The Morality of Dog Breeding

There are many taboos about dog breeding and breeders. I feel as though I am in an awkward situation at times because I know that there are people on both sides of the fence that feel passionately either way.

Here's why I breed: I bought my first dog ever as an adult on my own in 2003. I saw a couple breeds that I thought were cute and then researched the personalities until I found the one that suited me best: pekingese. One of the big sellers for me was that they are referred to as very catlike in personality- and I love cats! So, my husband and I found one we liked and met the breeder in Indiana (she was from Ohio). We fell in love at first site! Pookie was adorable! We treated her like our child and she couldn't have been more spoiled. We were so excited about how great she was that we thought we should get a couple more, breed and share the pekingese with the rest of the world!

So, we are small potatoes. We currently have 2 females and one male that breed, but also have two spayed females as pets, along with our adopt-a-dog Aidan. We have a fenced in yard, doggie door and the dogs are like family.

Now, I abhor puppy mills. Dogs were not meant to live in cages and to be used for nothing but baby making machines. And it also frustrates me when people claim that their dogs are "raised in their homes" like I do, then come to find out the puppies are kept in cages.

Case in point: our last peke that we got was from a breeder in Missouri. I asked all kinds of questions and saw that he was licensed and everything. When I went to his home, the kennel is in a building off to the side of his giant house. All the dogs were in cages! Sure, some had runs, but they were not on the ground and were wire bottom cages! It is unfair to say that these dogs have any quality of life.

So, I am behind rescue organizations, I love the ambition of no-kill shelters, but I also know that there are people out there who will only buy pure-bred and as we know, pet stores tend to buy from puppy mills, so I want to provide good representation of breeders who do right by their dogs.

I have posted a picture of our current litter of puppies that was born Friday, Feb. 13. These puppies will not see a cage as long as they are in my care!