I'm at the vets yesterday with my 10 week old puppy. Nice couple comes in with a Lab mix. They tell me their girl looked EXACTLY like him at the same age. They claim she looks exactly like her dad, a very heavy, short, muscular, black Labrador. While we are talking they tell me that mom is a Great Dane. Up until then, I didn't mind. Thank God for rescue.

The puppy girl is 18 months old, very hyperactive, skinny as they come, 28 inch at the shoulder and they drop the bombshell on me: We want to breed her to a Labrador because she has the cutest face ever and she looks so much more like a Lab than a Great Dane.

I didn't know what to say, and if I should.

Have said something! Educate whenever you have the opportunity but remember not to preach or the info may not be absorbed. JMO

I have done the very same, and do it every chance I get.

I agree, educate with tact. I usually mention how there are too many mixed breeds in shelters as it is.

Unfortunately with these peoples' type of thinking it would most likely have fallen on deaf ears.

All we can do is try.

I did forget to mention that they were on their way out the door when they said: Oh we're going to breed her to a Lab because ... and that is when my jaw dropped and they headed out.

I was wondering should I have tried to pursue the conversation? This was a first for me, and I now know I should've said something.

There WILL be other opportunities!

Don't beat yourself up. I don't know that I would have chased them out the door to educate them - especially with my own dog in tow.

Like said - always another opportunity.

This goes back to my spill about the impatience of our society. Anything to make a quick buck.

It depends on the situation. I can usually tell if someone will be receptive to what I'm saying and if I get a vibe that it won't make a darn bit of difference, I usually bite my tongue. A similar thing happened to me this past weekend. I was sitting in the salon having my hair done and the stylist working on the woman next to me started talking to another stylist about breeding their dogs. She was trying to convince the other stylist that breeding her Boxer to his Doberman would make the cutest puppies. The guy told her no, so I didn't feel the need to start a lecture on cross breeding. Plus, I could kinda tell she wouldn't have listened to a word of it anyway.

Interesting topic, given the timing. Our house is for sale and just tonight, there was a showing. I have puppies so although I don't normally hang around the agent and the people, I am not leaving my puppies alone in the house with strangers and I had hoped to keep them from handling my puppies. I was unsuccessful at that because the woman ran right up and started touching them when her mother was behind her and I was trying to see past her to see what the other one was doing. So great, she's petting my almost 6 week olds, while her mother was going on about how they bred their gorgeous appricot poodle to the most beautiful chocolate Lab you ever saw and got the cutest pups but they were all yellow. Ok, so, I know my husband will kill me if I start ranting at the people who are looking at our house, so I smiled and nodded and gritted my teeth so hard that my jaw hurt. It REALLY isn't like me not to educate either, but there are times we just have to grin and bear it. We're moving right accross the road, (we're building there) and if they ever DID buy my house, they'd never hear the end of me. hehehe..........

- We're moving right accross the road, (we're building there) and if they ever DID buy my house, they'd never hear the end of me. hehehe..........

Keep us posted!

NO!!! None of your business!!!

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Replying to:

I'm at the vets yesterday with my 10 week old puppy. Nice couple comes in with a Lab mix. They tell me their girl looked EXACTLY like him at the same age. They claim she looks exactly like her dad, a very heavy, short, muscular, black Labrador. While we are talking they tell me that mom is a Great Dane. Up until then, I didn't mind. Thank God for rescue.

The puppy girl is 18 months old, very hyperactive, skinny as they come, 28 inch at the shoulder and they drop the bombshell on me: We want to breed her to a Labrador because she has the cutest face ever and she looks so much more like a Lab than a Great Dane.

I didn't know what to say, and if I should.