Buying a puppy. Breeder applying pressure for payment.

[fandangored]

Breeder applying pressure for payment and asking for transfer or cash payment BEFORE viewing day with puppy at 4 weeks..?

Already paid a £200 pre reserve fee!!!

Should I continue or red flag and run?!

Apart from the bit where they call cross breeds "yuk" but then admit to buying a pug, which are extremely unhealthy, cruelly bred dogs you mean?

I adopted a dog after spending 6 weeks visiting with my daughter and partner to make sure all was okay with my daughter.
The adoption went ahead, less than 24 hours in the house and the dog bit my daughter on the face and she needed it to be glued in A&E.
We had an indoor camera (so we could watch the dog when we eventually returned to work after a settling in period) and caught the whole thing on camera. It was completely unprovoked.
We returned the dog to the dog home, we were all devastated.
The dog has now been rehomed to an adult-only home.

I wouldn’t so eagerly encourage anybody with young children to adopt a dog unless they’ve known that dog from a young pup 🙁

A breeder worth their salt would not be worried about whether you're going to the vet or not, that is a red flag to me. A pup will not pick up germs as they will clean the tables before the next dog comes in. To be safe, you can wait with them in the car and not in the reception area.

As for bank transfers - I have done them on the day with tradesmen who did work for me and they get them immediately, doesn't matter who they bank with. As long as your phone has good enough signal you can do transfers on the app anywhere, so don't worry about the cash on the day.

I am worried though why they're asking for payment when the pups are only 4 weeks old and its still another month before they'll be ready to leave their mother.

A cavapoo isn't anywhere near a pedigree dog. It's a mutt. Just a cute looking expensive one. However even 'pedigree' KC registered dogs can be bred by irresponsible breeders only in it for the money. It takes a lot of time, research and effort to find an ethical breeder with the welfare of the bitch, dog & pups at the centre of what they do.

In this case the back yard 'breeder' almost certainly hasn't attempted to 'breed out' the high risk health issues of both types of dog, especially the cavalier (heart murmurs, retina & eye problems, breathing difficulties). Nor will she have had them DNA and health checked for these risks and hasn't been taken out insurance to cover the birth - post adoption period.

OP I'm glad you are reconsidering and I hope you back out completely but you may have to accept you aren't getting your £200 back.

In support of buying from a breeder for families with children. Rescue dogs, unless very young puppies are unknown in terms of behaviours. We chose a breeder of a certain dog breed because after much research this breed was best suited for our family (exercise needs, robustness around children, health risks, temperament). If my DC had been older I would
have gone for rescue….if we were deemed suitable
by the strict adoption standards.

This type of thing is inevitable when you are buying a crossbreed . You have to say thank god I’ve only wasted £200 and find a good breeder of a pedigree dog that has had appropriate health tests on the parents . 5* licence means nothing except the council has given them a licence . Any even half decent breeder gives you 4 weeks free insurance .

Am I reading this correctly? If you do a bank transfer you will have paid £700 before even meeting the puppy? If that’s correct then it sounds like madness. Is that really how things are done these days?

Also with our cocker, we got 4 weeks’ insurance a microchip and first set of vaccinations. (And even a bag of food, which we didn’t use much anyway, I switched to Orijen, but I used a bit of the breeders’ food initially). This is standard for reputable breeders, but insurance - only for KC recognised breeds. For crosses, not sure as the insurance is not free to breeders in this case (crosses cannot be KC registered). I can ask my friend who got a cockapoo (at the peak of Covid times, when the demand was super high, so there were probably fewer incentives for breeders to offer free add-ons). Her dog is good and well too - despite being found on Pets4Homes :-) Seriously- where else can you find a puppy?

Mine is a cross and came with 4 weeks insurance. When I was looking for her, I think most litters I looked at had insurance... even the ones that didn't appear to have health tested parents.

This. Dog breeding can be a nightmare as the breeder, and at the end of the day it's up to her who she sells to.

Plus, the tone of the emails you have sent her isn't great. You're buying one of her puppies not a used car, and she needs to be confident you are the right owner for her dog.

Absolutely run, lots of scams getting deposits off you then disappearing, so then no dog no deposit.

Bloody hell was exactly my expression when I learned about puppy prices in 2020. It’s the law of supply and demand sadly. Prices are going a little bit down I feel, but prob not to 2014 levels.

Please look at Many tears rescue they have only dogs up for rehoming. This is where I got my cockapoo at 12 weeks. You might wait for a puppy. I wouldn’t touch this with a barge pole.

