Is it worth paying for a "papered" dog?

Have an 8 year old Lab,AKC registered and all that,One Hell of a fine hunting/house/pet/guard dog
Wouldn't trade her for the world !!!

 

that appears to be what you're after, I don't see the need for some certification. You'll get a better friend from the pound. If you have a job that requires a particular dog to be good at it, by all means pay the money to get a good one, but "friend" is best suited to the mutt.

 

No doubt about it they are inbreeding the heck out of them.

 

And then theres Evie 15#s of pure meanest when she wants to be, Heart of a 50# pit bull
Hell on rats when she can smoke'm
Rat terrier/ Jack Russell mix
Did I mention how hardheaded she is?

 

I work with dogs for a living so see a lot of both sides.
I would say it depends on the breed, and what you want to do with them.
If its just a companion dog then keep that in mind when looking but my exsperience is that mixed breeds can have just as many issues as the pure bred ones... 2 badly bred dogs dont magically make a well bred mutt.
your best bet if you are looking for a dog you want to work (hunt/track/etc) look for breeders that have working lines... not just show lines (thats how theyve royally f-ed up the GSD’s , breeding for a overly slopped back to the point the dogs cant walk properly much less do the job they were bred for)
Reaserch the breed/s your considering. What health issues are they known for? (All breeds have something but some are worse or more common than others) Does the breeder your thinking of getting a dog from breed for health and structure over following current fads(show lines exspecially.) what lines are they breeding from. What test do they run on there own dogs and require from outside breeding stock.

For instance. I have a Mastiff (my second one) the breeder will not breed just any dogs. She does full hip scores as mastiffs are large dogs and prone to joint issues/bad hips. She sets her “acceptible hip scores” for her breed lines lower (lower is better)than what the recomended levels are. There are no garentees (you could breed 2 perfect dogs and still end up with health issues in the puppies) but you can set the odds in your favour.
Hes my second dog from this breeder because I know she cares more about her dogs than money. (In fact I got my first one due to her refusing to sell him to the orriginal buyer because of something she found out before he was to pick him up. She offered him to me at 2/3 the price because she wanted to be sure he went to the right home)

So on that note. Anyone that will just give you a dog if you have the money?... run like hell. Back yard breeders? Run. These are where I see the most health issues. Both pure and mixed breed. Dosent matter. Im currently working with a dog that came from a “family home” that is... “hey... we have a cocker and the neibours have a poodle! lets make cockapoos!.”.. yeah.. the dog literally has no hip sockets and is looking at some very exstensive surgery down the road. (Shes only. 7 Months old) so much for hybred vigor.

People that care about there dogs health will want to make sure they go to a good home. They will ask you questions, lots of them, they will want referals, and probably to speak to your vet. They also wont mind you asking a lot of questions, about the breed, about their dogs, about the linage and potential health issues of their breed. If they tell you their are no potential genetic health issues with the breed. They are liars. Do your research in advance to find out what test should be run on that perticular breed and what health issues show up. If they havent done all those test and willing to show you the results. Best to move on.

And unfortunately, certain breeds have at this point, been so screwed up that it could be very difficult if not impossible to find a breeder that even breeds the old style any more (for instance, GSD’s. Most breeders here are the overly slopped back. We did finally manage to find one with a straight back but she was a hobby breeder that had German bred dogs from working lines. Hed never win cruffts but he could run circles around the dogs there, even at 9 years old.

Certification only tells you the dogs linage. Sometimes thats worth the money. Sometimes its just a peice of paper. The trick is working out when its worth it or not.

 

I love dogs, I also hate sometimes conversations about them. Like I am sure many here we have lost
a dogs life long pal. I miss many of our dogs, took me 6 years to finally get over Jack enough to work with another dog.
He broke the mold, but this new dog is surprising the heck outta me.. I'm man enough to say some times dog talk
make me sad and miss some of my old pals. Sucks they do not live near as long as we do.

