Toy Sheltie.....I'm still in tears....

BarbV

BarbV

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So I've seen the pics, read the news, etc. But today I say my first "toy" sheltie at my store at my rescue adoption event.

She was rescued from a puppy mill 6 years old, and done with her breeding, so kicked out. For some reason they had removed all her teeth. A tri girl.

Yes, she looked 100% Sheltie except in mini-mini-mini. I don't think she could weigh more than 5 lbs.

I almost cried on seeing her, but I held it back because she had just been adopted by a family a week ago, and the kids were there showing her off. Yes, the kids know this is bad, but I could not make it worse if I did a big cry thing. So i'm doing it now.

I forgot to take a photo but I've asked the rescue to send me one.

If you've never seen a true "toy" sheltie in person, you are up for the shock of your life.
 
That's so sad. I've seen a sheltie that was runt and the size of a large chihuahua (the breeders had no intention of breeding so small, the puppy was born sick and didn't grow much). I can't imagine what a 5 lb sheltie would look like. I'd probably be in tears too, I'm already on the edge.:(
 
This was no runt. This was a dog that was bred and breeding toy dogs. Not to mention everything's be lived through in horrid situations.

I still can't believe that human kind is capable of this kind of abuse.
 
I cannot imagine 5lbs! Newton is a small guy and I bet double that or more. Spitfire is a bit fat now but 4 times that and he is at the bottom of breed standard.
 
I cannot imagine seeing a sheltie that small. Poor girl, atleast she is out of the horrible puppy mill and into a loving home.

Riley is 11.2 lbs at 7 months, which seems tiny, but atleast I know he will grow a bit bigger.
 
5lbs!!! I breed Dwarf rabbits and this is only double the size of them!! I've seen very small shelties but never this small. I would expect a dog this size to be possibly a mix? Certainly a dog this tiny is likely to have health issues - possibly the teeth were removed because the mouth was overcrowded? The idea that this poor girl was used for breeding is sickening but then the whole puppy mill situation is sickening.

On a positive note though at least it sounds as if this little girl now has a chance of a happy life with a family - I hope it works out for her.
 
My understanding of puppy mill mentality is that they are prone to breeding shelties to Pomeranians and Papillions to get "rare" mini shelties. Perhaps that is what you saw.
As for the teeth, both of those toy breeds tend to lose them early due to shallow roots and I had a sheltie breeder tell me about "popcorn" teeth in shelties. This is when they start out with full dentition but the teeth literally fall out early in life.
You can imagine what happens when you cross to either of those toy breeds.
Tinsel has very few teeth in his mouth. Many of them were pulled by the vets of HSI after he was seized from the mill. Not exactly fed well there and there are a few broken ones in the few he has left. Doesn't stop him eating though!
Hopefully this little thing will be strong and will live a long and happy life now that it has been released from horror.
BTW My daughter's breeder had a true preemie baby sheltie and it is now, as an adult, slightly bigger than a Pomeranian. It does all kinds of obedience and agility type stuff. It is the cutest little thing and is all sheltie.
 
So I arrive at my store today and someone had dropped off a brochure for a litter of sheperd-doodles...or something like.

the post say they are registered with the Internal Designer Canine Registry!

http://designercanineregistry.com/


I think what scares me the most is the so called registry of breeders.

Of course, I did not post the sign.

I am so tired of people coming into my store for grooming saying they have a golden doodle or a malti-poo as if this was a real breed. These people really thing they have a purebred dog!!! No joke!

I want to shake them and say....its not a freaking breed its a mutt. And because its a mutt, I can't quote you a price over the phone because your dog could be super big or super small, have hair or no hair.

I've no issues with mutts....btw....some of the best dogs ever are mutts. But to sell them like they are purebreds at huge prices just makes my blood boil...
 
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