It is ridiculous, but so is the Adopt, Don’t Shop mantra.

I know you have seen a meme or heard someone say, “Adopt, Don’t Shop.” It is one of those things I call “feel-good” stupidity. We suffer from all sorts of feel-good stupidity, and have even had such thinking become so pervasive in our society that we now not only have, but welcome and encourage “feel-good laws.” Laws that serve no purpose in reality except to grow government, and in order to support and enforce these feel-good laws we have to either pay more taxes, or kick the can down the road and borrow the money from another country so that our great-great-great grandchildren can pay for these idiotic laws and regulations– all so we can “feel-good” and “enlightened.” It isn’t enlightenment to force future generations to pay for your stupidity. 30 years ago, as a young boy, I could have never imagined the world that we live in, a world that is run on emotion, and NOT logic.

As a boy, I remember nobody batting an eye about someone bringing home a new puppy that they bought from an ad in the newspaper. Heck, that is where the majority of puppies were sold. Every mall had a pet-store and I always had to go and look at the puppies. We never bought a puppy from a pet store. Why would we? It was cheaper to buy a paper and peruse the Classified ads where you would see dozens, if not hundreds, of ads for puppies for sale. Have you picked up a paper recently and looked in the classifieds for a puppy? There may be an ad or two, but there may be none. Some papers have stopped taking ads for animals for sale while freely having an adoptable animal section. So, where is the average person supposed to go to buy a puppy? Forget a pet store, because cities across this country are outlawing the sales of puppies in pet stores, while they allow those same stores (like the aforementioned newspapers) to have “adoptable” animals. Here’s the truth, pet store puppies come from one of the most regulated industries in this country– the commercial breeder. These breeders have a literal book of regulations that they have to follow by the federal government, and then they have literally have ANOTHER BOOK of regulations that they have to follow by their state, and they may very well have even more regulations added to the mountains they already have by their county and/or township. All of these regulations are mostly what I would call the “anti-feel-good regulations.” They are in place to ensure that these animals are NOT treated as pets, but as livestock. It isn’t the breeders that have chosen this, but a bureaucracy that has been heavily lobbied by groups like HSUS, ASPCA, PeTA, et.al. Here’s the thing, these organizations LOBBIED FOR these regulations, and now they sell their lies to an ignorant public about how inhumane these conditions are and that all commercial breeders should be outlawed, and if we can’t do that, we should outlaw the pet stores where they sell their puppies! Do you feel duped, yet? If not, you should.

Making the rounds on social media are memes of “supposed” commercial kennels, proclaiming that is where the pet store puppies come from. These people producing these memes know full-well that these images are not from CURRENT licensed kennels. They know that they are from either decades ago, or from even overseas “dog farms.” (Yes, we are not the only country that breeds and sells dogs for various reasons.) Now, you may be saying to yourself, “But my friend who shows dogs shared that meme!” Yep, I believe it. They have been duped, too. As the Animal Rights Terrorists began their campaigns to end companion animals, they went to the show communities and convinced us of the evils of the commercial breeder, and that we, along with the ARTs, needed to banish these people from the earth because we had to work together to protect the breeds we love so they won’t be tarnished by some evil commercial kennel! Now, some of us saw the lie, some of us didn’t. Some of us thought we could use the ARTs to take out the competition so we would have a larger share of the puppy-buying public!

Some show people have yet to wake up to the reality, and they continue to behave like a jew working for the nazis– hoping and praying that in the end they will be spared. They won’t. The new push is against all of those breeders that aren’t regulated. Now, the story they are sellin is that it isn’t “really” the commercial kennels (because they know how over-regulated they are) that are the problem, it is all of those people who are breeding but aren’t regulated and are “hiding”… you guessed it, that hobby/ show breeder! See, this is a two-fold attack. 1) Get the show people to share memes about the evils of the places where pet store puppies come from so we can outlaw pet store puppy sales and 2) Inform the public that they should never buy a puppy from a non-USDA licensed breeder (you know, the show breeder, because the USDA breeder has been put out of business because they have taken away their ability to sell their puppies.)

