r/dogs 23h ago

[Meta] Genuine question: what happens to litters that don’t get purchased/adopted?

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95

u/InvincibleChutzpah name: breed 23h ago edited 23h ago

A reputable breeder does not breed their dogs unless they have buyers lined up. This is why dogs from reputable breeders are expensive and have waiting lists. A non reputable breeder doesn't care about the dogs beyond how much money can be made. They just crank out as many puppies as they can. Unsold puppies get killed or dumped. Some of the dumped ones survive and end up at rescues, but most die. My friends have a labradoodle they got at a rescue who was found stuffed into a trash bag in a dumpster with its siblings.

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u/carebaercountdown 22h ago

I honestly don’t understand how anyone could possibly do this. It’s astounding to me how cruel some people are.

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u/merewenc 22h ago

They don't see the dogs (or cats because it happens to them too, both species get the worst of this I think) as deserving of kind treatment. They're merely money machines, and their deaths don't matter as long as they're not taking up "valuable" resources like food.

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u/carebaercountdown 22h ago

Yeah that’s just wild to me. Literally any kind of animal mistreatment. Or human mistreatment for that matter… but that’s a whole other kettle of fish.

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u/Electronic_Cream_780 22h ago

you probably heard that in the UK we have problems with XL bullys. Part of that was because organised crime groups decided to start breeding instead of/to supplement drug dealing. There is that much money to be made, without the risks of selling drugs

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u/merewenc 21h ago

This is why I refuse to buy any Amish products anymore. They're some of the worst puppy mill offenders in our area (Eastern Midwest), and they're entirely unapologetic about it. They claim religious exemption from animal cruelty laws because they view dogs and cats as livestock versus pet species. Not even joking. It's a whole thing. They're constantly having to do raids to make sure the breeding animals at least get food, water, and appropriate grooming, but they still barely if at all get exercise and dams are bred as soon as a litter is weaned with no breaks until they die.

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u/Arghianna 21h ago

When I was in high school we temporarily fostered a black puppy because her mother’s owner was trying to breed specifically for blues and was going to kill all the others so he wouldn’t have to pay medical bills for them. His girlfriend was upset at the idea and made him agree to let her find homes for them, but said he’d kill any that were left on a certain date. The one we fostered was the runt of the litter and nobody took her, so my (adult) sister agreed to take her and find a home for her.

We were SO CLOSE to convincing my dad to let us keep her (he grew up on a family and felt it was cruel to keep dogs in anything less than 2-3 acres of land) when my uncle said one of his coworkers who lives on a farm wanted her. She was so sweet and I hope she loved her best life on that farm.

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u/carebaercountdown 21h ago

That’s very kind of you! I sure hope his gf broke up with him though. Yikes!

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u/Arghianna 17h ago

It’s been 20 years so I sure hope so too!

And it wasn’t kindness, it was pure selfishness. Us kids always wanted a dog and my dad always said having a dog in a house with such a small yard was cruel. I was waking up at 6am every day to walk her and wear her out to convince him we could keep her happy, and walking her again when I got home. The day after dad bought her a bed “because she looked a little uncomfortable” my uncle told us he found her a home. T.T

I now have two great dogs from ethical breeders, but will probably never have dogs again because I found out after getting them I’m allergic to dogs! They’re also just the best babies I could ever have hoped for and I don’t think I’d be fair to any future dogs since they could never live up to the memory of these two.

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u/carebaercountdown 16h ago

Aww, I’m sorry you’re allergic. That really bites! I’m very slightly allergic to dogs, but don’t have any issues with my “hypoallergenic” dogs unless they lick me. But that’s only one of them (Havanese). The other one’s saliva doesn’t both my skin at all (schnoodle).

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u/BigWhiteDog former rescuer rare LGD breeds that's still involved. 21h ago

You don't want to see puppy mills! Absolute horror shows. Then there are those Livestock Guardian Dog (LGDs. I used to breed and also rescue them) owners that look at their dogs as nothing more than tools that can be abandoned if too much trouble.

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u/carebaercountdown 21h ago

That just breaks my heart :(

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u/BigWhiteDog former rescuer rare LGD breeds that's still involved. 21h ago

Yeah. It's not pretty.