What can I say? I love pugs and wanted one as a companion! I learnt a very harsh but valuable lesson, which was that if I don't have my eyes on a copy of a health certificate then it likely doesn't exist. It also made me a much better breeder because I would never want anyone to go through the pain and heartbreak of losing a 13 month old puppy. I've been involved with dog showing since I was 10 years old and as I was buying from a top winning kennel I trusted the breeder....I am a big enough person to admit I was wrong. I now have a breed known for it's longevity and good health, great family pets as well as looking very special in the show ring. I didn't want to stick with the breed I had as a child and wanted to make a name for myself with my own dogs rather than ride my (successful) parents coat tails.

I'm allowed to despise "designer dogs" as much as people rip through pedigree ones. At least I know exactly what I'm getting with a breed!

I’ve breed and sold puppies before. Mine are KC registered. I ask for a non-refundable deposit. Most people have paid this before even seeing the puppy in person, their choice. I’ll send pictures and videos on request. I’ve only had one who couldn’t commit after paying their deposit, they had a change in circumstances, they knew it was non-refundable and were fine with it.

The remaining amount is paid on collection of their puppy, I never ask for more money before collections, it’s massively wrong to do so. On collection, I’ve had people bring cash, others pay by bank transfer, the money goes in instantly, as long as the money is in my account, there’s no issue.

I have a contract that people sign. I have been asked to show the paperwork before collection but would happily do so. I give 5 weeks insurance. All the pups have been vet checked and had their first vaccination. This is standard practice.

I wouldn’t pay anymore than a deposit before collecting. Paying in full or more than the deposit, before the pup is ready is not standard practice, I have never done it and haven’t seen any reputable breeder do so either. Deposits are usually non-refundable, so you probably won’t get that back.

Personally I wouldn’t go through with it. I don’t like her attitude. Being snappy and avoiding questions is just wrong. As a breeder, you should be vetting people’s suitability, but it also works both ways. Buyers have questions, which need to be answered too. Buyers should also see how you are with pups and parents, how you treat them, how they’ve been raised etc, a breeders attitude does matter in the end. All my buyers were very happy.

How old is tbis puppy when its leaving its mother? Is it being early weaned? Just asking due to the comment from breeder about you getting the ten week jabs done.

A health certificate is irrelevant in a brachycephalic breed though.

Rescues have pups too.
Sorry about your daughter. That’s horrible.

@fandangored OP, I'm a little confused by your post. Are you saying that you will be expecting to take your puppy home on the day you meet it for the first time and this is why you have to pay the balance on that day? It's perfectly reasonable for the breeder to expect you to pay in full on, or just before, the day of collection, but what I'm struggling with is your first viewing also seems to be your day of collection - really? Have I understood this correctly?
We met our puppy Westie for the first time at 2 weeks old when we paid a deposit for him. We went to see him again about 4 weeks later, and then paid the balance by bank transfer prior to collecting him about 3 weeks after that, so the breeder had her money in full before we collected him. She'd had his first jabs done, arranged six weeks insurance, and gave us his KC registration papers upon collection.
I don't think your breeder wanting to be paid in full just before or on the day of collection is a problem (no insurance is a red flag though). I think paying for and collecting your puppy on the day you view them for the first time is the problem.

She didn't die from being a brachephalic breed, she died of PDE which is totally different.

Also puppies should never go before 8 weeks old. A reputable breeder will make sure their puppies have been vet checked and had their first puppy vaccinated and microchip done before you collect your new puppy. If they breeder hasn’t sold the puppy by the time the second vaccine is due, they should get that done as well. I don5 know any breeder who will hold the puppies for both vaccines to be done. Usually the second one is up to you to organise. Make sure the puppy is have the two-part vaccine. First one at 8 weeks, then second a few weeks later.

And no I don’t want you taking your puppy to the vets within 72 hours

Bullshit.

This alone would have me pull out, never mind the money stuff - none of that matters when compared to this. Massive red flag.

Hi OP apologies I've not RTFT yet but wanted to quickly ask - your breeder isn't midlands are they? Some of what you say in your first post sounds v v familiar to our recent experience specifically the comments regarding vets?

Off to RTFT now

You are missing my point. Anybody that buys a brachycephalic breed is irresponsible imo and doesn't really have the right to turn their nose up at cross breeds, which generally aren't bred with a condition known to be life limiting and cause discomfort.

They don’t sound like a very friendly breeder to be honest. I have 4 dogs one is a rescue and 3 are from 2 different breeders. The breeders have become like old friends over the years. They love updates on the dogs. If an adopter cannot keep a pet for some reason their policy is to take the dog back and help to find them a new home. They put the dogs welfare first and limit the litters. I have never paid fully before taking the puppy home. I have left a deposit after the initial viewing. ( which is fully refundable if someone changes their mind.) I received weekly updates on the pups progress and paid the full amount upon collection. My little dog that was rescued also had offers of on-going support from the rescue organisation if there were any problems.