Add all of this to pictures of puppies suffering in shelters and you have effectively convinced the public that it is not only helping end a problem, but that it is almost impossible to find an actual breeder that fits into their “image of humane.” Afterall, it is all those horrible breeders of purebred dogs that are the cause of the millions of mutts that are destroyed every year. How that works, I am not exactly sure, but it sure makes me feel-good to know I am saving it! And, oh look, this puppy you just “adopted” only cost $399 and is going to be the perfect small dog for your family. Tell me, a year later, how much have you actually spent on that 80 pound aggressive mongrel that actually came from a pack of wild dogs in Taiwan? Oh, you didn’t realize that is where it came from. Oh my, the dog didn’t work out in your house? How does that guilt trip feel when you call the rescue to ask for help? Wouldn’t it have been nice to know exactly where your puppy came from, who its parents were, and that if there was a problem, that someone was willing to work with you to rectify it? It probably would have, but that is all in the past, because you wanted to “feel-good”.

I must say, that I don’t know why people don’t wake up to reality except that reality is hard, and we all would rather live in some fairy tale, but we forget that the real fairy tales were GRIMM. To me, the meme at the beginning of this post is actually more important. Kids are homeless, through zero fault of their own. KIDS— HUMANS! Why do we do more for homeless animals, neglected animals than we do for our own? It is outrageous that we as a society think it is more appropriate to regulate the breeding of a DOG than it is a HUMAN! How can we support legislation that restricts your ability to OWN a pet because it “might” be abused or neglected, when every day in this country and around the world there is real human suffering, children are born every day into abusive and neglectful homes.

Do you want to know why we don’t require a license to have kids? It is simple, we aren’t quite “enlightened” enough… yet!

Now if that doesn’t scare you to your core nothing will.

I understand it, but it doesn’t mean it’s right.

I get it, I think. I really do.

Not many people see a picture of a dead lion and feel all warm and fuzzy (unless, of course, you are a Zimbabwean who grew up in the bush terrified of the roars at night). People hate to see images of dead animals or hear stories of suffering animals. So do I. I remember going to the “camp” when I was a pre-teen with my Pappie and Dad and brother to go “hunting.” I was in the stand the day my dad killed his first deer, but I, of course, was asleep on the floor. It wasn’t until the 4th rifle blast that I woke up. I remember walking the woods following the blood trail to find the dead deer. I remember the dragging it out of the woods and taking it to the club to dress it. I was intensely fascinated with the inner working of the deer, but was so sad at the same time. I remember in my late teens being present when one of my family’s workers was slaughtering pigs. Again, I was fascinated and curious about the process that would bring food to the table, but by now I was also repulsed by it.

Those feelings are in direct contrast to when I was a young boy on my cousin’s farm and they would slaughter the hogs or chickens or deer or cows. Then, as a young boy, I understood the natural order of things in a way that was not yet clouded by misplaced emotions. I was still innocent.

Life takes its toll on us all. It molds us, changes us and can even be the kiln that fires us and makes us rigid in our beliefs, unable and unwilling to be open to new ideas, new truths.

So, when most of us see an animal, we see a truth that is in fact a lie. We see animals as “better” than people, as innocent, as pure– something that no human is, so therefore, better than us. This is a lie. It is a falsehood. It is not reality.

The truth is that no animal can be innocent, by the very fact that it can’t be guilty. You can’t have innocence without guilt, good without bad, evil without holy, light without dark. That is reality, that is truth.

Animals are spectacular creatures, and we are amazed by them, drawn to them and in awe of them. Why? Because of their simplicity. Unlike man, their choices are not made by a complex series of thoughts and planning. They are innate, born from within. They live in the moment with no real “thought” about the future or the past. The exact opposite of man. We are so completely wrapped in thought about the things of the past and our plans for the future that we rarely live in the present.

That is why we can feel such strong emotions toward animals. I have found that those we deeply and intensely LOVE hold the quailities that we wish to emulate. The great loves of my life were of people that I can only describe as Holy, and as Love themselves. Their actions in life were for the well-being of others over and above themselves. The people that I have felt the most amount of distaste for are those that have hurt me emotionally (I extended myself/ my love to them to not have it reciprocated in a like manner), or people that hold or exude a quality(s) that I myself possess and that I wish to change about myself.

I have never met a man that hasn’t been deeply hurt by another man and I have yet to meet a man that has been emotionally hurt in that same way by an animal. So, as humans, we tend to reach out to those that offer comfort and to avoid pain and many of us then turn to animals who do not have the capabilities to hurt us in the way another human can.

Then we, fractured human beings, see an image of a man standing next to a carcass of a majestic animal wearing a smile or a puppy in a cage et.al.,  and we have a CHOICE (unlike a baser animal) to make. We can either process the complex series of thoughts that are taking place in our very complex brains or we can be drawn by the baser emotions that we feel. Stopping and thinking is complex, and does nothing to soothe “our heart.” The thought process may tell you that you don’t have all of the information to proceed and that you need to research this matter, or even that this matter REALLY doesn’t have any effect on you or your life. OR you can listen to your “heart” which may tell you that you should HATE that person and do or say something to bring about vengeance for the dead beast against his “murderer.” And in that very instant that you choose to listen to your “wounded heart” you have exemplified what you despise in the hunter– his PERCEIVED inability to care, which is exactly what you have just done yourself.

