Complaint Review: Robbins Nest Of Shih Tzu's Thressa Robbins - Internet

First of all....and most importantly... IT IS AGAINST THE LAW TO SELL A SICK PUPPY AND A PUPPY LESS THAN 8 WEEKS OF AGE!!!!!!!!!! Second of all, you do not have to be a show person to be a good breeder. I love all my dogs! All of them. Do you realize that most show people interbreed? Brred father and daughter. It's called "Line Breeding". When line breeding you have a 75% chance in bringing out the worst of the puppy and all you see is the "best" in the show ring. Know what your talking about before you open your mouth. Yes everyone makes mistakes but there are guidlines to follow. Selling a puppy before 8 weeks of age.....never! I AM A BREEDER! But first and foremost I am a pet owner, dog groomer and a mom, not just to my son but also to all my doggies. Breeder wars? Useless. People get your crap together.

I totally disagree with Puppy Mills producing puppies so they do not have to go to work. I wish all dogs should be spayed and neutered @ these puppy Mills. I myself have 5 Shih-tzus and with Ch. sired lines. I thought last December I myself would breed. Truth I can socialize my 5 Shih-tzus that are all around 1 year. This is the deal Last Dec. their was not a million puppies on puppyfind. I will have a litter maybe 2 but even though they are AKC W/ CH. 5 in the 1st 5 generation I will only sell spay and neuter. They can Akc and show that their puppy is from some of the greatest lines in U.S. I have adopted out 7 puppies and I know where everyone is at. I get invited to their homes for Dinner. I have turned people away with double the money so the could breed my babies but guess what? I am not part of a population problem and I can sleep at night. Some may question well, y do you have any shih-tzus? answer, I have the best Shih-tzu in the world. They are loving. even-temperment and yes the real deal. Long eye lashes short cobby bodies and no bigger than 9 pounds. I go by AKC guildlines. Here is the best way to find a good breeder. When the breeder questions you more than you question them. When they only have puppies once a year. Maybe 2 xs. I have 2 vets. I use both. I love the fact that Dr are different and have different opinions. When it costs more to own a shih-tzu (s) and breed them. I have to screen all people. I am not and will not be tricked by breeder of 4 different dogs though it has been tried. I am 1st a Shih-tzu lover. I donate when I breed and only when their is at least 2 people wanting my furbabies, I donate 25% of my pet price to Maddie Fund. Now a ethical breeder is one who does not have puppies all year long. Every day of week. I think the women who do that to a dog needs to be pregnant for the reat of her life and shoot out as many kids as they make their dogs produce. Go look @ puppyfind and if you are not led to tears something is wrong. Something about making money on caged animals is wrong. But let me guess most breeders cried when King Kong got captured. What do you think happened to the dog that got tangled in a breeders web. As animal activist you have to go and document for a year wrong doing in a kennel for the owners to get slap on wrist and then continue their dog rearing in a friends name. omg

I checked out Thressa's website at www.robbinsnestofshihtzus.com and was apauled at how many puppies she has. At this time there are 37 puppies on the ground advertised on Thressa's website and two more litters expected. How in the world can you possibly take care of & properly socialize that many puppies? No wonder why this poor Mary and her family ended up with a sick puppy. I'm sure there are many out there that just haven't found this site yet. Anyone who produces that many puppies is nothing more than a puppy mill. You are obviously just doing this for the money & not to improve the breed. It's all about the quantity of puppies you can produce. People out there need to be weary of breeders like this & buy from reputable breeders.

I wasn't going to continue with any further statements but am just shocked at the rebuttals that are posted on here. First let me point out that I SHOW my Collies & occasionally have a litter. I DO NOT make money on ANY litter. If any of you SHOWED your dogs you would know that. But then again you don't breed to the AKC standard so you CAN'T show your dogs. How do you know what quality is if you have never seen it. Do you test your dogs for genetic problems - I bet NOT! What I am tired of seeing is backyard breeders & puppy mills taking advantage of the consumer for a buck. There are enough dogs & for that matter cats in this world that the backyard breeders & puppy mills who have no idea what kind of quality to breed for just add to the overpopulation. This is not a so called breeder war (whatever that is) but if you are soo concerned about it Lynne then you must have several problems with other people. The main concern here is that a puppy lost it's life & a family was forced to not only take on the emotional burden of a sick & now dead puppy but a financial burden as well. If Thressa is admitting her fault then why was a full refund not given (and I mean the vet bills)? Thressa do you really feel you can sleep at night knowing you sent a sick puppy off to a family with children that was not healthy. You knew about the scratched eye, his age & the diarrhea, how can you not see that you were responsible. Had you drove to pick the puppy up, contacted the vet who was caring for the puppy or offered a full refund due to your mistake I would find it easier to believe you really cared & it wasn't about the money. Mary is correct in her statement that the incubation period for an infection/disease is 10 days which puts the puppy in Thressa's care when whatever infection/disease was contracted by this puppy. And according to my calendar the puppy was one day shy of 7 weeks old but still ONLY 6 weeks old. So Sandy from Louisiana it seems to me that Thressa should have known better as we are all better educated as you stated. Mary may be only one in a million but it's how the breeder handles a problem that proves what kind of breeder they are. You also state Sandy that you don't have to show your dogs to know what the standard is, we'll my dear looks like you need to do your research as from what I have seen Thressa breeds for UNDER the AKC standard to please her customers. Is that a reputable breeder? Not in my books. Why would you breed outside of the standard unless it is to make a buck. It all sounds to me like Mary has been very thorough and maybe somewhat emotional (who wouldn't be if they lost a puppy) in all of her postings but I believe truthful. She even posted her vet's name for anyone reading this to contact them to verify her statements made here. Anyone reading this report really needs to read it carefully and take note that these 3 breeders are backyard breeders & nothing more than that. These kind of breeders need to be stopped. I truly hope that even if Thressa, Danielle, & Lynne continue to breed that they take a look at all that has happened here. As you stated, everyone makes mistakes, but correct them and keep them from happening again.

