Posted on 10/21/2011 3:06:09 AM PDT by KantianBurke
On Oct. 4, Jason Dubin drove to La Guardia Airport to pick up the newest member of his household. Six days after that first happy meeting, Mr. Dubin returned to La Guardia with that same member, a German shepherd named Emmi, and sent her on a Continental Airlines flight to Seattle with a one-way ticket.
“I just couldn’t control her anymore; it was just time to part ways,” said Mr. Dubin, who made the drive from his Port Jefferson home on Long Island as Emmi, who is 5, fidgeted and barked in the back seat.
Mr. Dubin had bought the 80-pound dog over the Internet for $7,500 from Kraftwerk K9, a company in Rochester, Wash., that breeds, trains and sells German shepherds.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
That is not my recollection - Kraftwerk did NOT go get the dog immediately but waited - the airline was going to put her in some kind of doggie hotel.
I’m aware of all the alleged ethics of “reputable” breeders. My stance is the reality of what they’ve done to the breed. It is NOT BYBs that police/MIL go to when looking for working dogs, but these very breeders. They are obviously having more problems with GS lately or they would not be delving so much into Belgians. Despite “reputable breeders”.
Just as some time ago Seeing Eye organizations practically gave up on GS. There is a reason for that - and it isn’t the fault of BYBs.
Also, 20+ years ago I could buy a dog from a well-known breeder 1st-come, 1st serve; now everyone wants a “deposit” for a dog that doesn’t exist and might not for 3 years, and apparently not bother looking at other dogs in that entire time or lose your $$$$. Additionally, *I* will judge if I like the dog, thank you very much, and *I* will decide if I want to breed the dog or not, rather than immediately getting her cut. You can give your opinion but ultimately it’s my $$$, my choice. Including “I don’t like your puppies; give me back my deposit”.
That whole MO is total BS. It hasn’t helped the breeds.
I yelled that too, but I also wanted to hit them up side the head about every other page. The book gives you a lot more chances to yell GET A CRATE! and whack them. I’d never have a dog that behaves the way they let Marley act. I wouldn’t let my kids act that way either. Dogs need discipline, rules and leadership. If you don’t do that they’ll set up their own rules, take leadership and give you the rules they want you to live with.
I live with Airedales and Cairns which are both strong willed stubborn dogs but I don’t have any real problems with them They know who is in charge and what my rules are. No tough love required just constant leadership on my part the way they understand it. Oops got to go, the Cairn, (The Morrigan) wants me to chase her. So I’ll play a bit
I don't we are in disagreement about Shepherds being ruined. They most certainly have been ruined.
I think you are misinterpreting what I'm calling an ethical breeder (I did not say reputable). Reputation and ethics are two different things. There's no such thing as alleged ethics — they either have ethics or they don't. I wouldn't buy from a breeder who doesn't breed ethically, and I discourage everyone from doing so.
I absolutely agree with you that Shepherds in this country have been ruined. The vast majority of breeders of Shepherds are not breeding to Standard, and the breed has suffered tremendously from it. I am talking about every kind of breeder here, when it comes to Shepherds (though there are individual exceptions, of course). Whether they be backyard breeders or high-profile show dog or working dog breeders — have collectively ruined the breed. Show Judges should not be awarding ribbons to Shepherds that do not fit the Standard, period. I'm specifically talking about the horrible toplines and hips, and I might also add temperament in that statement. Breeders and Judges have completely gotten away from the GSD Standard, which says the following regarding the topline/back of the GSD:
“Topline— The withers are higher than and sloping into the level back. The back is straight, very strongly developed without sag or roach, and relatively short.”
And this:
“At full trot, the back must remain firm and level without sway, roll, whip or roach.”
LEVEL back. When was the last time you saw a level back in a Shepherd? I had a breeder who bred excellent Shepherds, and she even won in the show ring. Her dogs regularly lived to 12-14 years with no hip problems. She bred to the Standard, and she did all the appropriate health and genetic testing. But the vast majority of Shepherd breeders do not, and they have ruined the breed.
I don't care how reputable a breeder is, or how famous a breeder is, or if a breeder is a backyard breeder — if they are breeding horrible specimens with terrible health problems and hips and rear ends that are so weak the dogs won't make it to 7 years of age, then they are not ethical breeders.
And vice versa. As a breeder, if I'm selling a dog for over $7k that I have put many years of training into, I would want to personally fly the dog to the buyer and see them interact in person. To confirm that the buyer really does have the temperament and leadership personality necessary to own and manage a Type-A dog of this caliber.
As your daughter said, these are working dogs, not pets. These are machines. Just like you wouldn't bring a Komatsu trackhoe into your back yard and let the kids and cats and ducks and other dogs play on it, you shouldn't let a high-drive, Shutzhund 3 dog into your backyard or household without the proper training, transition time, and always, ALWAYS, proper supervision when children and other pets are concerned.
