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<TITLE>What does a reputable breeder do when....</TITLE>
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<P DIR=LTR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">We got a phone call from the owners of two of our puppies on Sunday. There were lots of tears but the bottom line was</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">…</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">.</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">“</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">we can</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">’</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">t handle the girls and we can</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">’</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">t keep them any longer</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">…</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> we want to bring them back.</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">”</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> </FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> </SPAN></P>
<P DIR=LTR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">We were more than a little surprised because these people had a basset before, although he was from a backyard breeder</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> and was sickly from the beginning. The</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">y</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> invested mucho money into the previous dog</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">with</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">visits to specialist, veterinary schools</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">, multiple surgeries</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> and are still paying off</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> the debt from his illnesses. This was a good home</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">…</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> brand new fence installed for the dogs, a special room designated for them to have during the daytime</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">…</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> but it wasn</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">’</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">t working. The puppies were home 10 hours a day by themselves, although the woman came home at lunch</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">time to let them out, but the puppies were bored and had begun being destructive, despite lots of toys and each other. </FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">But puppies do that sometimes</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">…</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> and they couldn</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">’</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">t handle it. The puppies were well cared for, receiving quality food, regular vet visits, and loved</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">…</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> but. </FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> </SPAN></P>
<P DIR=LTR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">We counseled them at length</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">…</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> we had seen them in Augus</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">t and no mention of these issues</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">…</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> talked to them monthly. They were sure. The puppies are now back with us.</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> </SPAN></P>
<P DIR=LTR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">Now</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">…</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> what to do? This is a bonded pair</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">…</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> a bit harder to place and they obviously need more people time and training in proper manners. </FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">We have a long</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">“</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">waiting list</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">”</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> for puppies, so we could start going through that. </FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">Should we resell them</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">…</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> NO! We would REHOME them</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">…</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> this isn</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">’</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">t about money but about what is best for the dogs. </FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">We could separate them and they would eventually adj</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">ust</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> since they are only 10 months old. </FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">So we searched our memory banks</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">(as unreliable as they sometimes are) and called some people who had expressed interest in our dogs, who are knowledgeable,</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">able to devote the needed time to training and disciplining and maybe might be able to take both of them. </FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri"> </FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">One person</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">who has had two of our dogs and currently has one of ours, but she</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">had JUST picked up two bassets from a local shelter and adopted them, so despite her HIGH desire to take these two she coul</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">dn</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">’</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">t. She was heartsick. So we called another</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri"> well-respected member of the basset and Drool community. Would she be interested??? </FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">YES</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">…</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">.</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">The puppies will be moving to their new homes on Saturday. </FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">And I will let her</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> <FONT FACE="Calibri">make the big announcement when she is ready. </FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"> </SPAN></P>
<P DIR=LTR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT FACE="Calibri">Sandi</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG="en-us"></SPAN></P>
<P DIR=LTR><SPAN LANG="en-us"></SPAN></P>
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