Im sorry,but Im not a friend or customer of this breeder,I have never met her nor am I a breeder! I came across this report looking at this site. it seems to me that this breeder did everything she could to ensure a healthly pup and try to please a very pushy,cold customer! I have bought many pups and it was long ago the norm for many years that they left at 6 weeks of age. now days we are better educated to know thats a little too young to be away from mom!! that doesnt make her a animal abuser! I read the breeder took the pup to the vet before it left!! alot of pups I have bought got all their care from their breeders only!! The breeder did give her a refund and some medical money with no big hassel!! most breeders want alot of tests done first and will stick to the written contracts like its the bible!!and vet statements that were signed by a notary!! then they find a loop hole not to refund or pay back any medical cost! You dont have to show the breed of dog you have to be a good breeder!! thats just silly!!! you know the standard and the temperment of your animals to know who and when to allow a good breeding! you dont have to be a pastor to be a christian or a devoted handler in the ring to educate yourself to the breed!! I saw that this lady knew every dime spent and seemed to me to be a little hard to deal with and somewhat cold toward the putting down of the pup listing the expense in dollars not tears!! I just found this report on this site and after reading this ladys report I would buy from this breeder she seemed to try VERY hard!! the breeders mistake was trying to over please this lady!!.SANDY FROM THE GULF COAST!! DONT LET THIS REPORT BOTTER YOU ITS ONE PERSON IN A MILLION!!!..

