Just a quick update with my latest photo from the puppy pack: intrepid photographer becomes the hapless victim of a vicious toe attack from Ms. Lt. Blue!!! No teeth; no blood .



Enjoy!

Jim

Nice one!

Thanks Don. They are such fun!

Jim

Yes indeed - puppies are great.
But I couldn't be a breeder. I'm a board member of our local animal shelter, have seen a lot of mistreated pets and so, I think I always would be afraid that the new owners of my puppies would treat them badly.

Don,
I'm on the Board of Directors of the Gulfstream Guardian Angels Rottweiler Rescue organization of Miami and have been involved in Rescue for over 40 years. Personally, I don't think anybody who breeds cannot be involved in Rescue. Oh, BTW, I work just as hard -- and with the same criteria -- to place the Rotties we Rescue as I do to place the puppies we breed. Last year, we lost our Rottie Rescue girl, Marion Louise, at 13 years of age to bone cancer. She helped raise and train 4 of the 6 litters we've bred in over 16 years. During that time, we have been very fortunate to only have to rehome one the puppies we've bred. She was Molly and was initially sold as a pet to a single mom who realized she just didn't have the time for her. We were fortunate to rehome her with a very good family in Virginia and she became Annie's second most-titled offspring earning titles in Agility, Obedience and Herding. We take care of our puppies for their entire lives. We also help take care of our breed. We see both of these as part of our responsibility in owning a dog.

Jim

Hi Jim, I think, I didn't make clear what I wanted to say.
It's just because of my emotional connection I would build up to the puppies. I always would be afraid that one of them could possibly end in a dig shelter or worse - and to avoid that, I'd probably keep them all.
Of course, as a breeder I would love to keep contact to their owners but you can't force them to keep contact. They can move to another ciry or just houses or they can just tell you to leave them alone or what ever...
No, I'm no breeder material.

Don,
we have legally-binding contracts for each puppy we sell or place and it requires that we always be informed where the puppy is living and, if the owner can no longer own the dog, it comes back to us. We lose sales because our contract is so restrictive but with Rottweilers, you need to be sure that folks aren't just buying them to protect their business and/or home. On the other hand, it's also why many of our puppies go to homes that have owned our puppies in the past. In fact, two of the puppies in our current litter will be going to owners of other Rotties we've bred.

When our puppy-owners that live near us go away on vacation, the puppies come to us for their "vacation". We stay in touch constantly via email, telephone and personal visits. We have been with our owners when a few of our puppies from our first litters have had to be put down. We have delivered them and helped them draw their first breaths; and we've been with them as they drew their last. Breeding is a lifetime commitment to the lives we help place on earth. No it's not for everyone. But while this world does not need more breeders, it definitely needs more ethical breeders. I think we qualify.

Jim

Hi Jim,
that's a truly lovely approach. Under these circumstances, I think I also could be a breeder. It's really fantastic to learn that there are people doing so much for their four-legged comrades.
You made my day!

Jim,

I have read this sentence over several times and I would appreciate it if you would elaborate. I am not sure I understand why you said this statement.

"Personally, I don't think anybody who breeds cannot be involved in Rescue."

Peggy Sue,
I believe that those of us who breed have a responsibility not only to make sure the dogs we breed never end up in a Shelter but also to help place those dogs who actually do end up in a Shelter. I've been involved in Rescue for over 40 years and got involved a full 10 years before I had my first dog -- a Rescue St. Bernard. I worked at a no-kill shelter and my job was to train the street dogs that found themselves there. Every dog I personally worked with, got adopted.

When we decided to get a pure-bred dog and to show it, I was already active in Rottweiler Rescue. I saw first-hand what happens when a Rottweiler is bred by folks only looking to make money and bought by people only interested in being seen as "tough" by their neighbors. Those are the dogs that end up on the street and, unlike many other breeds, untrained, unsocialized Rottweilers are not dogs you cavalierly place into any home. My job then as now was to meet the dogs and decide whether or not we could and should try to place them. It's one of the hardest decisions I have to make in life, and I do it every month.

When we decided to breed Rottweilers, we vowed to each other that we would never do it for the money. We would only breed to improve the Breed overall and we would only breed for ourselves or our friends. Each litter we have bred has been pretty much pre-sold by the time we actually put the mom and dad together. Our puppy contract is iron-clad. We know where every dog we have ever bred is and we talk to those puppy owners at least every 3 months. And the criteria we use in vetting prospective puppy-buyers is the same process we use to find great, forever homes for our Rescues. I can only pray that none of the puppies we've ever bred find themselves in a Shelter but, if one does, I can only hope that there is somebody nearby like me who will find it a wonderful new home.

So, as breeders, I feel we have a responsibility to the breed we love to not just add more good dogs to the pool of available dogs but to ensure that the ones that are already out there get placed if they are good dogs. Lots of people who come to us looking for a puppy, really should be adopting a Rescue and I tell them so. Often, I match them up with a Rescue I've personally evaluated. Sometimes, it works the other way and folks looking for a Rescue really should be looking for a puppy. Since we know all the ethical and responsible breeders of Rottweilers on the North American Continent, we point these families to good breeders with puppies on the ground.

Our motto is very simple: If you don't Rescue; don't breed.

Hope that answers your question.

Jim