never really realized.

i am quite nieave,well was. (spelling?) TBH i have read lots of posts on here about ppl advertising puppies. as you all are probs aware mine was a rescue, i didnt really know much about the breed, i did do some, well alot of research before i adopted her but was brought up with other breeds (boxers, labs, RR) but i just been looking on internet at STB puppies for sale.. its shocking.. all those babies wanting homes?? the price range ppl are asking anything for free??? to a thousand pound...?? also what ppl write in the description is so contradictory like "from a loving home, is create trained spends all night in kitchen alone no probs at 2 months old???" i mean what the chuff???? how can that be loving at 8 weeks old... and ppl saying they aint got the time for them anymore and the photos are of really sad scared dogs...

i think i just needed to vent. i never really relized the extent of the problem till tonight, i am really sad.. i wish i could take all the dogs...i am ashamed of my fellow human race tonight..what the chuff is wrong with people.. i could cry and cry and cry..

ok vent over...

100% agree. Makes me very sad, very angry, and disgusted.

it is a sad fact that there ar so many out there needing new homes and it is also a sad fact that most of them will end up being pushed from pillar to post without a care in the world for their welbeing or state of mind just to end up either in the hands of the idiots who think they are status simbles and look HARD or in kennels waiting for a family to adopt them that will probably not materialise and then the poor dog will die because of it all. it upsets and gets on the nerves of anyone who genuinely cares for animals not just our lovely staffies

totally with you here. Makes me so mad, sad, cross, emotional you name it! I am personally so unimpressed by back yard breeders of animals in general not just dogs.

We have a house and garden full of rescued animals, our latest being 2 baby guinea pigs who mothers were dumped in the woods. 4 were found by a dog walker 1 dead and 3 pregnant some people just shouldn't be alive and walking earth in mho!!!!!

so true and so sad

I simply can''t believe in some stories I hear because I can't imagine that people can be SO cruel....

we can't save all dogs, we can't give them all home, what we can do is educate our kids, our friends, neighbours, colleagues about how you should treat dogs (not only staffies) and that they deserve our love and respect just like we deserve it.

on the other hand, so many people are cruel to other people so how can you expect them to treat animals right?

Feels like a loosing battle. But for the few we educate and rehome it's a step closer

spuker1 wrote:so true and so sad

I simply can''t believe in some stories I hear because I can't imagine that people can be SO cruel....

we can't save all dogs, we can't give them all home, what we can do is educate our kids, our friends, neighbours, colleagues about how you should treat dogs (not only staffies) and that they deserve our love and respect just like we deserve it.

on the other hand, so many people are cruel to other people so how can you expect them to treat animals right?

I agree wish this world could be a better place for them all

your all right, i have to remind myself that i saved one. i decided to take her on the tuesday but couldnt have her till friday cos of other commitments, if i hadnt of taken her she was gonne be PTS on the Thursday and that river and myself have helped to re educate my neighbors, parents and friends. and in a year or two i will prob open up my home to another. it all just seems such a waste. there is a story on another forum about someone who deliberately thru two greyhounds out of a moving van tonight, one had one leg missing and the other was obviously covered in blood, someone tried to get and help them but they ran into the woods they are asking ppl to keep a look out for them tonight. i just dont understand. but then maybe its cos im not that way i cant understand people who hurt other people for fun let alone animals. thank you all for responding. im just so sadned by it all i'm gonna go give River a big hug and kiss...:X

People who love animals can't understand the callousness of some others. To be honest, I'm glad I can't understand it, because then I'd be the same as them.

To everybody who has rescued, a huge thank you. To everyone who has a pup or adult dog (rescue or not) and who treats them as part of a loving family, another huge thank you. It's people like you who can educate others to be responsible.

Personally i think they should stop the breeding of staffs for a couple of years to get the numbers down, shelters are over run with them and like you said people are giving them away on internet sale sites...

lemmy is our first staff and i must admit i was aprehensive because of the rep they had but now he is here and is such a loving little fella. just today i went to the shops and left him in with gemma and he cried till i got back. how could anyone treat them like they do is beyond normal reason. these people are not normal people they are calous idiots who think of nothing but the almighty pound. it is right that MONEY IS THE ROUTE OF ALL EVIL

So true and so sad

There are a lot of evil people in this world, and like Julie said money is definately the route of all evil. So many people only care about how much money they can get from studding/breeding their dogs.

Tinkerbell was also a rescue from a "loving home". We found her on gumtree and the story went that the man who owned her had been left by his girlfriend with his two young children and Tinkerbell. He was apparently moving into a flat and couldn't take her with him. This was in August and he is still living at his house (30 doors down on our street), and his girlfriend is also there with him and has even asked how Tinkerbll is. All lies, they just didn't want her anymore now that she isn't a cute pup.