I would like to address a few issues that were brought up. Thressa was referred to me by a breeder. The breeder that referred me to Thressa said she had purchased puppies from Thressa in the past and since I was referred by a breeder I felt I had done my homework so to speak. I have since learned that a breeder referral has no bearing on a first time puppy buyer because a breeder wouldn't jeopardize their reputation by selling another breeder an unhealthy puppy. In other words, just because a breeder has had a good experience, it doesn't mean that your average puppy buyer would as well. During my initial phone call with Thressa I asked whether or not she had puppies available before Christmas. Her answer to this was yes, and she told me which puppies would be available and encouraged me to look at her website. On her puppy page, it stated these puppies would be able to arrive at their new homes before Christmas and ours was one of them. I did not stress the importance of purchasing a puppy before Christmas because I didn't have to. According to Thressa as well as her website, the puppy was available before Christmas. Our puppy was only 6 weeks old. 1 or 2 days short of being 7 weeks old, but that is still only 6 weeks old. The puppy was born on 11/5/06 and was picked up on 12/23/06. I wasn't aware of his age until speaking to the vet. They said the puppy was too young to have left his mother because he was only 6 weeks old at the time of the exchange, and that it appears he wasn't fully or properly weaned, and that puppies should never exchange hands even a day short of 8 weeks. I trusted that Thressa, her guarantee, and her website saying she would not release any puppies until they were 8 weeks old. As Thressa stated I did ask many questions. I did, knowledge is important and I hope to encourage future puppy buyers to do the same. In my opinion puppy buyers should ask questions. I believe that is what makes a responsible puppy buyer, and I also believe that reputable breeders would not only condone, but encourage questions I asked Thressa if she would mind, that my friend and her husband and two children pick up the puppy since they would be coming from Michigan to Illinois for the holiday, but that I would totally understand if she preferred that met her somewhere. Thressa lives 4 hours from me. Prior to the sale Thressa offered to meet us halfway on the day of the exchange, but since my friend and her family were driving that way I asked her how she felt about it. Her response is below. Subj: Re: Puppy Date: 11/24/2006 8:45:57 P.M. Central Daylight Time From: [email protected] Sent from the Internet (Details) As long as its coming from you, then I trust that these people are trustworthy! We can figure out more details as it gets closer, but it would be quicker for us to meet them at 27 & 69 too! __________________________________________________ I told Thressa about having him stay at a friend's house the first night so the puppy would be a surprise to my girls in the morning. She never told me she was concerned, nor did she suggest that I not do it. The eye injury I was told was a minor scratch, which is why I felt capable of caring for it myself. I didn't realize how severe the scratched eye was. I am not a veterinarian, I am not a breeder. I have since learned that a scratch on the eye is never minor and is not considered a healthy puppy, and that the breeder should never have done the exchange if the puppy wasn't deemed healthy. As for a clean bill of health, yes I did tell Thressa that OTHER then the bloody diarrhea, and the eye, he had a clean bill of health. Is that considered healthy? Thressa never requested a necropsy, and if it is standard for breeders to place that information in their guarantee, then Thressa's contract is not standard. In fact, the contract is null and void for many reasons, one of which is because the puppy was only 6 weeks old. Thressa was given the phone numbers of the veterinarians that cared for Payton, and I authorized that the office could give her any information she requested. The veterinarians have no records of Thressa calling them. Every phone call that was placed and every visit that was made was documented by their staff, as is their policy. As I told Thressa, the puppy did have an upper respiratory infection, but that was secondary and was only complicating matters. Upon seeing the puppy the vet's initially felt he might have contracted parvo, but upon receiving the negative result as well as the blood tests and according to his symptoms, it was determined that the puppy did not have Parvo, nor did he have Caronavirus or Kennel cough. The veterinarians felt that he wasn't weaned properly, was weaned to early, wasn't weaned at all, contracted something at the breeders, or was born with a disorder of some sort. It is the responsibility of the breeder to make that happen, there is no excuse for what happened in this situation. A reputable breeder would have never made the mistake of letting a puppy go before they are 8 weeks old. A few weeks prior to the exchange I asked Thressa what her thoughts were on Christmas puppies because I had read on the AKC website that purchasing puppies for Christmas was not a good idea. She said puppy buying at Christmas was only a personal preference and since our puppy was healthy and wasn't underweight we could do the exchange because that was just a guideline, but if I wanted to wait until after Christmas, that she could send a picture instead. Since I trusted her expertise, and since she said it wouldn't cause any problems I did what most puppy buyers would do, I took her word for it, I trusted her expertise and knowledge, and decided to take the puppy on the original date agreed upon. The puppy had bloody diarrhea within minutes of getting into the car with my friend, her husband and two boys. I know this because my friend called me right away to tell me, and in turn I called Thressa and also emailed her to express my concerns. The veterinarians said that stress does not cause blood in diarrhea. According to the puppies veterinarians they feel it is unlikely that this puppy suddenly developed bloody diarrhea 10 minutes after changing hands, but that the puppy had diarrhea prior to the exchange while he was in Thressa's care. If Thressa is always on her computer, has 20 dogs and has several upcoming litters, then maybe the bloody diarrhea and the fact that the puppy wasn't eating was overlooked. Thressa had stated to me earlier and in the above rebuttal that my friend picking up the puppy after visiting a kennel is what could have caused this. I spoke to the vets about this and they said there is an incubation period (10 days) in which diseases, infections and viruses are spread, and ten minutes or even 3 days is not enough to exhibit the severe symptoms our puppy had. The veterinarians also said that if Thressa actually did bring the puppy to the vet's office that it was more likely the puppy would have received a virus from her vet then from the kennel my friends dropped their dog off at, but even then the incubation period was not long enough for the puppy to have exhibited any symptoms that soon. They also said that as an owner, I did everything and more that I could for this puppy, that it was not my fault, nor the fault of my friends or family. They said I could have picked this puppy up myself, brought it straight home myself, and the puppy still would have had bloody diarrhea and a scratched eye. If Thressa agrees that she made a mistake, then why didn't she reimburse me for the entire amount of all the medical bills? Why should I have to pay for her mistakes? Some rebuttals that were placed included comments such as, forging doctors bills and, that the puppy could still be alive etc., I hope that people reading this will not base those comments on the credibility of my complaint and see that the information I have given is based entirely on facts. Thressa was given the vet information so she could verify what I told her. My family tragically lost a puppy. I implore anyone having questions about my integrity or whether or not this puppy is still alive to contact my vet & I'm sure they would be happy to put anyone's unease at rest. I can only assume that the person who has made such slanderous allegations is too close to Thressa to be unbiased. The veterinarian's information that cared for this puppy is in the original complaint and they are all located in Illinois. I'm sure reputable breeders and puppy buyers alike would agree that the information I shared was only to protect future puppy buyers and animals.

Well Sandy Yes I am a breeder and FAR from backyard breeder I make some money as well as you and others do.To say you dont is a LIE. I have many references including my VET who I work close with. His staff and him are GREAT. We all make mistakes in life no one is PERFECT you do not know me nor any one else listed on this report. You hatred shows. I am here as well as you, Thressa and Danielle to bring beautiful QUALITY babies to Great Families.(not a backyard breeder statement) As far as knowing what Mary said yes I have first hand knowledge of what was said either phone or email because I was present on several occassions. Until you know some one you should not knock them I do not know you therefore I will make no statements and even If I knew you I still would make no statements. Because BREEDER WARS are for Childern and people who lack self esteem in what they do or how they do it. I know how Mine and Thressa puppies are reaised As well as the many people who have been to my home and Thressa's It is Far better to GIVE then to Recieve, It is Far better to Forgive then to be mean, It is Far better to remain silent then to say hurtful things about some one YOU do not know.