I understand why people choose that course, but it doesn’t mean that they are right. It is a course of action that no animal, that they espouse to love, would ever take.

Dead lions should not equate to threats on humans!

So, everywhere on social media is the story of a dentist that went on a trophy hunting trip in Africa and killed a “popular” lion. Now, it seems, in order to prove you love animals, you have to villify this man and call for him to be shot, tortured and run out of business. That makes sense, I guess, until you realize that HUMANS are animals. In fact, I am much more forgiving to humans because we can actually make the choice to not hate, especially when the facts surrounding such a case are so sketchy.

Why, do we humans, feel the need to rush to judgement? As soon as we see a story, or hear bits of a story, we immediately take a side. Americans seem to be the worst at this, which I find exceedingly odd since we have a justice system that proclaims EVERYONE is INNOCENT until PROVEN GUILTY in a COURT OF LAW. It doesn’t seem we care much about what the courts think, so we immediately condemn people in the court of public opinion. Trust me when I tell you, again today, that this situation, like life, is not as simple as black or white.

Be careful of the hate you spread, because chances are good that it can be pointed back at you.

PAX

Black or white, do they really exist?

Black or White? Good or Bad? Oh, how I have come to loathe these words! Add Democrat or Republican to those and you pretty much have the entire list of things that really piss me off.

The truth is, and something I didn’t understand until I was well into my 30s is that the world, and human nature, are not as simple as one thing or the other. I remember my Junior Master when I was in the monastery trying to convince me of that fact, but I was born with a stubborn streak and refused to listen. He was right. He is a very wise man and for 15 years I have regretted not allowing my pride to take a back seat and digest his words.

Even now, I struggle, as do we all with this very basic principle which is the very essence of being human. It is what separates us from all other animals. Many times, we don’t even realize that our actions go completely against what we say we believe in.

In an example that is ripped from the headlines, I choose to take on the GOP establishment. (For the record, IF I had to label myself as a member of one of the parties of crooks and liars that they all seem to be, it would be the GOP, since I vote for their candidates 98% of the time.) The GOP proclaims to believe in smaller government, fewer regulations and laws so that people can pursue life, LIBERTY and their own happiness, but right now across this country, GOP-led states are writing and passing laws to protect citizens that are already protected, but this new public sideshow is done in an appeal just to appeal to the very far right in the party because those are the people that turn out to the primaries. It doesn’t seem to bother them they are doing the very thing they espouse to NOT believe in which is creating MORE laws and REGULATIONS, when the current laws and regulations are sufficient. On them, the irony of their actions is lost.

AND, that brings me to my own struggle. I really do believe in a smaller governmental system with fewer laws, fewer regulatory agencies and more freedom. I say remove all the warning labels and let natural selection weed out the stupid! (This is why I think Trump is so high in the polls. He isn’t speaking like the politicians we have come to despise. He says what most of us might think, but in this era of political correctness are too afraid to say out loud.)

So, back to my inner turmoil. Every day I see more and more cases of citizens’ rights being trampled on by the do-gooders that actually do no-good… the animal rights terrorists. I vehemently believe in proper animal welfare protections, but today, many of the things that were commonplace when I was growing up in the 80s are now considered not only out of fashion, but in many instances, illegal. We see rescues (reskews as I call them) shipping animals all over this country unregulated, and even bringing unhealthy dogs in from other countries, and with them come unknown diseases to our shores. We see these same reskews screaming “adopt, don’t shop” and passing laws to make very legal activity illegal in cities across this country. They have sold such lies to the public for 2 decades, and unbeknownst to most Americans, have pushed so many laws and regulations into effect from the city and county level that no pet owner could ever hope to know them all and they change and the numbers of them grow daily. All of these “feel-good” laws, as I call them, are aimed directly at the doorsteps of hard-working American breeders and animal lovers, yet none of them include regulations for the “reskew” trade that is happening. Their plan is so simple it is scary.1)  Make breeding so over-regulated and onerous and expensive that law-abiding citizens will give up and quit. 2) Make it illegal to sell puppies and cats in any retail fashion– force all puppies and kitties to be adopted. 3) Make spaying and neutering (despite the health risks to the animals) mandatory. 4) One and done. No more companion animals. It is happening right under our noses.

