I'm going to assume you mean "Spitfyre" Shibas and made a typos (not trying to make fun, just trying to help those who've never heard of the place and want to do a google search). I have looked at their website and I would not get a pup there. They don't screen their buyers, don't health test their breeding stock and (if memory serves) breed nonstandard Shibas. Basically, they look a lot like a puppy mill to me.
There have been a couple things about them that have caused me to raise an eyebrow in the past. Exorbitant costs ($2000 for a pup?! as opposed to their "older/cheaper" dogs?), willingness to peddle NuVet vitamins, and the number of litters they have every year, just to name a few...
I don't have any personal experience with them, but I see enough there that I would move on.
Also, I changed the categories for this and your previous posts. Please be sure to select the appropriate category from the drop-down menu to keep topics more organized and easier to find. =)
Hmmm....I wouldn't have purchased a dog on that contract myself. And there were enough other red flags. The fact that they void the health guarantee if you don't use their NuVet vitamins is pretty shady, I think.
I'd forgotten about conditioning the health guarantee on using NuVet, but as Shibamistress points out, that is very shady. Zim's breeder totally believes in those vitamins but in no way conditions her health guarantee on them. Instead, she strongly recommends them.
It's a different matter if they don't *require* them. The quality of their ingredients, as I understand it, isn't an issue. But the claims that the company makes and the practices under which most breeders sell and market them is highly problematic, as demonstrated here by Spitfyre's contract:
"This puppy is guaranteed under the following guarantees, provided that it is maintained on a premium diet as well as supplemented with NuVet vitamins on a daily basis. NuVet vitamins shall be ordered under breeder’s code. NuVet and seller keep these order records. NO EXCEPTIONS! NO SUBSTITUTIONS! At any time should said dog be removed from its daily NuVet supplement, All guarantees become null and void."
Yeah. How much additional money are they *requiring* per month for the rest of your pup's life??
Spitfyre reminds me of Icewind farms. Similar operation, prices and number of breeding pairs. Does anyone know if they are a member of the National Shiba Club?
I looked up the breeders directory and they are not listed.
They look like a puppy mill to me. They always have at least 2-4 litters and looks like they've started to breed akitas now too. And I'm pretty sure they breed siberians as well, as this website looks identical to the spitfyre one.
Akitas and Siberians too? That sucks. It does look like the Siberian page is the same, and if they were a real, reputable breeder, they wouldn't be trying to hide the fact they have another breed.
Sorry about posting so many threads. I am not sure how specific I should be because of what is going on with Shasta. Considering we have gone to a different vet, a neurologist, and the breeder, we don't even know what's wrong. And I don't want to expose the breeder to much. We are getting very irritated at her for selling us a " health guaranteed " dog and its not even one years old without getting sick!
Wow that is just awful. Sorry your puppy is so sick.
Seizures in young dogs are never benign, and almost always "an inherited defect" outside of poisoning. I mean, this is exactly the reason IMO why a health guarantee is useful.
I would consult an attorney who deals with breeder contract disputes (it isn't a bad experience, trust me, been there). They may not even charge you beyond a small fee after reviewing your claim, if it turns out to be something that can't be enforced. At least that would give you an idea about your legal options, and I would encourage you to do this quickly as time is a factor.
Also, it isn't slander if it is true, so if you are very factual about sharing details, you have every right to report her misdeeds to the BBB, to write negative online reviews, and post here for the benefit of other people who may be shopping for a breeder.
Masakado Shiba Inu www.masakadoshiba.wordpress.com "Common sense isn't so common"
I contacted that breeder and she sent me some videos of her puppies. they don't breed to the standards, Their prices are very high for such puppies. and I didn't like their health guarantee thing. So I passed. and you should too.
@adonia That's a great idea to check out google earth. What a neat way to get an unbiased, bird's eye view of the actual property. Going to check it out now!
@Adonia....what a great idea! I'm going to post that in the puppy mill thread, because we could see a ton of kennels, then we might be able to guess that a place was a mill. Great idea!
I looked on Google Earth and the I think we have more proof! Are they registered on the BBB? Thank you so much for the support Shasta's attitude is only getting worse.
UPDATE: Shasta is getting bigger and there hasn't been any recent problems, except for her kennel cough. The breeder is pretty odd, and we aren't sure what were going to do, this is a horrible case.