Obviously the last 2 posts (Sandy in TX and Sherry in FL) are breeders. Yes, Lynne & Danielle are breeders also. I would like to state that "breeder wars" are very immature and should not be posted on rip off report. You are only hurting yourselves. For one, I did contact the vet, which at this time says the illness was "most likely" upper respiratory/pnemonia that ended up turning acute but that it couldnt be 100% determined! It is very unfair to state comments on here that you have no clue of! My advice is to keep your nose in your own business and do the best you can at what you do. I never once stated that I didnt feel sorry for Mary and her family, I DO! If I didnt care, I would have kept the $1000 plus that I repaid her and have acted as if this never happened! I had spoke to Mary on several occasions and I am APPAULD that she is stating I didnt! I have phone records from my phone bill for God's Sake! I am not going to go on & on here about who was right and who was wrong. Honestly, I have already mentioned that I made a mistake & I am truly saddened for it. It was NOT to make a sale, it was to try and make Mary & her family happy which backfired on me, the puppy and also on her family for which I apologized! I learned my lesson and that is all I can say. As for my dogs being "under the standard", well 95 percent of the people who contact me (breeders & pet customers) want smaller! They are not what the so called breeders call "imperials" as I do not believe in that, they are just Shih Tzus with smaller lines. There is nothing wrong with that! I am tired of being ridiculed for this happening. I made a mistake, things happened that surely shouldnt have and I am regretful to Mary & her family and of course to the poor puppy. I do have many many happy puppy buyers and I keep in touch regularly. I receive Christmas cards, birthday cards, first haircut letters & pics...but Lord only knows I am not going to call each of them up and ask them to write something about me on this ridiculous website because of one bad mishap that I have tried to make right! I am done with posting on here, I have said all I need to say. I apologize to Mary & her family, and I also hope that any other breeders or people looking to buy puppies that read this, learn that there is always an unhappy and unfortunate situation that happens in someones life...its ashame we cant all forgive. Lord knows we wont forget, but at the most we can do for eachother is forgive & learn from the unfortunate mistake.

Obviously the last 2 posts (Sandy in TX and Sherry in FL) are breeders. Yes, Lynne & Danielle are breeders also. I would like to state that "breeder wars" are very immature and should not be posted on rip off report. You are only hurting yourselves. For one, I did contact the vet, which at this time says the illness was "most likely" upper respiratory/pnemonia that ended up turning acute but that it couldnt be 100% determined! It is very unfair to state comments on here that you have no clue of! My advice is to keep your nose in your own business and do the best you can at what you do. I never once stated that I didnt feel sorry for Mary and her family, I DO! If I didnt care, I would have kept the $1000 plus that I repaid her and have acted as if this never happened! I had spoke to Mary on several occasions and I am APPAULD that she is stating I didnt! I have phone records from my phone bill for God's Sake! I am not going to go on & on here about who was right and who was wrong. Honestly, I have already mentioned that I made a mistake & I am truly saddened for it. It was NOT to make a sale, it was to try and make Mary & her family happy which backfired on me, the puppy and also on her family for which I apologized! I learned my lesson and that is all I can say. As for my dogs being "under the standard", well 95 percent of the people who contact me (breeders & pet customers) want smaller! They are not what the so called breeders call "imperials" as I do not believe in that, they are just Shih Tzus with smaller lines. There is nothing wrong with that! I am tired of being ridiculed for this happening. I made a mistake, things happened that surely shouldnt have and I am regretful to Mary & her family and of course to the poor puppy. I do have many many happy puppy buyers and I keep in touch regularly. I receive Christmas cards, birthday cards, first haircut letters & pics...but Lord only knows I am not going to call each of them up and ask them to write something about me on this ridiculous website because of one bad mishap that I have tried to make right! I am done with posting on here, I have said all I need to say. I apologize to Mary & her family, and I also hope that any other breeders or people looking to buy puppies that read this, learn that there is always an unhappy and unfortunate situation that happens in someones life...its ashame we cant all forgive. Lord knows we wont forget, but at the most we can do for eachother is forgive & learn from the unfortunate mistake.

Obviously the last 2 posts (Sandy in TX and Sherry in FL) are breeders. Yes, Lynne & Danielle are breeders also. I would like to state that "breeder wars" are very immature and should not be posted on rip off report. You are only hurting yourselves. For one, I did contact the vet, which at this time says the illness was "most likely" upper respiratory/pnemonia that ended up turning acute but that it couldnt be 100% determined! It is very unfair to state comments on here that you have no clue of! My advice is to keep your nose in your own business and do the best you can at what you do. I never once stated that I didnt feel sorry for Mary and her family, I DO! If I didnt care, I would have kept the $1000 plus that I repaid her and have acted as if this never happened! I had spoke to Mary on several occasions and I am APPAULD that she is stating I didnt! I have phone records from my phone bill for God's Sake! I am not going to go on & on here about who was right and who was wrong. Honestly, I have already mentioned that I made a mistake & I am truly saddened for it. It was NOT to make a sale, it was to try and make Mary & her family happy which backfired on me, the puppy and also on her family for which I apologized! I learned my lesson and that is all I can say. As for my dogs being "under the standard", well 95 percent of the people who contact me (breeders & pet customers) want smaller! They are not what the so called breeders call "imperials" as I do not believe in that, they are just Shih Tzus with smaller lines. There is nothing wrong with that! I am tired of being ridiculed for this happening. I made a mistake, things happened that surely shouldnt have and I am regretful to Mary & her family and of course to the poor puppy. I do have many many happy puppy buyers and I keep in touch regularly. I receive Christmas cards, birthday cards, first haircut letters & pics...but Lord only knows I am not going to call each of them up and ask them to write something about me on this ridiculous website because of one bad mishap that I have tried to make right! I am done with posting on here, I have said all I need to say. I apologize to Mary & her family, and I also hope that any other breeders or people looking to buy puppies that read this, learn that there is always an unhappy and unfortunate situation that happens in someones life...its ashame we cant all forgive. Lord knows we wont forget, but at the most we can do for eachother is forgive & learn from the unfortunate mistake.

