My girlfriend wants a dog and I am finding it highly amusing plodding around the pet stores and BCSPA trying to find one.

Now many moons ago back in England we have cruffs that champions pedigree breeds while doing all in its power to promote breeding cruelty

then you go into a pet store and see the cute and shabby little puppy and then read its description

I am a pomeranian, king charles chiwawa crossed with a yorkshire terrier.

Now I don't know in your book but in mine thats a bloody mongrel, its a mutt and a Heinz 57 it has no credibility as nothing else and the pet shop commits daylight bleeding robbery to charge $800 for it even if it is cute!
And then its equally daft listening to people explain to other people what breed(s) their dog is.
ITS A MONGREL THATS WHAT IT IS!!!!!

I mean there are even books on odd mongrels like the Cockopoodle ...............Oh please!!!

We also have some friends whos dog has had pups. They explain to me that there is a little of next doors dog in the puppies together with their other friends dog that was introduced.........How does that work in one litter of pups????
and exactly how can you cross a Yorkshire terrier with a husky?
its all a little bizarre to me!
I think compulsory biology classes are needed

YAY!!!!! at last someone who speaks sense! Unless a breed of dog is mated to the same breed of dog it IS a mongrel! (And trust me, I have NOTHING against mongrels, they are some on the best dogs out there both for health and longevity AND character). Thanks for making me smile first thing on a monday morning!!

Its only been in the last decade or so that mixbreeds have become exspensive, in good marketing by pet stores (reputable stores wont carry dogs or cats unless being adopted through SPCA or another rescue) have convinced much of the spur of the moment dog buyers (most pet store sales are this) that muts are worth several hundred dollars.

When I was a kid (late 80's and mid 90's) people used to give away these same kinds of dogs in parkings lots from their cars....

How times have changed. We got our daschund from a shelter when he was 7 months old, for 125 dollars going rate at a pet store 900 dollars.

If you are looking to get a dog please, please get a rescue dog from the pound - that way you get a wonderful companion and do some good in the process.

Oh course, the alternative is inbreeding, that's as good for dogs as it is for people.

Do not buy a dog from a pet store. If you are not willing to pay breeders' costs then, as someone else suggested, go for a rescue dog or one from an animal shelter.

pet stores = puppy mills.

Notice that at pet stores they describe dogs as "Labrador type," for example. That way they get to avoid those pesky registration fees etc. However, you're never sure if you dog has been bred to avoid any faults/illnesses inherent to it's breed.

An alternate to shelters and pounds is to search for breed specific rescue organizations.

Not all pet stores - Pet Smart partners with local rescue shelters and gives them space in the store to showcase pets who are in need of homes.

Yes, Pet Smart are really good, as is Petcetera, which is bankrupt but apparently re-opening. My son and his wife got two cats from there - they have Humane Society cats and kittens etc. for adoption.

DON'T buy from a Pet Store like Petland. They have overpriced, unregistrable "purebred" type dogs that may very well have come from puppy mills.

And as to mongrels??? Didn't you know that there are no mongrels any more -- they are all "designer" dogs. And the mutts that used to be given away - they now cost $350!!

I have one designer mongrel (!) - a Cockapoo - and one pet-store mongrel from Petland. One was a specific purchase - liked the breed, size and lack of molting - and the second a somewhat ill-thought-out-but-why-not purchase 'cos she needed a home and we wanted a friend for the first one

We did not pay a fortune for either.

Both are well cared for, gorgeous (of course) and both have good homes. That's what counts in the long run.

I'll echo what others have said - please don't buy from Petland apart from being horrendously overpriced, their health won't be guaranteed and they could well have come from a puppy mill - having said that Petland do adopt out rescue cats and dogs too.

Good luck on the search for a puppy, if it feels wrong then run a mile. You should be able to meet the rest of the litter mates as well as at least one of the parents and you should be able to make more than one visit. If the breeder (if your going for a pure bred) is good s/he will have you sign a contract stating that they will take back the dog if for whatever reason you no longer want it. You should be able to spend as much time with the puppies making your decision as you feel is necessary, even if you are buying a cross breed ask about the parents health issues.

Sorry, but you have me confused. Do you prefer the "mongrels" or those that have resulted from "breeding crueltly"?

Can I ask where you heard that? They seem pretty much in the final stages of closing down based on the stores I have been to recently. Haven't heard anything recently about them halting the closing of the company.

Well, I took my Golden to Petcetera and the groomer there did a fantastic job of my ancient dog. I missed an appointment with my groomer and I thought she might not be able to fit him in as she is super busy.

So I phoned Petcetera and asked if they knew where the groomer that used to work there had gone. The person who answered the phone said "Just a minute" and put me through to the groomer. I asked her if she was still grooming dogs and she said "Not at the moment, but we are re-opening at the end of August." She said something about someone else had bought them out.

They are having a big closing out sale, but I assume she knows because otherwise why would she be hanging around there and not getting another job??

I'm glad to see so many posts warning against buying from pet stores.

Just be aware that even those stores which give space to rescue dogs may also be selling puppy mill pups. I HATE the whole concept of puppy mills, and generally speaking I try to avoid hate on principle! Not only are the mothers subjected to near-constant pregnancy and permanent kennel life; the pups are very unlikely to have any socialization and are very likely to have been removed from the mother too soon. They certainly won't care about selective breeding to avoid genetic or behavioural problems....

Regardless of what the BBC showed in its pedigree dogs documentary, the problems they highlight are limited to certain breeds, and in the case of working breeds it is generally the show strain rather than the working strain that is more likely to have problems. Labs and Golden Retrievers are a good case in point - breeders of working dogs go for working ability, health and a good personality which makes for easier training. Breeds which are less popular are often less likely to be genetic minefields, thanks to less overbreeding and greater knowledge among the breeding fraternity of what everyone else is doing. My dog is a Flatcoated Retriever, and they are thankfully bred in small numbers - their long puppyhood (3 years!) led to them falling out of favour when labs and goldens started appearing in the UK, back when retrievers were bred only to work for a living. There is no split between working and show dogs, so none of the boxiness of show labs.

There really are only two sensible routes to getting a dog, and neither of them involve pet stores!

If you want a pedigree, go to a reputable breeder and expect to be grilled as your suitability as an owner. You might have to wait months or years to make the waiting list for a pup.

If you're happy with a crossbreed, go to a shelter.

Either way, invest in training and remember that dogs are NOT children!