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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To think you don't get a pet without research?

22 replies

lastqueenofscotland · 20/12/2015 21:30

My next door neighbours a week ago saw a litter of border collie puppies advertised on fb... Went to see them the same day and just bought litter mates home. Having never owned a dog, no previous interest in ownig dogs, literally scrolling through fb on a quiet weekend and decided 2 farm bred collie puppies were a brilliant idea...

They, a week in are totally run riot by them, exhausted by all the poo/noise/just how tricky puppies are... They've come to us for advise (vv doggy family- have qualified crufts a few times etc)

I'm really struggling for sympathy seeing as they clearly did no research. They've not even looked up vets in the area to sort jabs. It's on the to do list.

They've got litter mates, a working breed, bought of a dodgy breeder from the internet... We've bred and we'd never sell litter mates to novice owners and never advertise on the internet and never let anyone take a puppy they'd day they viewed it.

Obviously we have offered to help as much as we can but Aibu to feel plenty of sympathy for the dogs but a lot less for the owners who couldnt be bothered to do the simplest of research???

OP posts:

hellhasnofurylikeahungrywoman · 20/12/2015 21:35

YANBU but sadly I am unsurprised at what has happened, I bet those poor pups find themselves in a shelter before Christmas is out.

I have a BC, her mum was a 'failed' farm dog, our girl is beautiful but bloody hard work as she is so damned clever.

Boutonneux · 20/12/2015 21:38

Absolutely ridiculous. This makes me so angry. When we were looking for our puppy (Dalmatian) we researched for months, looking into breeders and speaking to people who owned the breed. We visited the breeders twice and were pretty much "interviewed" (in a nice way!) before they decided we could have one of their precious puppies.

The puppy in question is now 4 and is the apple of my eye. I would be surprised if these 2 poor unfortunates last until the new year before they are re-homed/given to rescue as the owners "just can't cope".

Bet they'd have put more research into the next car/holiday/fridge; never mind the 2 living breathing animals they've just taken on.

raisin3cookies · 20/12/2015 21:38

I feel bad for the puppies. Unless the owners do a serious amount of scrambling and research, those dogs will be utterly unmanageable and end up in a shelter by next Christmas.

I have a friend who got a black lab pup and they never exercised him or trained him properly. Made me very annoyed.

We plan on getting a dog and 2 cats next year but will be doing plenty of reading about the breeds we want first. I used to run puppy training classes many years ago so don't remember everything but enough to know they are hard, hard work.

doitanyways · 20/12/2015 21:41

Well yes, I agree with you in theory. But I must admit, I got a dog not without doing no research at all, but I did walk into it a bit starry-eyed, thinking since dogs were everywhere I'd be fine.

I researched the breed but ended up with a weirdo puppy who wasn't typical of the 'quiet, gentle' breed. She was gentle but NOT quiet!

I'm pleased you're helping them

WhoTheFuckIsSimon · 20/12/2015 21:42

One of my friends did exactly the same, also with collies.

5 years on theyve calmed down, she's besotted, they're well looked after. It may work out.

Aeroflotgirl · 20/12/2015 21:44

Yanbu at all, stupid selfish people. Yes come the new year, they will be given to animal centres.

catfordbetty · 20/12/2015 21:44

Your neighbours are, frankly, stupid.

PacificDogwod · 20/12/2015 21:47

It's madness, but happens all the bloody time.

YANBU, of course.
And lovely to be willing to help.
I think I'd be tempted to suggest to them to take the puppies back and get a tamagochi.

EponasWildDaughter · 20/12/2015 21:48

YANBU

Even for small pets.

May i ask why the litter mate thing is a problem? Genuine Q?

TheoriginalLEM · 20/12/2015 21:50

Border collies and inexperienced owners = problems

TWO bordercollies and inexperienced owners = big problems

litter mates? :(

fucking idiots.

coffeeisnectar · 20/12/2015 21:55

Yanbu.

I knew a couple years ago who got a bc and they were both out at work all day. It all but destroyed their house culminating in them coming home to find it had managed to dig/chew a hole in the wall into next door. Poor dog.

We love dogs but even though I am always home I'm not fit enough to care for one so we have cats.

Original poster

lastqueenofscotland · 20/12/2015 21:56

Yes we've had bc in the past so my heart sank through the floor when I heard that was the breed they had gone for.

Having them was a lifestyle rather than having a pet.

OP posts:

EponasWildDaughter · 20/12/2015 21:58

OK, googled it. Makes sense.

Perniciousness · 20/12/2015 22:01

Can someone explain why littermates are a problem. I'm never going to own a dog but I'm cureous Thanks.

I love dogs but have decided being an 'auntie' to my friends dogs is much more my style.

theycallmemellojello · 20/12/2015 22:02

Hmm I think it depends if they put the effort into managing them tbh. If they dove in without a clue but end up working things out I don't see the problem. I don't think stress at the end of one week necessarily means they will be terrible owners.

PacificDogwod · 20/12/2015 22:04

Dogs are time/work consuming pets.

Puppies are worse.

BC can be worse.

BC puppies is like trouble to the power of 2.

Cross that with inexperienced owners…. the poor dogs are going to bear the brunt of any mistakes made, aren't they?

Duck90 · 20/12/2015 22:05

I agree with theycallme , it will be stressful, but hope they can ride the storm of 2 pups.

EponasWildDaughter · 20/12/2015 22:05

Perniciousness - i've just googled this and learned that (basically) there is a danger that litter mates will bond and play with each other to the exclusion of their new owners.

This makes training them and bonding with them harder for the owners. Just like two naughty little children together ignoring the grown ups :)

Nataleejah · 20/12/2015 22:12

Yanbu.
But i'm a hypocrite here. Our dog just happened. A family we know couldn't keep him any longer (bitter divorce) and it would be a shame for such a beautiful dog to end up in a shelter. He's an older dog.

LyndaNotLinda · 20/12/2015 22:13

I suspect people who buy a couple of puppies off the internet aren't likely to put in enough time and energy to managing them. After all, the research is the easy bit. Training them's the hard part

BernardsarenotalwaysSaints · 20/12/2015 22:17

Littermates are difficult even for an experienced owner never mind a novice. BCs need so much mental stimulation I really can't imagine having 2 & trying to train them.
Sadly people do this all the time. A quick look on pets4homes will show an awful amount of dogs 6 months + for sale. They've lost the puppy cuteness by that age and are heading towards adolescence. Beethoven was on the tv a few weeks ago a friend logged more 50 calls, texts and emails asking for Saint pups . Some as brief as 'ow much for a Beethoven'.

BertieBotts · 20/12/2015 22:20

Litter mates is more than twice the work because you can't just train them together, you have to train them each separately, toilet train separately, etc, and you can't hold off on socialising them because they're already together so you have to train them both alone and together all at once.

If you don't know all of that then you'll probably try to train them together which means that the training will be less effective and more stressful.

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