When it comes to the border, we are concerned with drug and human trafficking, immigration issues, and child custody. But there’s also a huge problem that animal shelters like Sanctuary Hostel are noticing to help you when you consider “where can I buy a dog”. Most importantly, let’s say no to the illegal dog trade together.
Don’t Let the Illegal Dog Trade Sway You
Crossing the border between the United States and Mexico can take hours. So, you could be sitting in your car waiting for your turn. Border Sellers are moving from car to car trying to get people to buy from them. Surprised, you notice something moving in the bag of one of the border sellers. He gets closer and you see a cute puppy hanging from the bag. Painfully looking at you.
The seller comes up to you and asks for anything between $20 and $200 for this cute creature. You see how miserable the dog’s situation is and you grab your wallet and hand the seller the money. After all, the answer to the question “where can I buy a dog” suddenly seems so easy.
Moreover, you think you are saving this dog by buying him or her and giving them a home with a loving family. And you probably are in many ways. But you are hurting all the other dogs this guy is keeping locked up in a cramped place nearby with no food or water to sell later. And most of all, you are hurting the cause of being kind to all living things. That is why PAY TO SAVE is not a great idea.
We know you are probably asking yourself now “where can I buy a dog” ethically then. And in this post, we are going to answer that and you will also learn why buying from those border sellers is not only illegal, but also unethical and, hopefully, against your own beliefs, but before that let us tell you the whole story.
Border Sellers Use Dogs for Breeding Purposes
Generally speaking, breeding animals is unethical. We would never consider it ethical to force people to breed and make their babies available for purchase or give them away as GIFTS. And border sellers do just that to produce most of the puppies you buy at the border. Here’s how they harm the dogs by doing so.
One of the biggest ways animals suffer through breeding is because of what happens to the female. Since breeding is all based on selecting desirable traits, breeders use females with those traits to impregnate them over and over until their bodies are worn out. This goes so far that some females get uterine cancer and die. Even if that doesn’t happen, the female life expectancy will be shorter than normal.
Also, for every dog that is brought into the world through breeding, another dog loses the chance to be cared for and that is why we are in favor of the “adopt don’t shop” philosophy. Of course, this is a slightly different answer to the question “where can I buy a dog” because you don’t actually buy dogs from shelters. You work with them to find the right dog for you for free.
Border sellers are not only breeders harming animals. But they’re also part of a huge scam. Breeding produces animals with genetic defects and that gives them a lot of health problems. Such problems include anxiety, mental disorders, and physical ailments.
In addition, breeders are obsessed with pure blood, resulting in an animal with severe physical defects such as blindness, heart defects, skin problems, and many other diseases. So, imagine buying an animal only to find out later that it has a chronic disease and will soon die of some sort of sickness.
Most of the Dogs are Newborn Puppies and not Ready yet to Leave their Mothers
As mentioned, as border sellers’ only concern is the profit, they harm, not only the mother, but also the young puppies.
Newborn puppies are like any other living being. They are weak and vulnerable, and they greatly need their mother. The proper amount of time a newborn should spend with its mother is between 6 and 8 weeks. Ideally, however, it should be 12 weeks. Of course, in our situation, that is not the case. The Border sellers you meet may have puppies younger than 4 weeks old. So, what are the consequences of not spending this time with the mother?
Newborn puppies need to be breastfed every one to two hours. Taking them away from their mother, won’t only take that food away from them, but It also deprives them of the proper amount of nutrition their mother produces through her milk. So the result is a weak dog.
We know from first-hand experience how important it is to be close to our mothers. Especially when we are young. This is also the case with all other creatures. When you take a puppy away from its mother, you deprive it of her love and attention. This dampens cognitive and emotional development which can lead to behavioral issues later in life. Moreover, puppies learn how and who to trust from their mothers while learning how to be playful and sociable with their siblings. This is a critical developmental period of their life.
So what kind of puppy does this separation produce? It produces a defective puppy and as illustrated in this list, the animal can suffer of:
- Weight loss
- Increased risk of disease
- Anxiety and aggression
- Fear when walking
- Difficult behavior with other dogs
Imagine having a dog with these characteristics!