There is fault on both sides here, but anyone can talk a good game, and I suspect the buyer did most of the "selling" on his ability to handle such a dog.
But unbeknown to Mr. Curry, Mr. Dubin rebooked Emmi’s transportation and somehow persuaded Continental officials to ship Emmi the roughly 3,000 miles.
A spokeswoman for Continental said: “We followed all standard procedures, and the animal arrived at its destination safely. We were in accordance with the U.S. Animal Welfare Act, which gives us a four-hour period to wait for a recipient to arrive at the airport before sending an animal to a shelter.”
Eventually, Mr. Curry was told by Continental that Emmi had spent Monday night at the Airpet Hotel in Seattle. He sent a staff member to pick her up, and paid a $115 boarding fee before returning her to his kennel.
My Most Beloved GS seemed to be gunshy from the outset. However, she was not afraid of thunder as a puppy. Until her 1st July 4th, when she associated gunfire sounds in the sky with thunder. From then on, she was also thunder-shy.
However, this is a shady he-she-said story.
"...a call from a Continental official at the company’s headquarters in Houston telling him that Mr. Curry had informed the airline that he would not be meeting Emmi at the plane, which had already taken off and was to stop in Houston before proceeding to Seattle."
Like many crime stories, the facts are not all sorted out yet. If this was to go to court, there'd have to be vetting of who's lying and who's not.
This is not the 1st time I've heard of shadiness with Kraftwerk, though, having seen accusations on a German Shepherd forum. Not saying it's true, but I've heard of complaints before.
All my dogs I got for free. Either got them out of a litter, a rescue from a shelter, or take in as a stray. Of course, they end up costing big money once you get them! But worth every penny.
My current dog, a border collie/australian shepherd mix, was abandoned in the woods. When I found the puppy, it looked to be about 12 weeks old and was covered in ticks. It must have just been abandoned as I'm sure the coyotes would have gotten to her eventually. We bonded right away although even today (four years later), she has trouble with strangers. This dog keeps me in good shape as she requires several miles of walking every day.
I agree.
Of course, add Germans/Euros in there with their god-awful roach backs (”show” dogs, mostly), overaggression, and allergies. They’ve lasted longer but MIL/police are on to them, too.
We paid $500 for our “show” GS way back when, which regular people thought was crazy - and she was worth 10x that. A truly Great Dog, though worthless in the show ring. But she was so much better than any dog I have ever, ever even heard of; I was proud of her inherently 99% perfect character and behavior. I wouldn’t trade her for anything. But ONLY her I wouldn’t trade. The other dogs haven’t been worth what she was, and that’s an honest unemotional assessment.
I just got tired of doing the same thing over and over and I guess I’m not mean enough. To people. You’re right, dogs get it. People don’t. And they will pretend to listen, nod their heads, agree with you, and go home and do the same wrong things over and over. It just wasn’t worth it to me.
My other breed (spinone) required stripping but nothing like an airedale. And I wouldn’t have had one and not shown it. But it was fun to go play with hers. She did obedience with them too. And I think she’s done agility with them too.
If you look at the website you’ll see that the training is more institutionalized rather than you spending lots of time with a single dog. You’d be selling a one off dog where they are selling to an extent a commodity (protection trained dog). They don’t have the same amount of emotion tied into the dog you would. Doesn’t mean the dog isn’t well trained or taken care or anything like that.
Yeah, I didn’t read far enough, now I get it. Still, sounds like they’ve been doing this long enough to have screened better. But there are the occasional buyers who can pull the wool over your eyes. I’ve had a few thru the years.
Yup, I just wouldn’t tolerate that sort of business from a dog, who wants to live like that? But people let their kids act like that too. I don’t get it at all.
I agree with you that small dogs can be more vicious and badly trained. however, I still do think that getting an adult dog as opposed to a puppy is a more difficult task. I was inexperienced when I got a puppy but I read up on things and dog behavior etc. and while our dog isn’t the perfect one, she obeys commands, is good with children, knows how to stand down etc. A 5-year old dog has already been “imprinted” on someone imho. That’s not to say it’s impossible, but for an inexperienced family isn’t a puppy better? And that of an easier breed?
oh,she’s cuter! She’s got shorter ears, more like a boxer’s ears and has longer legs, but has a scenthound’s temperament :)
You're a saint.
For some folks (pretty sure none on this thread), a breed dog is a status issue. Getting a dog from a shelter can be infra-dig.
wonderful story and you are a wonderful person to do this for poor Jerry. He was lucky to get such a wonderful family that loved him so much.
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