We have since heard from their next door neighbour, who Ian met one day walking Tinkerbell, that they never wanted her. She was out in the garden all day long, and she was never fed by them. That was left to the next door neighbour to do. She had been telling them for months to rehome her because it wasn't fair on her. She also couldn't believe the change in Tinkerbell now she has weight on her, can walk nicely on the lead and doesn't jump over everyone snapping and mouthing at them. Something we have experienced when her walks haven't been long. She just needed some love and decent walks. The lead she came with was brand new, and she doesn't recognise the doorway for her old house (leading me to believe she rarely, if at all, went out). However since we walk her she knows the steps for or house and will drag to get there when it is raining

Had we not taken her, I dread to think where she could have ended up. She had been on gumtree a few months previously to when we saw the ad. And judging by the lack of care and the haste to get rid of her I do think she's either have been dumped or given to a rescue centre to ad to the number of staffs in there.

When we decided (after a lot of research and question asking) that we were getting a staffy, my husband and I decided that as first time dog owners (together... we'd both had dogs with our families) that we would go with a breeder. The breeder we ended up with chooses which pup goes to which owner... so noone can just go in and pick the ones they want and then there aren't any puppies left waiting for loving homes. We were on a list when Vlad's mum was pregnant, and at first we weren't allocated a puppy as numbers didn't permit, but the person that was did not meet the criteria and respond appropriately to them, so we were offered. From birth, we received daily emails and photos, we received a puppy pack when we picked him up and we still receive emails every now and then telling us what to expect (teething, "teenage" years etc) and just give us advice. They have been nothing short of brilliant and are amazing for advice.

Now we're a bit more knowledgeable, we will consider getting a rescue staffy next time. This won't be for a couple of years when Vlad is a bit older and is not a naughty puppy anymore

Alicia, they sound like a great breeder. It's a pity every breeder isn't like them, then there would be a lesser extent of problems with dogs and irresponsible owners.

I have to say we did research getting a dog, but not particularly a staff. A risk which has paid off luckily, but could have been so different had it gone wrong as it so easily could have. Next time round I think we will be more experienced and will rescue a dog from a centre/kennels. I'd love a puppy one day too but would rescue before having a pup any day now!

It's so sad.. Thankfully it's not like that here - you still need to expect waiting to get your hand on a staffie.

It's all about £££££££££. It's a bloody shame.

a) aren't our dogs lucky to have us and b) aren't we blooming lucky to have them! I hope Milo knows how lucky he is after his whole family took him on a 2 1/2 hour romp in the rain getting wet and muddy around the downs today! Well ok he had the 'romp' the rest of us went at our 3 year olds pace lol!

Education is key but sadly some people just don't get it as pp said some can't even be kind to other people even children so to expect them to care for their animals well..........?

Karen Tinkerbells story is so sad but most def. a happy ending how lucky is she is to find such a wonderfull home, very I say Your story reminded me of our first staff. together (dh grew up with them). Charlie was just 14 months old and wasn't being looked after properly and was underweight etc. his prev. owners were supposedly allergic to dogs but??? we found out we were his 4th home why? We're not sure but he was a bit ill mannered with regards to jumping up and mouthing, also he'd lick any bare skin showing on anyone's body whether it was hands, feet, arms, legs any thing lol! I think at around a year of age or sooner some poeple just get bored, the novelty wears off and/or simply don't put the work in and pass their 'problems' to someone else iykwim? The other thing with our Charlie was that soon after having him and being exercised daily with our jrt he began to limp and required surgery to correct his luxating patella and a rather large cost, we can't help wonder if this too was a factor hmmm? Whatever his reason for coming into our home it was an amazing thing he's the best dog we've ever owned and it took us more than 2 1/2 years to get another dog after he went at almost 13. I had had the JRT from a pup I chose him as I had pick of the litter (mum and dad had stud dog) and whilst he too was amazing he wasn't the dog Charlie was he was mint in everyway sorry for ramble lol!!

Thanks Aardvark we do feel lucky to have her, even if she is a little Tinker sometimes.
I do believe she has had a litter of pups sometime in her short live, her teats are quite big for a dog that isn't meant to have had any. The day she came to us she was in season not that we were told (we discovered this an hour after getting her), was meant to have been vaccinated regularly. But on ringing the vet surgery up, we have discovered she had her vaccines at 6 weeks and no more after that. An appointment was made for the second lot and also for puppy classes but she never made it to either appointment. She was taught the cool stuff, sit, both paws, lie down where she play's dead. But recall, wait, heel, all the stuff you need in life aren't there so think the novelty soon wore off!

So sad but glad there are people like us on this forum who see the good in staffies and do the best they can by our dogs!