Obviously the last 2 posts (Sandy in TX and Sherry in FL) are breeders. Yes, Lynne & Danielle are breeders also. I would like to state that "breeder wars" are very immature and should not be posted on rip off report. You are only hurting yourselves. For one, I did contact the vet, which at this time says the illness was "most likely" upper respiratory/pnemonia that ended up turning acute but that it couldnt be 100% determined! It is very unfair to state comments on here that you have no clue of! My advice is to keep your nose in your own business and do the best you can at what you do. I never once stated that I didnt feel sorry for Mary and her family, I DO! If I didnt care, I would have kept the $1000 plus that I repaid her and have acted as if this never happened! I had spoke to Mary on several occasions and I am APPAULD that she is stating I didnt! I have phone records from my phone bill for God's Sake! I am not going to go on & on here about who was right and who was wrong. Honestly, I have already mentioned that I made a mistake & I am truly saddened for it. It was NOT to make a sale, it was to try and make Mary & her family happy which backfired on me, the puppy and also on her family for which I apologized! I learned my lesson and that is all I can say. As for my dogs being "under the standard", well 95 percent of the people who contact me (breeders & pet customers) want smaller! They are not what the so called breeders call "imperials" as I do not believe in that, they are just Shih Tzus with smaller lines. There is nothing wrong with that! I am tired of being ridiculed for this happening. I made a mistake, things happened that surely shouldnt have and I am regretful to Mary & her family and of course to the poor puppy. I do have many many happy puppy buyers and I keep in touch regularly. I receive Christmas cards, birthday cards, first haircut letters & pics...but Lord only knows I am not going to call each of them up and ask them to write something about me on this ridiculous website because of one bad mishap that I have tried to make right! I am done with posting on here, I have said all I need to say. I apologize to Mary & her family, and I also hope that any other breeders or people looking to buy puppies that read this, learn that there is always an unhappy and unfortunate situation that happens in someones life...its ashame we cant all forgive. Lord knows we wont forget, but at the most we can do for eachother is forgive & learn from the unfortunate mistake.

I am indeed a breeder. I have purchased more than one puppy from Thressa and have never been disappointed. This makes me a satisfied customer, in addtition to the title of breeder. I have also placed a few of my babies in Thressas hands. I would not have done that had I not had the utmost confidence in her skills as a breeder and her compassion for this lovely breed. We are all humans, and we all make mistakes every day. I believe that Thressa did admit to making a mistake in this situation. When we make mistakes, we can only ask our Lord for forgiveness and move on. At least Thressa tried to rectify the situation, which is more than many others would have done. Who are we to condemn? People are so quick to be hurtful to one another with their accusations. We need to ask ourselves if this is how God would want us treating each other. Has anyone thought about the idea of the many happy families that have been blessed with one of Thressa's wonderful sweet babies? Thressa, you keep doing what you are doing. No one is perfect and bad things will always happen. Just remember all of the people that you have touched with that special bundle of fur that God helped you create just specially for them.

