Time wasters

[ljs1612]

Hi, has anyone had any experience with selling on pets4homes?
We recently bred our dog (responsibly before I get jumped on) and are selling the pups on there but it is absolutely full of time wasters, people just messaging wanting a chat I think. I don't understand why you would message unless looking to buy lol

I hope you have your hard hat on OP - you are about to get well and truly flamed!

Hmmm lol Maybe I'll just delete the thread lol I forgot people aren't allowed to do normal things anymore 🥱

I think this is why people insist on a deposit. Most experienced breeders have a waiting list so don't have to advertise on mass listing sites, but as you don't you will just have to deal with it. Are you sure your listing has all the info, good photos etc? The more info you give the less questions people will have.

I would have thought you’d have a waiting list beforehand to ensure there are homes for the pups to go to.

I think it’s a weird site. Lots of dodgy buyers and sellers. I wouldn’t use it honestly.

I bought my first pup on a similar site , but didn't have a great experience, terrible breeder who only saw £ signs .
My next dog I found on kennel club website , totally different experience .
Having learnt much more over the years , I now know reputable breeders have waiting lists and I would definitely go down that route in future .
You run the risk of ending up with keeping all the pups if you can't find suitable homes ( as you should in my opinion ) , better that than they don't get 5* homes.

The trouble we found with The Kennel Club was that they were so slow to update their website and various people I rang told me their puppies had been sold a long time beforehand. Op if your puppies are a particular breed, maybe join a few Facebook groups and post photos “Not for Sale” but I’m sure you’ll get some messages from genuine people wanting them.

Responsibly how? Like, what specific things did you do to make your dog breed responsibly?
Quality breeders would have waiting lists for their dogs, so wouldn't need to use those sites.
Have you included what genetic testing the parents have had, all info on the litter, so people know as much as they need?

Are you a member of the breed club?

That’s probably one of the better ways of finding buyers. Are the puppies KC registered? Because you can show the genetic screening results on the dam and site KC pages (you say responsibly bred, so I assume the appropriate tests for the breed were done in advance) which is an easy way for buyers to check (and saves you faff)

How many potential homes did you have lined up before the mating? How many of those are still good to go, and how many puppies do you still need to find homes for?

I'd be gone at the first "lol."

Responsible breeders don’t sell on puppy farm enabling websites.

Responsible (and appropriate buyers) don’t buy off puppy farm enabling websites.

Not dogs but Maine Coon kittens. I had six to sell and required a deposit. This seemed to weed out the weirdos and I had a really positive experience. I've heard not so great things with dogs though!

We got our pup from a waiting list - KC registered, met mum and 2 siblings from first litter 3 years earlier with same father, met father. I personally knew the breeder.

She had 2 buyers of pups pull out so put them on pets4homes and found them lovely families. We have a FB group to keep in touch. Pets 4 homes isn’t evil. Puppy farms are. If you are on the platform for a while, you start spotting the signs.

I’m hoping to get a new puppy in 2025 to join our family. I’ve been looking at rescues but we have rabbits who snuggle with our current dog and want to train a new pup to work for our family. A friend of a friend is hoping to breed but if it doesn’t take, I’ll look on pets 4 homes.

Breeding near Christmas is a bit of a no no though imo.

Good job your not looking to buy a puppy then isn't it LOL

Kennel club breeders can only breed kennel club breeds though.

It's much more common nowadays for people to want crosses, e.g. the Cavapoos, Golden doodles, Maltipoos etc.

Indeed, cross breeds are often healthier and it's a great way of reducing breed related health issues (Frenchies, Pugs and German Shepherds, for example, could do with some major out-breeding in my opinion).

For many pedigrees, demand outstrips supply (hence long waiting lists).

So, simply telling everyone to go via the Kennel Club isn't good advice, as it's not always going to be an option.

Unfortunately puppy farmers do use sites like Pets4Homes, so buyers need to do their due diligence; grill the breeder, see mum with pups etc.

If a breeder isn't eager to share information and answer every Q, I'd walk away.

Pets 4 Homes is full of chancers and time wasters.

The thing is…the more you post the more you sound exactly like someone who would sell puppies on pets4homes.

Sigh. Your poor dog. Another clueless, irresponsible, owner pimping out their dog for a profit.

What breed are you selling ?

@Killingoffmyflowersonebyone thank you ☺️

Hybrid vigour requires a real Heinz 57 mix

A fluffypoo (just 2 or 3 breeds crossed) do not benefit from it, and each parent requires its own breed health testing.

We had similar time wasting earlier this year, didn't use that site or kc but the breed club as well as what had thought was a reputable site. Keep a list and update when parties move from asking questions to seeing and then putting deposits down.

@wetotter That's inaccurate. Breeding 2 very different breeds leads to hybrid vigour.

If you've got a snub nosed breed like a Pug and cross them with a long nosed breed and one without skin wrinkles, you're going to get a healthier cross.

Obviously, mum and dad should be in excellent health and with great temperaments. Any relevant health tests done, for sure.

I hate the narrative that pedigree puppies are best. That's business propaganda and, in the case of many breeds, has led to seriously questionable outcomes.

Both the mum and dad are our family pets and are very very healthy dogs had all their blood tests done and up to date on vet checks and vaccines. All of which I have paper work for.

All of the puppies are vaccinated, chipped, fleas wormed and vet checked.

No I am not running a puppy farm and no I don't just see £ signs as after all the money we have spent we won't actually make much. This is her first and will be her only litter.

Maybe I think they're time wasters as I'm being very picky as to who has a puppy. The pups are now 11 weeks old so I haven't let them go as soon as possible to get money.

But thank you for input

What sort of advert have you written @ljs1612? For serious buyers, details such as the genetic testing, pedigree, etc., are going to be important. Adverts which lead with the colours, 'rare' (normally code for non breed standard), etc., less so. Adverts that give a sense that the seller will be selective about who buys their puppies are better.

Lots of serious buyers will want proof of things like hip and elbow scores, eye testing and other genetic tests. They also won't be particularly interested in a breeder who still has puppies at 11 weeks.

I definitely haven't listed their colourings as rare in the adverts I have provided all od which you have mentioned. Maybe that's why it is a very long advert. People don't actually seem to read the advert anyway as they ask questions that are all answered in it.

She had a litter of 10 and due to TIMES WASTERS as it states in the title we have 3 left to go to forever homes at 11 weeks. So why wouldn't people be interested?

You do realise that just because some people are irresponsible about breeding it doesn't mean everyone is and because I have chosen to put an advert on pets 4 homes I am automatically "that person"