Te Internet Magic

Diana Panico Pintel

   

     The 1999 litter was an adventure on the Internet.  Five of the boys and one of the girls were sold from interviews I did over the Internet.  We have our homepage as our e-mail signature.    These puppy people were introduced to me over the Internet.   The first thing I ask people that 

e-mail me for puppy information is to write a short history of their life with dogs.   I often keep what they write, as I have found it to be a beginning to their files.  The Internet offers breeders a new opportunity to select homes for puppies.  It is my most important job to find homes that can emotionally and financially support one of my puppies.  The addition of e-mail, web pages, and web rings has given me a new resource that I never had before.  I will always take a dog back, but for the start of their lives, I want them to be respected, loved and babied.   We usually breed to keep something, but because we keep all old dogs for their entire lives, that is not always possible.  My husband and I are both of the Beattle generation and did not think we could figure out all the computer technology available to us.  We were wrong.  Two years ago with the help of a friend, I was able to put my heart into a small web page.  In the beginning it did not do much, except that people who called us could read it and learn a great deal about Victor and Diana.  It is not an ad for puppies but rather an explanation of our life with Labradors.

   Victor and I are able to weed people out who do not fit our profile.  I am really good at telling people that they do not need to deal with Mistypoint or me.  Breeders should always remember that the puppies are theirs, and they, the breeders, can set the rules, not the prospective buyers.  My rules for getting a puppy are not the same as other breeders, but they are MY rules.  The puppy must be allowed in the house.  The puppy must have someone at home.  I would prefer that they own their own home and have the means to pay veterinarian costs.  Their history with dogs must ring of caring.

    We had our web site address printed on cards, and we pass them out when needed. .  We won't breed any puppies this year and most of next.  Once we became listed with the breeder directories and search engines, we began to get and still get about one request a day for a puppy.  It is important for me to know exactly what happened to the prospective buyer's last dog and why he or she might think that they are ready for a new puppy.  The list of questions goes on, and some people do not like the inquisition.   Here we go with this year's wonderful stories.  There were more, but these were the ones I selected. 

     Smarty-Pants Sammy went to Todd and family who wrote that he had had a yellow Labrador female for 11 years. He had flown home from college to spend the last week of her life with her. Todd flew across the United States to accomplish this feat.  "My wife and I want another family member.  I was a 10-year-old boy when we got Brandy, and I remember the day we got her and the day we lost her.  The breeder gave us many things including a toy from home."  Todd would end up with Sammy.   Sammy became the star of his obedience class.  

   Jeff wrote for all information on clubs, medical needs and obedience schools.  The dog would be able to go to work with him, and he was interviewing dog walkers when this would not be possible.  He would eventually own Boomer, a sweet dog that would WOW all his friends and family.  His parents flew out from Texas during the first few weeks he had the dog.

   Marvelous Magic was the last puppy at the house.  Subbaiah e-mailed me that they had two children and a fenced acre.  He had animals in his house back in India as a child: a water buffalo and a German Shepherd.  This was the first time that a water buffalo had met the requirement of

previous pet ownership.  Magic was the last to leave, and I wanted to show him, which meant that they could not neuter him.  To me that takes extra work for everyone and extra obedience schools.  We talked over the Internet for over a month.  I had turned down several other families in the mean time as not meeting Magic's needs.  Magic's progress with this family went very

well.  They decided to take a short trip to a wedding in Los Angeles.  They visited local boarding kennels and decided to take Magic on family trips, which made me extremely happy.  He went to a wedding in Los Angeles and was an honored guest at the Beverly Hills Hotel!  Shortly thereafter, the family decided to take a long trip with Magic across the country.  I received this e-mail and photo.  

Greetings.

Magic and us had a great time touring US.  We went all the way to Bad Lands

in North Dakota.  We traveled a total of over 3500 miles.  We all had a

Great time.  Magic played for a couple of days with our friends' lab Gunner

in Bismarck, ND.

Last week, we took Magic to a ball game (SF Giants vs Pirates).  Once a year

they allow dogs to the ballpark.

I took Magic with the kids.  We all had a great time.  I am enclosing a

picture of Magic at the ball game.

Magic is a good swimmer now. He swam for about half an hour in the

pool today.

Regards,

Subbaiah

<<Magic at the Ball Game.jpg>>

    Murphy the Mountain went to Mark and Maryanne.    My husband met them at the Cow Palace show, but we worked out all details over the Internet.  They lived in San Francisco itself, but Maryanne was home all day.  They did not have a lot of room and were renters.  The fact that they rented always is a worry to me because only my puppies chew holes in walls and pee on the floor.  They called and said they were being forced to move in order to get Murphy.  The city of San Francisco is not easy place to relocate in, but they did it.  They found a place, hired movers and relocated, all in a period of two weeks.    Murphy is home with Maryanne enjoying being the center of attention. 

     Cute Chloe's owner had found a puppy 13 years ago in a trash can and thought that it was a Labrador covered in oil. She tried to wash the puppy's tail for a long time until she figured out that it was a wonderful mixed breed not a Labrador.  This puppy lived with them for 13 years. When he died, they were ready for a Labrador.  They contacted us over the Internet.  Chloe,

being a female, required many restrictions.  They have shown another breed and live fairly close to us.  We decided to work with Chloe as a show prospect.

    With the use of the Internet, I can tie puppy people together and help with problems instantly.  The past year has been something because most of the people I have met in the dog world have been over the Internet.  My web page has been a resource beyond belief.   It took about a year to get into the right places.    When we do have litters, I tie all owners together.  I send weekly pictures and current information.  It is like they are seeing their puppy everyday.   Scanners are cheap and easy to use.  They are also great fun.   We do not allow early visitors so this is their visit.  We enjoy the feedback of the people and learn more about their families each day.  This time two of the families with children had the members of the family earn the right to have a puppy by showing how responsible they were with chores around the home.  A puppy is a special responsibility for the children, but the parents have to take an equal role.  It is a family job.  I tend not to sell to a parent that says I want the children to take total care of the dog.  It is not the child's dog.  It is the family's loving member.

     I prefer to get to know a family and I always reserve the right to change my mind and not sell the puppy.  The Internet gives me a little distance and time to think about things.  The nice surprise to having a web page is the telephone bill goes down. 

xt