I used to work at Shake-A-Paw in both the Greenbrook and Union stores. We (the "sellers") were 'trained' (told by the owner) to sell the puppies by telling the customers they were from reputable breeders and - here's what makes the sale - "they have pedigree papers". In other words, customers assume that if the puppies have "pedigree papers" and if they are AKC registered, that means they come from reputable breeders and are healthy dogs. However, what I learned, is that any person can sell a dog and get the dog AKC registered. More importantly, those "papers"... when you look at them you'll see that these dogs come from states that are very large.. in other words, states full of PUPPY MILLS.
The papers can easily be made up by the "breeder" (the person who owns the puppy mill) showing the pedigree - big whoop. that just shows the lineage.. the dogs' parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, siblings, etc. Anyone can write that up. But pay attention to WHERE theses dogs are coming from! HUGE red flag - states with lots of land = PUPPY MILL> Now, if you ask the owner if this is true, do you really think he'll admit it? of course not.. he's like a car sales-man! And he would never admit to his employees the truth, either. So we were all under this impression that they came from reputable breeders.
You can get a puppy from a breeder for around the same price that they sell them at Shake-A-Paw. From personal experience of knowing a few people who've purchased dogs there, then almost lost their dogs because the dog got extremely ill, plus being the "victim" of buying a dog from South Africa (I had to put my dog down, he became very aggressive - pretty sure it was a puppy mill) - do youre research when getting a dog. DO NOT BUY THEM AT PET STORES!!!! Find a breeder, know the breeder, get references, meet the pup's parents and siblings. see what the home environment is like, what they eat, where they sleep.
A good breeder cares about their dogs and pups and will be cautious of who they sell the pup to because they know that they will eventually sell their good quality pups. Pet stores, on the other hand (and poor breeders, or puppy mills), just want to make a sale. They obviously won't ask you how much experience you have with dogs, what your living sitation is like, if you can afford to take care of the dog, etc. You come in to the store, you play with the dog, they make a sale - and that's all they care about.
I'm surprised that Shake-A-Paw is still open. With all the complaints I dont know why they havent been shut down yet. Jeff must have a lot of money.
Shake A Paw Reviews
I used to work at Shake-A-Paw in both the Greenbrook and Union stores. We (the "sellers") were 'trained' (told by the owner) to sell the puppies by telling the customers they were from reputable breeders and - here's what makes the sale - "they have pedigree papers". In other words, customers assume that if the puppies have "pedigree papers" and if they are AKC registered, that means they come from reputable breeders and are healthy dogs. However, what I learned, is that any person can sell a dog and get the dog AKC registered. More importantly, those "papers"... when you look at them you'll see that these dogs come from states that are very large.. in other words, states full of PUPPY MILLS.
The papers can easily be made up by the "breeder" (the person who owns the puppy mill) showing the pedigree - big whoop. that just shows the lineage.. the dogs' parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, siblings, etc. Anyone can write that up. But pay attention to WHERE theses dogs are coming from! HUGE red flag - states with lots of land = PUPPY MILL> Now, if you ask the owner if this is true, do you really think he'll admit it? of course not.. he's like a car sales-man! And he would never admit to his employees the truth, either. So we were all under this impression that they came from reputable breeders.
You can get a puppy from a breeder for around the same price that they sell them at Shake-A-Paw. From personal experience of knowing a few people who've purchased dogs there, then almost lost their dogs because the dog got extremely ill, plus being the "victim" of buying a dog from South Africa (I had to put my dog down, he became very aggressive - pretty sure it was a puppy mill) - do youre research when getting a dog. DO NOT BUY THEM AT PET STORES!!!! Find a breeder, know the breeder, get references, meet the pup's parents and siblings. see what the home environment is like, what they eat, where they sleep.
A good breeder cares about their dogs and pups and will be cautious of who they sell the pup to because they know that they will eventually sell their good quality pups. Pet stores, on the other hand (and poor breeders, or puppy mills), just want to make a sale. They obviously won't ask you how much experience you have with dogs, what your living sitation is like, if you can afford to take care of the dog, etc. You come in to the store, you play with the dog, they make a sale - and that's all they care about.
I'm surprised that Shake-A-Paw is still open. With all the complaints I dont know why they havent been shut down yet. Jeff must have a lot of money.