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CBS4.com
Chicago
Nov 11, 2008 1:23 pm US/Eastern
Buy Internet Puppies At Your Peril
CHICAGO (CBS) ― Shopping online is more popular than ever, and
now some people are even buying pets online.
With the click of a mouse, you can shop for the exact puppy
you're looking for much less than pet stores charge.
"The dog was $450, and that seems like a steal of a price for an
English bulldog," online puppy buyer T.J. Gajda told CBS station
WBBM-TV in Chicago.
But the woman he dealt with for more than a month kept adding
expenses, totaling more than $1,000. He never got the puppy, and
she didn't return phone calls to WBBM-TV.
"She threw the bait, she reeled me in," Gajda says. "She scammed
me and she conned me."
If you actually do get a puppy online, experts say you're making
a big mistake if you buy it without visiting the breeder to see
the puppy and its parents.
"If the mother is sick or the dogs come from an environment
that's dirty and diseased-filled, of course the puppy's going to
be sick," veterinarian Sheldon Rubin says. "Don't buy blindly."
One couple learned that lesson the hard way after they ordered a
puppy from Puppies On Wheels. They paid $900 - $100 of it for
delivery by a truck they had to meet at 1 a.m. along the
highway. The dog appeared sick.
Puppies On Wheels is operated by Kathy Bauck. As WBBM-TV
Investigators disclosed last month, Bauck now faces
animal-cruelty charges in Minnesota. The cruelty charges were
based on video taken by an investigator for the Companion Animal
Protection Society (CAPS). It shows Bauck dunking dogs in a
diluted but toxic insecticide.
The CAPS investigator did see a veterinarian examining puppies
before they're shipped, as required by the Department of
Agriculture. The couple's puppy came with a certificate saying
it had no signs of infectious, contagious and communicable
diseases.
The USDA is reviewing the CAPS video and could revoke Bauck's
breeding license, but that won't necessarily change things.
"Internet sales are not regulated by the USDA," Deborah Howard
of CAPS says. "Even if she's convicted … she'll still be able to
run Puppies On Wheels."
Some Internet sites help shelters find homes for rescue dogs.
"I felt comfortable with it because I thought I was adopting a
puppy,saving a dog's life," says Holly Peeples.
The Website warned that the puppy had weak legs but was doing
great. But days after Daisy arrived, she was diagnosed with
serious problems.
"She had a blood disorder, she had pneumonia very badly," Terry
Peeples said. "She was dealing with some parasites."
Even with vet bills totaling $3,000, Daisy had to be put to
sleep.
Bauck's attorney says that if puppies are sick she does not ship
them.
She has pleaded not guilty to the cruelty charges. Her attorney
claims that the CAPS investigator fabricated evidence when he
recorded conditions at her breeding farm last spring.
Since then the USDA cited Bauck for not providing adequate vet
care to sick animals. Its last inspection report found no
violations, but the agency is now reviewing the undercover video
for possible future action.
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