So, what does a person that believes in smaller government, less regulatory oversight, more consumer freedoms do? It’s a real question I pose to anyone that reads this!  Do I try and fight fire with fire and try and get MORE laws and regulations passed to include the reskews or do I work at having these “feel-good” laws and regulations repealed? And, is repealing a regulation as easy as getting lower taxes?

Breeders

Breeders in this day and age are under fire from all corners of society, and even from each other. I can easily picture a day in the near future when it will be easier to buy heroin than it is a purebred puppy.
Who is to blame for this onslaught? We all are. Every single American. We have allowed the Animal Rights Terrorists whittle away our rights little by little, just as we have allowed our government to steal more and more of our rights concerning every facet of out lives. As government grows, freedom contracts.
However, I put much of the blame on my fellow show/ hobby breeders for our loss of freedoms and insane regulations. We all sat back and bought the lies that HSUS, Peta, et.al. were selling: They were only after those horrible puppymillers and commercial breeders and the regulations they were pushing were just fine and not intended for the show community.
So, what did we do? We acted like good little sheeple and helped push an agenda that is now aimed directly at us, the show breeders, so what do we do? We continue to sell their propaganda for them! We are so afraid if we don’t that the puppy buying population will turn on us, so we publicly sell the propaganda and hide the very actions that we are publicly denouncing. We play the whole “do as I say and not as I do” game and get on our knees every night and pray that we don’t get caught!
The truth is that I am one of the most reluctant breeders on the planet. I hate the most essential aspect of breeding, which is selling puppies! No matter what, every breeder ends up with puppies that they simply can’t keep or we would be even more over-run with dogs than we currently are! Add that to the fact that it isn’t really healthy for the puppies to stay together en masse and you have to sell puppies. BUT, in order to sell puppies you have to deal with other people, people that have also been brainwashed by what a reputable breeder is. The amount of judgement that can be laid upon a person selling puppies is insane! I always feel more anxiety having to talk to these potential buyers than I do when I am standing outside the confessional preparing to tell a man my REAL sins!
So, one would deduce that the easiest people to sell puppies to would be other breeders (the only other people that firsthand know what you have to deal with), but they would be wrong. Breeders are the worst. They always want your best puppy, the one with zero faults, the one that can fix all of their dogs problems, and then, 9 times out of 10, after they have made you jump through hoops with a thousand pictures from every imaginable angle, asked for the pedigree to be sent 4000 times because they keep misplacing it, discussed health issues in the line until you recite the health history of 6 generations in your sleep, they decide the puppy isn’t what they really need, even though for 6 weeks it has been EXACTLY what they needed.
Yes, I speak from experience. It is one reason about a decade ago I just decided to make sure everyone knew that I would NOT sell to breeders, but with the ever changing times, and the loss of our breeding rights, I changed my tune and have become PRO-breeder and encourage people to breed healthy, happy pets so we can take back the conversation.
So, what happens? The same old same old. 6 weeks, 39 sets of pictures and countless messages telling me how much they wanted my puppy because everything they have is related to each and they need an outside line, so I FINALLY tell them I need a deposit to hold the puppy any longer. What comes next? You guessed it, a message telling me my puppy is crap and they don’t want it, but they still want to be friends and for me to still offer all of my knowledge to them! Yeah, well, ummm…. NO!
So, I blow off steam to a mutual friend, and as they recount the story to another mutual friend, THAT mutual friend comments, “He sure seems to have a lot of health issues with his dogs, so maybe that’s why this happened.”
Here’s the thing, I DON’T have more health issues than any other breeder, in fact, in our breed, I most likely have FEWER health issues, but here’s the thing, I know what they are! Lots of people talk about health, but when ticks come to tacks can they back it up? I have 6 generations worth of paperwork showing REMARKABLY healthy dogs well into old age! I even have paperwork on outside sires that I paid to have the testing done! The truth is, last year was the first time in quite a long time that I got some iffy results, and they were all on a litter of puppies from an outside sire I used, and his daughter that I had purchased from his owner.
BUT, when people contact me looking for a dog or puppy, I DO tell them the whole truth on every dog that I know of in their pedigree. I owe them that, because I know I can’t guarantee a completely fault-free puppy, I owe them the truth so they can make an informed decision. The truth, even about HEALTHY dogs, has cost me countless sales, but it is the right thing to do, and I can sleep at night (except when 16 week old puppies that I can’t sell keep me up with their playing).