What do you say to wildly misguided people about to breed their dog?
I take my dog to training classes. There is another owner there with a little mini dachshund although he must be a mix since he is a patchwork of colors. Cute little dog.
At the class last night, she said [and I quote] ‘well, Brutus might become a daddy because my family wants to breed him to my cousin’s chihuahua and they’ll have those puppies that are that new breed, a chi-weenie.” This person is a nice lady but other than hellos and goodbyes and talking to each other’s dogs, haven’t had any conversations with her.
I can’t stand this kind of ignorance but at the same time, I didn’t want attack her or make her feel like an idiot. I can get very passionate about the whole breeding of designer dogs thing and I coudn’t think of a way to educate her without getting all defensive and irritated with her.
What do you do when people say things like this?
I go straight to their wallet.
I ask them about their lawyer and health tests.
I explain that the necessary health tests can be several thousand dollars and that sure, you can skip them, but more and more breeders are being sued over unhealthy puppies. Especially puppies with genetic issues.
I then tell them about breeders who are losing thousands of dollars in lawsuits, and being charged with misdemeanors in criminal courts. I tend to say it like this:
“Wow, but it’s so expensive! My friend bred his dog and spent several thousand dollars on all those letter tests – you know, OFA, CERF, and stuff like that. He did it because his friend didn’t, and he got sued by his family and friends when the puppies all had leg problems that ended up being genetic. He lost like $10,000 when he settled with them. He’s also lost his job because of the criminal charges they brought against him.”
With people like this, reasoning with them never works. No one wants to be told they are wrong, even if they are. The only thing I’ve ever seen that shuts them down is the thought of losing tons of money.
Timeless Wisdom in Funny Dog Quotes