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The breeder had Shihpoos,
and Yorkipoos listed online.
We found the breeder's booth but they didn't have either Shihpoos or Yorkipoos at the time. There was another breeder's
booth next to them that had a cage with three small black and brown dogs in it. They were all sleeping cuddled together
and looked so adorable. I stood there and watched them for a couple of minutes. Then my husband wanted to go look around
at other things so we walked away. The more I thought about them the more I knew I had to have one. I dragged my husband
back over to them and stared at them some more. I told him I wanted the one on the right. Then the lady working the booth
came over and told us they were Chipoos
(Chihuahua-
Poodle mix) and that there were two boys
and one girl in the cage. I told her I wanted to see the one on the right. It turned out to be the girl. I held her for a while.
She was so small and loving. She cuddled in my arms and fell asleep after only a couple of minutes, I was hooked. A few minutes
later we were paying for her and taking her home.
I held her all the way home. We stopped at Petco to buy her food, toys, treats, a cage and other needed supplies.
She slept in my arms almost the entire time we walked around the store. When we got her home I put her down in our
kitchen to let her explore. She was still a little wobbly on her feet as she walked around investigating everything
in her new home. Then she found our shoes and their laces. She would not stop playing with them. We would move the
shoes but she would go right back for more. That is how she got her name, Lacey.
Even today she still loves to play with shoe laces if you let her.
We had Lacey for about 3 weeks and we realized she needed a friend. So we started looking for another Chipoo around our area
but we couldn't find any. We were able to find a litter of them in southwest Missouri that were about 10 weeks old.
There were 3 girl Chipoos and two boy Chipoos in the litter. We decided to get one of the boys, Napoleon was the name the breeder had given
him. We paid for him and made the arrangements. He would be flying into O'Hare airport on Thursday August 31, 2006 at 7:45am.
I woke up that morning very excited and eager to go get our new puppy. I checked online to find out if his plane was on time
only to find out that his flight had been cancelled. I was terrified. What happens to a puppy whose flight was cancelled?
Luckily, he was put on the next filght and made it to us safe and sound. We picked him up at the airport at about 10am that
morning. When we first saw him at the airport counter, he was terrified. He was huddled in the very back corner of his travel
cage and wouldn't move for anything. We took him out to our car and set the cage down in the trunk to open it up to let him out.
He didn't move. We finally took of the top of the cage so we could see him. I didn't want to reach in and pull him out for fear
it would only scare him more. He finally warmed up a bit and we got in the car to take him home.
My husband held him all the way home. When we got him home we put Lacey in the other room so Logan
could investigate his new home on his own. Later, when we let Lacey out to meet her new friend she ran up to him and wanted to play right away. Logan was still
a bit unsure of his surroundings and didn't want to play just yet, but in a few hours they were playing, running and wrestling
together. Then they both went to sleep the same doggie bed. It was adorable. They became best friends almost instantly.
That is the story of how I got my two wonderful dogs and how they totally won over my heart.
After doing some intensive research since purchasing my own Chipoos I learned some sad but most likely true things about them.
I really didn't do much research before getting my Chipoos. I did not do any research about getting a puppy, responsible breeders,
puppy mills, etc. We choose Logan from only one picture online. A picture in which he looked very scared. I asked no questions about
the littermates, parents, facilities, etc. I know now that that was a HUGE MISTAKE.
We made the arrangements to have him flown to us (another thing I would NEVER do again or recommend to anyone else). That scared little boy in the picture is still a shy,
scared little 3 year old Chipoo. We can't help but wondering if some of his fear was a result of that flight...
I am telling this story for the benefit of everyone. Please do your research before getting a puppy.
I am not saying that you should not buy a dog from a breeder. I am just saying that you should definitely do more research than I did. We have Logan in a class now to help
him with his aggression and fear and the more I read about 'Puppy Mill' puppies the more I believe he may be one of them.
In fact the website that we found him on was gone shortly after we got him. As for Lacey, the place we got her is still advertising lots of puppies
at a low price all the time (another good indication of a 'Puppy Mill').
I love all of my dogs more than anything and would not trade them for anything in the world but I do feel ashamed and guilty that
I supported these 'Puppy Mills' if that is indeed what they were and as a result I have decided to do my part to help put a stop to
'Puppy Mills' and promote Dog Adoption. I am definitely not going as far as some people who believe that all 'Designer Dogs'
are bred in Puppy Mills. There are many breeders out there who are doing proper testing and ensuring the dogs they are breeding are in great health
and the parents are kept in great facilities and the puppies are well cared for. All of our breeds today were created by dedicated
individuals who love their dogs and care about their health above all else especially money.
It is unfortunate that many have ruined this and breed dogs purely for money. Treating dogs inhumanely to make money it despicable
and we should all do our part to put an end to their suffering. Please help support us in our quest to do this!
For more information check out my profile - sands904.
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Breed Information
