People selling puppies on the side of the road

Today while I was out running errands I happen to stumble upon two different people selling puppies in two different locations. A man was on the side of the road selling pitbull puppies and a lady was at Walmart selling Chihuahua puppies.

I was really bothered by the situation. It was 80 degrees here, the sun was beating down and these poor puppies were panting like crazy while their owners sat with signs saying puppies for sale.

I was actually appalled that Walmart allowed this woman to sit in front of their store selling dogs. Out of curiosity, I parked and went up to the lady with the Chihuahua puppies and began talking to her. Asking her questions that anyone who is looking to purchase a dog should ask.

Question One – How much are these puppies? She took a deep breath and pointed at each dog and gave me a different price on each puppy.

Question Two – Are they all from the same litter? Yes, they are.

Question Three – Are they registered? Well, mom and dad is registered but I did not feel like dealing with the paperwork to register the puppies.

Those were just three of the 50 questions I asked this woman.

I find it very odd she wanted different prices for each puppy in the litter, when they all had the same genetics. Regardless of color, if one pup is worth $500, they all should be. Any good dog breeder would agree that the price of a dog should not be determined by it’s color, rather it’s pedigree. So, this woman was basically trying to see the more desirable colors for more money simply because she knew people would pay her more and never question it.

Her answer to me about the paperwork was just plain stupid. It takes 5 minutes to fill out a litter application. So, I do not know who she thought she was fooling there. If her dogs were truly registered dogs, she would have done it, because obviously dogs with paperwork are worth more. Also, no good dog breeder would ever breed dogs without papers. Papers are very important to be able to track down genetic info on a dog. This is vital information for the sake of the pups long term health.

So, not only was she a liar trying to make a quick few hundred dollars she was not even trying to even act like a professional.

The problem I have with people selling dogs like this are….

1. It seems very unethical to me to sit outside of a store or on the side of the road trying to sell puppies.

2. When people sell dogs like this, they care less about the homes the dogs go to. Responsible dog breeders care about the homes they place dogs in and only sell dogs to people they feel are responsible and able to care for a dog for the span of his life.

3. The puppies never have saw a vet generally. Pups need to have shots on schedule and need a health check before they are sold or given away. Dogs without proper vaccinations can die. So, these people could be selling sick dogs.

4. These type of people should not be breeding dogs. Dogs should not be bred for the hell of it. Dogs should only be bred for the purpose of bettering the breed or for show/working. Not for the main purpose of quick money.

I admit I was livid! I actually called our local humane society and police department about it. I was told that there was no law preventing them from selling dogs on the side of the road! Shocked! How can that be legal?  Really, if I was on the side of the road selling shoes they would try and get me for not having a business licenses or not paying taxes. So how can people sell dogs on the side of the road and it be legal?

What do you think about this? DO you think it is ethical to sell dogs on the side of the road?

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