way....maybe i should mind my own business:rolleyes: but sometimes you wonder what on earth people are doing dont you!

Maybe they just needed educating? how many of us have bought a pet quality dog? then with an interest in the breed gone to a show and realised how 'pet' quality they are!!

Not sure how the two toddlers make any difference in your view and find that comment quite condescending to be honest. First impressions arent everything and seeing as you admit you were earwigging i can't see you getting the full background with enough information to comment!

We were recently seen talking to a breeder with a terrier breed when we own a working breed and my husband overheard a comment saying they wouldnt allow us to have a terrier not with a disabled child in a wheelchair!!!
Now this child has grown up with great danes haha (the people didnt know this) but it made me sick to the stomach that they judged on sight alone!

That is truely appalling :(

What difference does it make what breed (or mix ) you have if your child uses a wheelchair??  :rolleyes:
I would have thought one of the smaller terriers would be ideal for any child ;) as they are so perky and playful, yet small enough to curl up in a lap :)  I see plenty of really young handlers with smaller terriers and they seem made for each other :D :D

I don't think the problem was so much that the rottie was of pet quality, but the fact that they had two young dogs, one of which is quite a strong minded breed as well as children and possibly getting an even bigger, stronger breed. Its a lot for your average person to manage.
Obviously there may be other things going on that we don't know about, but imo that is quite a lot to deal with.

We werent even after a terrier :rolleyes: it was our girls breeder and we were just swapping pleasantries!
But thats earwiggers for you :rolleyes: they presmume anything and it isnt usually true

well my first 'show dog' was probably the worst example of the breed I have ever seen - does it matter if people with 'pet' quality come to a show. They are clearly interested, they might be looking for their ideal breed and who knows in 10 years time may have made a mark - who can say. Nothing wrong with owning poor specimens, after all we all breed non show pups and need to sell them to someone.
My first one, as I said was v bad, hardly ever got a prize, but got me interested and I improved, and have ended up with a v respectavle number of champions.

does it matter if people with 'pet' quality come to a show.

For the breeder it most certainly does matter.

ok, but lets look at the POSITIVES. they were at a show,looking at breeds & finding out about them & talking to breeders. this is GOOD. :)

hopefully they were told that it would be a good idea to wait for abit

When people email, phone or write to me about puppies, and say that they don't know a lot about the dogs, I ALWAYS suggest that they go to shows, talk to the people who are showing the breed that they are interested in, and, as I haven't had any puppies - lab or aussie - for more than 3 years, talk to people there about availability of puppies (generally labs).

I would be mortified on behalf of all these people who are seeking more information if lots of people show the attitude discussed here :(

Margot

Hmm, I can see some folk are not quite getting what I meant  (except lucyandmeg) my point was that with a toy puppy, a large breed puppy , 2 todlers & clearly no real dog knowledge, then a Tib mastiff probably wasnt quite the right choice at this time!

Absolutely understood what you were saying and agreed wholeheartedly with the sentiment too.  Two young dogs is quite enough for most people, nevermind bringing in a third, few people have got the time to invest properly in 3 young dogs all going through their formative stages plus toddlers as well.  Somethings got to give and sometimes it's the dog that needs the most time and effort spent on his/her training. 

Certainly didn't see anything patronising/condescending in the original post - took the mention of "pet pup" as being a pointer that the family were a "pet family" and not a "show family" ie their original desire was foremost for a companion - and there's nothing wrong with that.  Concern is only natural that they might be getting over enthusiastic as new dog owners and leaving the realms of reality.  I also might feel apprehension seeing a breeder then talking availability of a future pup, it would certainly raise questions as to their homing policy.

I think that Sam's point was that a family with two totally different breeds, who had taken an underage dog into a show were looking as though they were going to get another breed where let's face it although they are a lovely breed they definitely have to go in the right hands!!

I have a friend with a TM and a lovely boy he is but he's not for the fainthearted!!

I would be a bit worried too.  But hey, I worry about most things :d

sure,but if they didnt know much,they wouldnt know the pup was underage?

i hope they DONT get a TM. i have met a few & love them, but again not for novices. however id imagine there was a long wait for a pup,plenty of time for them to research the breed  learn & prepare,& for their pups to mature! or be dissauded that maybe the breed isnt for them!

there are times when i'm kind of glad that me and my decidedly inferior dog simply skulk around the countryside! at least i know i'm never going to make a starring appearance as "buffoon of the dog show week" on here. ;)

take your point about the wisdom of adding a TM to an already "interesting" household of dogs though.

at least i know i'm never going to make a starring appearance as "buffoon of the dog show week" on here.

Hey, I've often been the buffoon of the dog show week but never once has it distracted me from the pleasure of the dog at my side - in or out of the ring!  They can't all be show champions but they're yours, you love them and the champion of his own fireside.

I think the problem here was that they obviously already had two young pups, and were planning on getting a third.

With young children in the home too, no breeder would be confident that their precious pup would get sufficient time and training, and that there would not be problems later when the dogs matured and possibley fell out, or the owners could no longer cope, as they had too much on their plate.

The ones to pay the price woudl be the dogs, as you can't send the kids back :D

although i do recall wishing it could be the other way round at times. ;)