 

Golden Retrievers are another Breed that has been "Over Done" and have more issues now then ever before!
A True Golden should be a Hardy working dog, well build, muscular, and trim, and extremely smart, dangerously so! These days, they seem to be all poofed up and color preferences and size have changed what was once one of the best all purpose working breeds into a bunch of dumbed down house plants, with all sorts of health issues that can really ruin a dog!
Besides Neufies, I have had Goldens my entire life, and the good ones never have those health issues. Ear infections have never been an issue, or hip issues, heart issues, and infections in the paws, In short, what they have always been before the breeders started "Improving" them for fad!
Same with GSD's and pretty much all the working breeds! it's really sad!
BTW, our current GOlden is 19 years young, never had any health issues, and is only very recently starting to loose his eye sight with cataracts, he is still healthy, strong, and full of energy! And he is Papered from one of the best and well known Working Golden breeders in this area, with lines that go back almost 90 years!

 

No....unless you have the exceptional dog that can read it's papers.....then maybe.

 

If you absolutely must have a certain breed of dog, or a certain color, etc., or you have aspirations of showing or breeding the dog, then getting papers is worthwhile.

If you just want a family pet, a watchdog, something to train for hunting or herding, then go to the pound and find yourself a nice mutt.

There are plenty of shelter pets out there that need a home; don't get a "designer dog" and leave one of the poor mutts behind unless you have a compelling reason.

 

You’re looking for a hunting dog? Protection dog? Companion dog?
Dog breeds have certain personality traits. Research what traits would be most appropriate for you ... and then getting the perfect dog for you, purebred or mixed, will still involve some luck.
Diesel is a 90 lb multi-breed Rottweil-mastiff-something? He’s the laidback mastiff ... until the Rottweil “needs” activation. My wife and I were lucky. If you are starting with a puppy I highly recommend getting pet insurance.

 

I've had four really great dogs in my life. First one was "Cookie". yellow Alsatian looking dog. She would literally walk with and watch toddlers. Niece just said she missed her. Cookie has been gone 36 yrs now. I miss my friends.

 

We've owned both purebred and mutts. As mentioned, your dog is only as good as its training and effort you put into it.

One thing to think about. My daughter is a Vet. 50% of dog deaths are due to cancer. Most cancer treatments for dogs are expensive and ineffective. Some breeds do show a tendency to have cancer more than others, but they really don't know why the incidence is so high.

So, you can invest a ton of money in a pure bred and have about as much chance of losing it as one you picked up at the pound.

Oddly enough, two of the dogs we have had were purebreds without papers that we rescued. One (English bulldog) was turned in to his vet for being mean (sweetest dog we ever owned, but was left alone with a crawling baby who poked it in the eye) and one (French bulldog) was turned over to our daughter because the people bought the dog then couldn't afford its medical care when it broke its elbow as a puppy jumping off something. The old English lived to 12.5 and the Frenchie is 2 (relatively new arrival). We also have a Shar Pei who is healthy and happy at age 7, an age where we've lost several dogs before due to cancer. (all Shar Pei's or mixes).

So you might be able to get a purebred at a pound or from a state rescue center. Just type into your search engine the type of dog you are looking for (like "greyhound rescue") and you'll be steered towards organizations that might have dogs you'd like. Also, you can call your local vet's office...people are always asking Vets to find new homes for their animals when they move.

When asked "mutt or purebred" I am reminded of a friend of mine who liked the best of everything. He paid $5k for a particular lineage black lab, then invested $5k more to have her trained. She died of cancer at age 5. Even pro-rated, $2k/year for a dog would be hard to handle.

 

One great looking dog!

 

I have a Jack Russel named Toby that is going on 17 yrs. Toby still has a temper and will bite with the one front tooth he has left. I picked up another Jack Russel Christmas before last,named Buddy after a old friend

 

Not in my opinion. Some of the best dogs I've ever had were mutts...free for the taking. Shelters and rescues had been very good to us , as well.