Have we been had ?

[ctunna]

We bought our labradoodle 2 months ago and adore her (Toffee). We do feel however, that we have been had by perhaps not a breeder but more of a puppy farm.

When we went to visit (nearly two hours from home but liked the sound of him) we said that we wanted a fleecy coat bitch. We paid £1200 for Toffee there and then as we were led to believe there was a lot of interest in her. She looks just like a labrador, has no fleece whatsoever and has molted terribly.

Think the molting may stop with age, but she is about as fleecy coated as I am. Have not seen any labradoodles for anything like £1200 either.

Furthermore we have asked the breeder 3 times for her breeding history which he has promised to send but never has.

Would not swop her for the world but beginning to think we have been had.

Anyone got any thoughts? Hope to breed once from her when she's old enough but would certainly not go back to the breeder we bought from.

When I work out how, I will post a picture of her - most intelligent dog I have ever met.

Claire [attachment=0:ubus2uy1]Toffee and October half-term 2008 028 small file size.JPG[/attachment:ubus2uy1][attachment=0:ubus2uy1]Toffee and October half-term 2008 028 small file size.JPG[/attachment:ubus2uy1]

[tuffystar]

Claire, I don't know if you have been had since I am not an expert or a breeder but it sounds like an expensive lesson. When we realized that the way we got Tia was probably not the best way I told my husband that because we love Tia it was worth the money and the lessons we learned. I can see though how concerned you are esp. since you wanted to breed her. Looking forward to pictures.

[ctunna]

Love the picture of your dog, has my picture uploaded?

[Jac]

HI, welcome to the forum!
The picture of your pup looks very cute...but please, please, do NOT consider breeding your girl unless you know her history and have her health tested. There is a good chance, considering your concerns, that she is a puppy mill pup and if so, she could come with a host of genetic problems...so before you consider breeding her (and you have plenty of time) please research about responsible breeding and what is involved. It is expensive, time consuming and your girl is much healthier if you have her spayed prior to her first heat.
If you intend to breed her, please do so for the right reasons...not to "calm" her down, or to "experience" the joy, or to keep one of her pups...those are not good reasons to breed...and every time you breed a dog, you risk losing her. It is not all sweetness and love...so please carefully check out the realities of breeding before you move forward.
I am happy to help you if you would like...feel free to PM me and I'll do what I can to advise you and to give you resources to check out.

[jumpinjacuzzijoe]

Im no expert but it seems to me labradoodles really change in appearance as they age especially regard to their coats...she is such a cute puppy...welcome to the forum

[ctunna]

What a friendly, helpful forum - thanks so much for the replies. The breeder has said he will now send breeding line (I told him I was asking forum members about his lack of paperwork). We will think very carefully before breeding - we could not cope with anything happening to her.
Thanks again.

[MerNor]

It seems like Jac has already said all the important stuff here.. but I had a quick comment to add. We got our Hagrid from Denmark and he was very expensive (more than is usual to pay in North America anyway). We paid 2000 Euro (2500 usd). The price comparison goes up and down with the US because of the changing value of the dollar. When we bought him it was around 3500 dollars. This is a lot of money, but often in Europe breeding costs are higher (the vet's more expensive, more strict reculgations etc), plus he came from great stock that was expensive for our breeder to obtain. I know for a fact that after two litters my breeder still hasn't recouperated the costs of the dog breeding certification she got, purchasing good quality breeding puppies, extensive medical testing, top quality vetrinary care, and superb care of her dogs in general. Don't let the price alone make you think you were "taken in" because there can be very good reasons for high prices.

Breeding history, the conditions the dogs are kept in (Hagrid was born in a home.. I met his mum and sister and had lunch with my breeder when I picked him up), medical records, testing for the dogs.. these are the things that you should be looking at and thinking about when trying to figure out whether you accidentally got her from a puppy mill.

I don't have anything to say about where you got your pup but she sure is cute!!

[jra181]

Dexter looked like a little black lab puppy when we got him. We knew he was an F1 though so were never expecting a fleece coat. He's 7 months now and has curly fluffy hair, and of course the standard doodle beard! so i'm sure the coat will change on your new puppy too! he still sheds though- a lot! he's almost perfect haha.

[DebBrown]

She is just adorable but I don't think she will develop a fleece coat. Most fleece doodles are pretty "fleecy" right from the beginning. I suspect her coat will fill in a bit more though.

Deb

[deepnite10]

if she s a F1..you ll have some adorable F1B pup s should you decide
to breed her..

i hate to use the term *purchased*..we adoped Toby online from a breeder
back east and had him flown out to the west coast..the total fees were so low IMO
that at time s i felt Toby was not what we were expecting..we had never visited the
breeder and only had seen picture s of the little dood.

we were reasured by the breeder with, picture s of his parents and grandparents
along with copies of their papers..and constant phone call s once he got checked in
at the airport..

and when we picked him up at SFO on that rainy, cold Jan night..we peeked thru the
shipping crate and saw the most adorable face..never again did he go back into the
crate..he slept on my wife s lap all the way home..a 3 hr drive from san francisco to
the central valley of calif.

[deepnite10]

i ll be right back..i want to give Toby a hug..