In my search for another breeder I came across this complaint & feel I need to comment on several issues! The first being that this poor puppy had a horrible start in life & hopefully will rest in peace! I am appalled at reading that a puppy was let go at the age of 6 OR EVEN 7 weeks of age. You Thressa stated that you do not let your puppies go before 8 weeks of age, so why the change of mind? Was it to MAKE A SALE????? That is my thought. It was Christmas time & you didn't want to loose the sale so you let the puppy go early & even as you stated you told her from the beginning puppies don't leave earlier than 8 weeks. If this puppy was not going to be 8 weeks until after Christmas why was there ever an agreement that IF the puppy wasn't ready to go? If the puppy was not going to be 8 weeks until AFTER Christmas then there should not have been the need for an agreement. Doesn't make sense to me. The 2nd issue I have is why you would EVER let a puppy go with ANYTHING wrong with it. A so called scratched eye is a serious injury if not taken care of properly & according to Mary's vet was given the wrong eye drops for his condition, yet there was no box of vet instructions provided to Mary. If you knew the puppy was going to be going to his new home with the drops why would you throw the box away with the dosage instructions & vet info on it? Was this just medication you had lying around? Reputable breeders do not let a puppy leave when there is ANY kind of problem with a puppy UNLESS it is to make a sale. The 3rd issue I have is IF you were leery of not meeting Mary then why did you even sell her a puppy? You are supposed to be a reputable breeder, if there is any concern about where a puppy is going why would you sell to that person? Oh, I know, once again, to make the sale. The 4th issue I have is IF when you did get to the meeting destination you found out about the family being at boarding kennel, number of change of hands, etc. the WHY DID YOU HAND OVER THE PUPPY????? No one forced you to hand over the puppy. Once again - TO MAKE THE SALE! The 5th issue I have is the dithers. Yes a puppy can have dithers from stress but from other conditions also & does NOT contain blood in it. If there was a dithers issue why did you not recommend she take a stool sample to her vet? If there was a non eating issue & a non active puppy, why did you not inform Mary that these were not normal behaviors of a healthy puppy? You are supposed to be a reputable breeder/ expert. There seems to be a big conflict as to the communication that was between you & Mary through this whole thing & your lack of knowledge as to what even caused the puppies death tends to make me believe Mary's story in that you were not answering her phone calls or emails. Any reputable breeder I have known would not only have emailed & phoned if there was a sick puppy but would have been on the phone to the vet that was taking care of the puppy. A BIG point to this whole issue is that in a matter of 3 days this puppy lost AT LEAST 6oz. That is a big loss for such a young puppy. One major question I have is Did you EVER call Mary's vet & get a diagnosis or opinion directly from them? A reputable breeder or for that matter ANY caring person would have done so. Mary stated in her complaint that she authorized them to speak to you And to this day you still don't know what he died from - What is that???????????? Some reputable breeder. Did you request that a necropsy be done? Probably not as that would have cost money. You stated that you were busy with a move & closing costs. I see a lot of I's and me's in your statements, what about the family that just lost their 8 week old puppy? In your own statement you said it was 1 month past the time you were to send money to Mary, how long was she to wait? Sounds like she was patient long enough. It sounds to me as if you should count your blessings that Mary did not sue you for the entire costs of the vet bills, legal expenses & pain & suffering. It IS against the law to sell a sick or injured animal. My next issues are with the rebuttals that were posted. Danielle also reiterated what a dishonest breeder is. The customer (Mary) chose to have a healthy puppy in which Thressa did not sell her, instead sold her a sick puppy which again IS against the law. In your comment that Thressa would do anything to make them happy meaning her customers brings up another point. What about what is best for the puppy? That obviously was not as big of a concern as making the sale. And Lynne you are extremely concerning to me. You obviously sound like you are a breeder yourself. And I tend to question WHY do you breed? For the money also like your friend Thressa? Breeders should ONLY breed to improve the breed & breed to the standards. In your own statement We are all here to do the same thing, have beautiful babies go to loving homes. THAT is a backyard breeder statement if I have ever heard of one. Puppies should be bred to improve the breed & be shown when that is accomplished. And yes my dear, there are A LOT of show breeders. Obviously you have never shown, therefore wonder why you breed? You also are writing your statement in the 3rd party sense on what you heard from Thressa. Did you yourself ever speak to Mary? Your statements are only based upon what Thressa has told you. And I MUST point out that when you speak of Thressa's email to Mary about sending a nice picture of the puppy in a frame (At no additional charge)????? What is that? Oh- you backyard breeders charge for every little thing don't you? And obviously you don't even know the proper term is necropsy for an animal NOT autopsy. I am just sickened & appalled at your comment that the vet bill was forged & that Mary may possibly still have the puppy & lied through this whole thing. Only sick twisted people (like you Lynn) would think like that. If Thressa or you for that matter were concerned at all Mary did state she gave permission to Thressa to contact her vet so why was that not done? Sounds to mean like Thressa just wanted to wash her hands of everything & not take any responsibility for selling a sick/injured puppy. I did find Thressa's website & counted, she has 20 dogs. And a lot of them are under the standard size I found listed for the Shih Tzu via AKC's website. Not what I would call a reputable breeder! I also noticed that 2 of the dogs Thressa has listed on her site say Thank you Danielle @ Empress. I am wondering if this is the same Danielle who posted a rebuttal. You state there are hundreds of pleased puppy buyers of Thressa's yet the ONLY rebuttals I see posted here seem to be from breeder friends. To sum everything up, Thressa as the breeder is supposed to be the EXPERT and know what is best for the puppy. Thressa chose to NOT do what was best for the puppy & make the sale. When you go to your doctor, does he expect you to know what kind of medicine you need? No YOU expect him (as the expert) to know what medicine would be best for you. And since Lynne you like to compare puppies to car buying let me put it to you this way, when you go to a car shop for repairs do you tell the service tech how to do his job, or do you expect that him (as the expert) in that field knows what he is doing & will do what is best for your car? This is such a sad & unfortunate situation & hopefully people will take the time to read these postings & learn from other's heartaches. There are way too many backyard breeders & puppy mills out there causing way too much heartache. My heart goes out to you & your family Mary. I hope you are able to heal & learn from this & acquire a puppy from a reputable breeder.

first and far most you as wonderful breeder knew that puppy was 1 under weigh 2 only had one set of shots but you still allowed the puppy to go with these people of mary is it? well breeder you was not very responsible as far as i can tell. i also am a breeder and no way no how will i jerpodize the health of a shihtzu over a holiday aday on a calander. well mary scammed you but worst of all you scammed your self . you threw your instincts out the window. so if puppy is downsized this small you should keep all of your shijhtzus if you are going to go against all asct shihtzu club and akc and keep that in mind.also a standard shihtzu should not be sent home before its 2nd shot and weight of 3 pounds. but keep downsizing these runts since we know they have health problems. a shihtzu is to have a look try looking it up on akc 9 pounds lowest weight. so you as the breeder should have done more responsible decisions but your buddies say you are right.

I would first like to state that Yes I am a friend of Thressa and a real good friend if anything. I also live locally and have been to her home on many occasions with my family and hers. I would like to say that Mary's belief on what a good breeder is, is far from reality. I can tell you that breeders that show are so far and in between, it is almost absolute. A good breeder knows the breed the background of her stock, knows who to breed to who and why. Allows people to see the environment, stock and siblings (if available) The breeding world has changed dramatically over the last few years resulting in breeder wars and he said she said along with Politics and back stabbing. We all are here to do the same thing Have beautiful babies to go to loving homes. What I would like to say is WHAT ABOUT RESPONSIBLE PUPPY BUYERS??? This is what Mary was NOT, the day upon her picking her puppy out she began to say she wanted the puppy earlier then what Thressa allows them to leave. On one Occasion I read the email that Thressa wrote stating that she would send a very nice picture in a frame for Mary's children.(No Additional charge of Course) Mary kept insisting that he children would be more thrilled about having the puppy there on Christmas. So against Thressa's better judgment and the fact that she believed Mary knew what she was doing, Thressa allowed that to happen. Mary contacted Thressa and stated that she had friends coming from our area to hers. Low and behold, The people who picked up the puppy had spent significant time at a kennel/boarding facility with the pet. As any Normal Person knows these places are germ/disease invested. Most Dog illness are airborne and because these people spent significant time with Mary's puppy, it would not be uncommon for him to lick sniff and breath the air therefore contracted some type of infection. Also the stress of changing hands numerous times can also cause stress. Something all breeders tell new puppy owners. It is no wonder that this little baby ended up with an illness. Upon Thressa's notification about the puppy's illness Thressa was litterly in tears and asked if I would make the trip with her. I agreed if she needed me to. It was then I received another call from Thressa stating Mary decided not to do what she had first stated what she wanted too. Several days later, we heard the puppy was better then ill again, and that Mary decided to end the suffering. Thressa did see a vet bill but anything can now be forged and because no autopsy was performed per all breeders contract who is to know, If Mary has this puppy and he is alive and well. I know that is just a WHAT IF, but in the world we live in we always cannot trust everyone. Not even the sweet woman who says she will swear on a stack of bibles and her Children Thressa refunded money with out an autopsy plus the 1/3 that her and Mary were VERBALLY AGREED and Emails to. Far more then any other breeder I know. I can tell you first hand That I HAVE BEEN screwed by a "reputable breeder, it was her fault, and I Got nothing. Therefore, Mary be glad. However, what I would like to say is that We all are HUMAN and sometimes we do things to make customers happy and in return, the puppy is jeopardized. This has been a learning experience for all of Us close to Thressa as well as for her That NO MATTER WHAT NO PUPPY WE EVER LEAVE A HOME BEFORE 8 WEEKS. Thressa also comes Highly recommended by her Vet who will give ANY ONE A REFERENCE, Her house is Extremely Clean all dogs are in her home Not cages and well groomed and taken care of. She takes photos almost Dailey and at any time customer ASKS she is always writing people and on the computer doing that hourly/daily. Mary is ONLY 1 un happy Customer to the HUNDREDS that are Happy such as Myself with my darling girl. It is like with a car I love my Impala would tell everyone to buy it over time some one is going to get a lemon, it happens, Then they would give me crap but We are ONLY HUMAN. Nothing in Life is a 100% there are down falls. In this case it was irresponsible puppy buyer and a Breeder who wanted her HAPPY Thressa Keep Up the GREAT WORK LOVE YA

I have purchased a puppy from Thressa and she is a very honest breeder. She cares about her customers and would do anything to make them happy. I feel that she goes above and beyond what most breeders would. It is easy to see in this situation that Thressa was trying to make this customer happy. Thressa offered a few solutions to her, but the customer chose to keep the puppy and treat him. It is clearly stated in Thressa's contract that she is not responsible for vet bills after the puppy leaves her care, and Thressa even refunded Mary for some of that cost. I believe that Thressa did everything correctly in this situation. What happened to this puppy is unfortunate and obviously cannot be blamed on any one individual. At least Thressa, as a reputable breeder, gave this customer a refund of her purchase price plus a refund of some of her vet expenses (which would have been obsolete if the customer had returned the puppy like Thressa had requested). I will purchase from Thressa again as I have no doubt that she cares about the health and quality of her babies. Her high moral standards and code of ethics speaks for itself. Keep up the good work Thressa!

After reading this RIP OFF Report about myself, which I must admit I NEVER READ these because I have many reputable breeder friends who have had "untrue" things posted on here, I am ASTONISHED. My husband is the one who found this and emailed it to me from work because he knows what a hard time we have had with this woman. First of all, Mary & I spoke on the telephone when she made her purchase. I told her that I do not let my puppies go until they are 8 weeks of age and she stressed the importance of having him there for Christmas. After explaining the 8 week age release, we had came to the agreement that if he was not able to be home with them on Christmas I could send a cute picture of him with a Christmas Background for her to put in a box and have her children open. Christmas weekend was drawing near and Mary conctacted me via email and informed me that her close friends from Gaylord, MI were driving to her neck of the woods for Christmas and would be close to our area. She wanted them to pick her boy up, prefereably us to meet them somewhere, so that she could have the pup for Christmas. I took him to the vet & asked his opinion and he thought as long as he was 7 weeks old (which is the age he was at time of pick up, NOT 6 weeks) and was in perfect shape (besides the scratched eye) and fully weaned PLUS was not being shipped via airplane! I must admit that I was leary of not meeting Mary (the new owner) and I did tell her that via phone. I spent much time explaining how to care for him and etc. He was not a small pup either, his weight at time of pick up was 2 pounds 6 ounces. I told her one of the litter mates possibly scratched his eye and that the vet prescribed eye drops for him. I even asked her if she would like me to give these until the eye is healed and she said she would do it. I had thrown the box away on accident that the drops came in, but told her to put one drop in affected eye twice daily. That seemed to be no problem to her at the time. December 23rd is now here, we are driving to meet the "friends" of Mary. We get to the destination to see a car full of people (looked to be 2 adults in front and 3 children in back) which the woman apologized for being late, that she had to drop her own dog off at the Boarding KENNEL and was there for alot longer than she anticipated. For one, if I WOULD have known that they were going to a Kennel then I would have told Mary that I would rather meet her directly seeing that a kennel has many many germs that are airborn. Even though the puppy had his first set of vaccinations, their immune system is still immature and they can easily contract virus's. To my understanding, that this puppy was passed through several different poeple before Mary actually received him. Once again, I would not have ever went along with this had I know this was going to take place. I knew the puppy was staying the night with her mother who had no other animals and that was fine with me seeing as the pup was a present. On December 26, I received an email from Mary stating the puppy had a clean bill of health from the vet besides the scratched eye but that they would keep an eye on it. She also did state that he had some loose stool. YES I did tell her that the loose stool could be from stress, what breeder or vetrinarian would tell you any different without a stool sample? On the 28th I rec'd notification that he was in bad shape and had parvo! I was mortified, confused and sick to my stomach. I offered to pick the puppy up (meet her 1/2 way) and I would give her a replacement puppy or refund, which she agreed would be best at that time because of the cost involved. A couple hours later I received a voicemail from Mary stating that I needed to come to the vet there and pick him up immediately and she would not meet me half way. I called and asked her what was going on and she said it was not her fault he was sick and I was responsible therefore I needed to pick him up. After speaking to my husband about driving there, she then contacted me to tell me that she and her children were very attached to this pup and they wanted to give him a chance. I told her I was behind her whatever she decided. Throughout this time period, I was told it was not Parvo and it was Coronavirus, which then was not Corona and turned into an acute upper respiratory infection?! I still to this day do know what this puppy died from. I never received the reports that I requested from her vet. During this time I was in contact with Mary often, at that time I would relay the information to my vet. AS for her stating that my vet had no info on the pups eye, that is false. I have the records myself and I would be glad to show them to anyone who would like to see them. I had taken another litter of 2 pups in at the same time that I took Marys pup in, the vet wrote everything under that moms name (Asti). This is a very unfortunate situation here. I felt bad about Mary and her family having to go through this so I did offer to take the pup back and refund her or replacement. I also offered to pay 1/3 of the first 3 days of the pups visit, which Mary agreed and thanked me. She said they told her 3 days would be $500 (I realize that is a rough estimate). After we all agreed that the pup should be euthanized, I told Mary that I was sending a check in the mail for the adoption fee ($700). Even though it stated in my signed contract I was not liable for this pups sickness, I wanted to do so because of the unfortunate events that surrounded their family at Christmas time. I was in the process of moving out of my home into a new home and had alot of money out in closing costs but I knew that wasnt her fault so I proceeded to gather the funds of the money she paid me directly for the pup. I told her I was very sorry about this and that I was still willing to pay a 1/3 of the first 3 days ($500) and the Euthanasia & CBC. She wrote me that she understood and knew how hard it is to close on a home and move. One month later I rec'd a certified letter that if I didnt pay the $350 in 10 business days she was taking me to court. I had every intention on paying her and I am still unsure why she is so nasty about this when she was so nice in emails!? We still do not know what caused this puppy to get sick, it could have been that Marys friends were at a boarding kennel or it could have been because of going through so many hands before getting to the actual owner. Who Knows!? I have learned a HUGE lesson here, one being that I will never let a puppy go before he is 8 weeks of age regardless of the demand from my customers. I am the breeder and owner of these pups from the start and I know what is good for them. I will never compromise their health again in order to please a customer. There are so many lessons in life to be learned, unfortunately most of them are learned the hard way. I do not hold any harsh feelings toward Mary, I will always feel bad for her and her family over the loss of this puppy.