Border Sellers Mistreat the Dogs
Border sellers mistreat the dogs throughout the whole process. And we will show you how they do that by highlighting two parts.
First, is where the puppies come from. If you’ve never heard of “dog mills,” let me introduce you to the term. Dog Mills are facilities where dogs live in very tight cages with no room to make a move. These facilities are filthy, with no veterinarians, and no personal care for the dogs. Moreover, once the dog becomes seriously ill or has no more use for the breeders (like the mothers used for breeding), the breeders kill them in cold blood.
Second, those who survive this brutality, they’re taken to the border to be sold. And if you pay attention you’ll see that they’re still mistreated by the sellers. They aren’t protected from the sun or the cold. Crammed into a small bag with no space to move.
The sad truth about this situation is that if the animal didn’t die in the process, it’ll probably die with you (the new owner). The story of buying a dog only to see it die after a few days is simply a tragedy. And it begs the question, is every pup coming from Mexico bad? The answer to that, of course, is no. And we’ll tell you the right way to get a healthy puppy at the end of the post.
Dogs aren’t Healthy within the Illegal Dog Trade
So far we have shown you how the border sellers are careless when it comes to taking care of the dogs’ health. And this also includes not vaccinating them and not taking care of them when they’re sick.
Our partner at Sanctuary Hostel Kathie is a first-hand witness to this point. Through her many years working in Mexico, she’s seen how awful the vaccination situation is there. As she describes it, “The adopter meets the dog, loves the dog, and watches the dog die. It’s heartbreaking for them. A great, loving home is wasted because someone wouldn’t pay $15 to vaccinate a puppy.”
Border sellers are just scamming you. You buy a dog without a vaccination certificate or with a fake one only to discover the sad truth some days later. But it doesn’t stop there. Have you ever wondered what the authorities think of those border sellers?
It’s an Illegal Dog Trade
The whole situation of selling by the border is complicated. From the beginning, you need a license to practice selling around the border. And there are goods that you’re allowed to sell and goods that are illegal in that area. What we know is that animal border sellers mostly don’t meet those requirements. And the authorities make sure they are closed down and the animals are confiscated.
Take the right action. For a start don’t assume that these border sellers are your answer to the question “where can I buy a dog”. Because if you do, you’re not just helping the border sellers continue hurting other animals. You’re also part of an illegal trade.
You can Face a Penalty for Buying from Border Sellers.
As you’ve seen so far, this animal-selling business by the border is shady. But there’s one point we can’t finish the post without mentioning. The whole world is facing an animal trafficking issue. The U.S.-Mexico border is no different. This simply means that there’s a possibility you’re buying a smuggled or stolen dog.
But that’s not all, as rules go, buying a smuggled or stolen animal, will make you part of the crime. That can make you face time in jail. So, before you buy a dog without knowing its origins, ask yourself, Could it be smuggled or stolen? Do I want to take that risk?
What can I do to help?
First of all, don’t buy from border sellers to avoid supporting the illegal dog trade. Secondly, make sure you ask for paperwork and the dog’s history. Thirdly, make sure you visit and review their current living conditions. That will give you the biggest sign of how well they have been cared for. Finally, get recommendations and reviews from other dog owners.
As individuals, you can choose to answer the question “where can I buy a dog” by visiting reputable shelters, owners and dealers. While ignoring border sellers is what you can do, we, at Sanctuary Hostel, believe in education and offering alternatives.
Our passion for helping animals is based on our love for all creatures and we know you share this love with us. We are willing to put the time and effort into giving those animals home and love until they’re ready to go back to the world, but this time as members of a family. This isn’t an easy task. That’s why we rely on educating others to help more animals. And you can be part of this by adopting from people like us. And there are many ways to make sure you’re making the right choice.
Where can I buy a dog then?
Our partner Foster Fail Rescue Dogs has everything you need and more. Not all animals coming from Mexico are sick or part of the illegal dog trade. You can now adopt a lovely dog from a reliable source. And you can be sure that the animal is healthy and has never been abused on its way to you. Contact them now to learn more.
And tell us if you have any experience regarding illegal dog trade or smuggled dogs.
