Are there any BYB happy endings?

[tesster]

Just as others have said, there's no guarantee that your puppy is doomed because of her breeding. But, there's no guarantee that she's not afflicted with preventable genetic diseases either. There's no guarantee that she's going to have the typical traits we expect from boxers. There's no guarantee that she's going to grow up to look like a typical boxer should look. These are all the qualities that you should expect from a reputibly bred dog. But, just because a dog was bred with out testing of the parents, and bred by people who don't know what they are doing, doesn't mean that they don't ever get lucky and produce fine, healthy dogs.

The thing to remember is that while an individual BYB dog might not have any problems, the individuals aren't the only ones that suffer from the problems of irreputible breeding. It's the breed and those who love the breed.

Some of us have to deal with severe problems in individuals due to bad breeding, but the rest of us pay the price, as well. In several years when we can't find a boxer that looks or acts like a boxer and doesn't suffer from serious diseases, we all lose. The boxer loses.

The more people who get this, the better off all breeds of dog will be. That's why we're so vocal about it. Not because you need to spend all day and night worrying about the health of your dog.

 

[ELubas]

Very well said Julie!

 

[RoxiesEcho]

By definiation of BYB, every pure bred dog I've ever had the pleasure of owning me was purchased this way. But I also have never bred any of my dogs, always choosing to have them spayed or neutered to help prevent diseases. In my opinion, purchasing from a so called "breeder" is no guarantee of a healthy life either. Some genetic issues cannot be guaranteed, for instance, even relatives who have no history of hip dysplasia can throw a bad pup at any time. Maybe I'm just fortunate that I have never had a pure bred dog that has suffered from any genetic issues that forced them to have anything but a long, happy, healthy life.

 

[LANDANO77]

on the road to a happy ending

We got our pup from a BYB. the owners of my boxers mother got a stud from the newspaper and bred them. Recently i saw the father for stud again in the paper and i emailed the owner ( not disclosing i have one of his dogs offspring ) and asked them if their boxer had gone through and genetic testing. They emailed me back last night and confirmed that he did have genetic testing and is cleared of hip dysplasia, heart murmurs and something else i forgot. So that makes me feel alot better about my pups health. I thought it was cool i actually found the father. I recognized the photos i had from the mothers owner. They gave us pictures of the father when we picked out our pup. He is only 6 months old now so we will have to see what happens in the future..

 

[RonaldMM]

I am like many others on this board, hoping for one! My son bought Drake from a BYB, thinking it was better than buying a boxer in a pet store. At the time, I was not a "dog" person and let him (the know-it-all college student) buy Drake. After 3 months living with my son, the little boxer was miserable and studies were suffering. I agreed to take Drake for obedience training and never gave him back.

This site has been a wonderful educational source for me. Since Drake came from a BYB I am trying to do the absolute best for him as far and nutrition and exercise. I don't know the history of his parents, so I err on the side of caution on everything with his health. We recently purchased a Boston Terrier for my son (still in college) and did our homework on buying from a reputable health testing breeder. We also bought a Boston, Elvis (from the same reputable breeder) for Drake to have someone to play with.

After reading all of the horror stories out there about BYB's I have a health insurance policy for Drake. It's only around $30 a month and covers wellness visits as well. I turned in $301.50 in vet bills for 2006 and received a ch3ck for 251.50. It practically pays for itself! It pays for immunizations, flea and tick, heart worm preventative.

I'm hoping for a happy ending. Drake has brought so much happiness into my life, he certainly deserves one.

 

[SandyHG55654]

Dozer was from a BYB. Healthy as a horse so far....

 

[Ranvan]

My first boxer was from a very reputable show breeder. Her father was a champion. There were many champions on both sides. She was from a well thought out breeding plan. They were members of the Boxr Club.

She died at 7 years from kidney failure. She was born with one working kidney.

So, my seond boxer, Emma, is from a BYB. She is 1 1/2 and healthy so far. Her parents and grandparents are alive. I think they are about 5 and 9 respectively. I guess we will enjoy what years we are given.

 

[axlfjasdljfa]

My boxer, and the 4 dogs I grew up with as a kid (doberman, german shepard, pit bull and yorkshire terrier) were all bought from breeders that meet the definition of BYB's by sites like this. All had wonderful lives. All have had "happy endings" so far.

 

[RMMRKK]

My first boxer was from a very reputable show breeder. Her father was a champion. There were many champions on both sides. She was from a well thought out breeding plan. They were members of the Boxr Club.

She died at 7 years from kidney failure. She was born with one working kidney.

So, my seond boxer, Emma, is from a BYB. She is 1 1/2 and healthy so far. Her parents and grandparents are alive. I think they are about 5 and 9 respectively. I guess we will enjoy what years we are given.

I am a brand new boxer owner, so my story doesn't pertain to my boxer, but it does pertain to one of my beloved bulldogs. I too researched for 4 years before I bought my first bulldog. I had it all down, had the heart murmer testing certificate in my hand, and a knee and hip certificate. All was good. I purchased my puppy, and it was so heartbreaking from day one. One working kidney, 2 grade 4 luxating patellas that required surgery, and one of the legs had to be done 3 times and it still failed. All bulldogs have an elongated soft palate to some point, but his was so bad, he would vomit several times a day, he had to have that surgery, he had cherry eye. As you can see one health problem right after another. My wonderful baby from a very respectable breeder, who has bred 37 champions and 3 best of show champions, died at just 10 months. My second bulldog, my husband bought for me from just somebody who happened to have a litter of bulldog puppies. I have had all these tests run on her and she has no health problems to speak of. Healthy and as strong as an ox. Yes, BYB can have strong healthy puppies. Guess this goes to show that even the best can sometimes throw something less than desireable.

 

[xenaprincess]

Xena (and her sister Sheba) were a gift to myself and my mom from my dad. He passed away Jan.25th/97. On Feb.14 that year, we get a call from this "breeder" that the 2 pups are ready to go home!! Of course, we had no idea what he was talking about, but it turned out that my dad purchased the pups when they were born and was giving them to us for Valentines Day. Unfortunately, my dad, God Love Him, was never aware of BYB's. Xena and Sheba were only 12wks old when they needed to be treated for mange. They were FULL of fleas as well. I was NOT impressed...actually more truly saddened when I picked up the pups and saw the run-down kennels, pups of all breeds wandering in and out of an old barn with only chicken-coop wiring keeping them contained. Adult females that were so over-bred they could barely walk!! Puppies left crying and alone, some so malnutrioned they couldn't even raise their little heads! :(
Xena and Sheba are both 10yrs old and healthy, except for the normal old age issues. Xena has had lumps and bumps on her over the years that have been biopsied and diagnosed as only skin tags or warts. She is by far the BEST dog that has ever owned me, and can honestly say that we were lucky. Spirit came from a reputable breeder. LOL..the only thing that I find any difference in is that he is a total bone-head!! He is MUCH more mischevious than Xena ever was, doing things that she would NEVER do, like attacking the kitchen garbage pail when we're not at home, tearing a sofa to shreads so as to hide a marrow bone, eating every and ALL barbie dolls that dare to lay on his floor...ya know...things like that. All of these things however, I chalk up to the "brindle-factor", something a past mod from BW told me about when Spirit came into my life. BUT, he is healthy except for the fact that he could stand to gain a few more pounds. All that mischevious behaviour really burns the calories! :rolleyes: