"No one wanted him because his tail didn't fully develop and he couldn't be shown or bred - Does that mean he should have been put down rather than live a full and happy life with people that love him??"
If this statement is true- it should give you some insight to the kind of breeder he came from? Those that are breeding for the right purposes place puppies in pet homes, even with faults, such as an undeveloped tail or mirad of other faults.
It is wonderful that he did enter rescue and is in a wonderful home, and I think I can offer some insight to this thread.
Last weekend I was called by the local shelter to pick up a Newf they had just got in. It was a landseer male, 20 months old, from a byb located within ten miles of me. I have met this person face to face and his discussion with me was " Why don't you have any browns, landseers, or greys? If you breed those colors together you get the "off" colors, and those are where the money is, people will pay more for the creams, grey&whites, and brown&whites, not to mention the solid "off" colors as well". The gentleman had taken the landseer to the pound himself and left him as he had medical issues that he didn't want to put any money into.
For many breeders the experiences with the off colors, have not always been good ones and thus why we become defensive when talking about grey&white, brown&white, and Creams. Puppy mills and dollar sign breeders have found a new "nitch" in the puppy market, the "off" colors, and market them for thier uniqueness. IMO- it is harder to find a grey or brown that is from a quality breeder, there are some out there, but they are not the norm.
I am not referring to anyone's breeder on here, just insight from my personal experiences, but wanted to share one of the many cases/experiences that form our thoughts about those that breed simply for color, and there are those out there.
If this statement is true- it should give you some insight to the kind of breeder he came from? Those that are breeding for the right purposes place puppies in pet homes, even with faults, such as an undeveloped tail or mirad of other faults.
It is wonderful that he did enter rescue and is in a wonderful home, and I think I can offer some insight to this thread.
Last weekend I was called by the local shelter to pick up a Newf they had just got in. It was a landseer male, 20 months old, from a byb located within ten miles of me. I have met this person face to face and his discussion with me was " Why don't you have any browns, landseers, or greys? If you breed those colors together you get the "off" colors, and those are where the money is, people will pay more for the creams, grey&whites, and brown&whites, not to mention the solid "off" colors as well". The gentleman had taken the landseer to the pound himself and left him as he had medical issues that he didn't want to put any money into.
For many breeders the experiences with the off colors, have not always been good ones and thus why we become defensive when talking about grey&white, brown&white, and Creams. Puppy mills and dollar sign breeders have found a new "nitch" in the puppy market, the "off" colors, and market them for thier uniqueness. IMO- it is harder to find a grey or brown that is from a quality breeder, there are some out there, but they are not the norm.
I am not referring to anyone's breeder on here, just insight from my personal experiences, but wanted to share one of the many cases/experiences that form our thoughts about those that breed simply for color, and there are those out there.