I am so happy I rescued Ledger from dogs trust they really knew how to match us (he hadn't been on show and I'd actually enquired about another staffy that was recovering from a skin condition) they had recently moved to a new building and had lost his records and couldn't tell me much about his history except that he had already been rescued but given back with the reason given being somesthing like 'he bit me when I grabbed his collar and tried to move him to the other side of the room' as the staff at the centre said I don't blame him for doing that.

I have got the most loving companion who is 100% house trained and knows the diffence between what is food what is a toy and what belongs to mom he most certainly has been mistreated in the past as he has a scar on his nose and is missing 2 1/2 of his canine teeth also he has flinched and stared at my hands at certain points when I play with him also early on when he over quickly ate a bone he was sick and ran straight into a corner cowering a bit of reassurance and fuss of my poorly boy and he hasn't done that since

All these threads make me consider getting a companion for him but I can't realistically do that for another 6 months but it breaks my heart seeing the 3 dogs at the centre that have been there since I got Ledger and all the puppies bred for money. My parents have been completely won over by the staffy love and with their 13 yr old dog falling ill in the last few days dad is looking at staffys in the local rescue centres.

it shocking what people put animals through. i was told River was between 1 and 2.. and had a litter of pups. if you look on the picture thread and look at her feeding bits, that is defo more than one litter.. she is so young dogs i believe are pregnant for 3 months and i understand there in season every 4 months or so.. it doesnt bare thinking about what age she had her first litter. gross if you ask me.. she was dumped with her mum in a town center and attached herself to dog walkers, who then contacted the rescue center. her mum was rehomed but River was left as the other lady couldnt take 2 dogs. i asked about the two but by the time i had done the research and asked about them the mum had gone.

she jumped up when we got her, found her bed wouldnt move for two days, didnt know how to play at all, (sorted now ) pulled on the lead, watched everyones hands, didnt sleep properly was very restless. still finds it hard to bark..she starts shaking and her ears go back when a normal dog should bark.. she was sick. and was trying to get to it to eat it again, you could see the fear in her, my son took her in the other room so i could clear it up, when i was done she came pelting back into the kitchen couldnt find it looked at me and just started shaking looking really scared. it made me feel sick looking at her in that state i just gave her cuddles and told it its ok.. when she first 'killed' one of her toys she got really scared again.. so what did we do, give her another one and encouraged her to kill that to lol it was great. shes poorly now and is looking scared for being poorly..

i guess we will never know the extent to what our animals have been through, im not a violent woman but i tell you what, i would like to meet Rivers previous owner...take them in a corner and have a not so nice quiet word in there ear involving pain and suffering....

i am having a few issues with River at the moment, she is poorly, jumps up, wont eat dried food lol, and started being un toliet trained.. but nothing that cant be sorted out. and to think for these minor issues people pass them on..tis shocking. she is so loyal and loving. just has a few kinks..is it any wonder thou when uneducated ppl get old of animals. thank godness River chose me

I have always been of the opinion that it's not dogs that need to be licenced, it's the owners.

I suggest that in order for anyone to own an animal they should have to pass an exam consisting of knowledge of the animal, feeding, health, general responsibilities, laws etc. Then having passed the exam, a council officer or similar, should attend the property where the animal is to housed and inspect it. If there is not adequate shelter or the property is in an unkept condition then they don't get the licence. Regular follow-ups on the applicant should be made to ensure that they don't have any animals.

Flame you are so true, a lot of the things you have written about River I have unfortunately sat there and said yes same as Tinkerbell.

When she first came to us she jumped if you stroked her head or when she didn't have warning your hand was going to touch her. She cowered and shook if you raised your hand to reach something. She is now a lot better but she is still sometimes a little nervous if your hand is on the back of her head and you move it without warning her.
She had sickness and diarrhoea a few months ago and she went and hid outside whilst we sorted the kitchen and her bed out and cleaned it all up. It wasn't her fault she had been sick through the night, quite badly, but we hadn't heard her. She also for the first few weeks of coming to us, didn't know that a walk was to toilet on. She wouldn't go unless in the garden, and wouldn't always ask to go out. When she did mess the kitchen, she would cower in her bed and wouldn't come to us. She now knows to ask to go outside and will go on walks. It took a few weeks of standing on the banks giving her the toilet command and waiting until she had chosen her place to go. This could take half an hour someday's of constant sniffing before she felt confident in going.
We were also told she was 11 months old, a pup, only her records say she was in fact 16 months old. Not that it bothers us in the slightest how old she is as we wanted an older dog instead of a pup. But I think he lied so people would take her.
When Ian was getting her the guy bragged about how he paid £200 quid for her. She is apparently a pedigree staff blah blah blah. This is propably why they bred her so young to make money and she served her purpose so has been disposed of. Good job really because we love her to bits.....even if she is slowly eating her way through my towel rack