# New here and have a quick ?



## Ilovetcups (Dec 4, 2005)

There is a dog named Vinny on there. Does anyone know which breeder she got him from?

He is very tiny and cute but I wonder if he might be sick? I wonder if the owner had him liver shunt tested and etc? Stuff like that worries me.. If he is healthy, that is fine but if not, it looks like the breeder would cease breeding for something that small?

Newbie here, please don't bash, I am just wondering who the breeder is and how she screens, and etc.


Merry X-Mas
Sonny


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## LexiAndNikkisMom (Apr 13, 2004)

You mean tag's Vinny? Tag is from Northern Ontario, Canada so I'm sure her breeder is from Canada. 

If you are looking for a breeder in your area I would recommend starting with the breeder's list on the American Maltese Association


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## Ilovetcups (Dec 4, 2005)

> You mean tag's Vinny? Tag is from Northern Ontario, Canada so I'm sure her breeder is from Canada.
> 
> If you are looking for a breeder in your area I would recommend starting with the breeder's list on the American Maltese Association[/B]



The Vinny I am talking about is from www.teacupspuppies.com He is the Maltese named Vinny on that site. Is the same Vinny you are speaking of?


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## kodie (Aug 24, 2004)

I dont know everything about breeders... (there are a lot of more knowledgable members here) but isnt that web site dealing with brokers and puppy mills/back door breeders?...










ohh and i thought responsible breeders dont use the word "teacup"...


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## Ilovetcups (Dec 4, 2005)

I have no clue?


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## gottagettamaltee (Dec 1, 2005)

why does Vinny's tongue stick out in all of his pics? weird.


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## kodie (Aug 24, 2004)

> I have no clue?[/B]


 Are you wondering about this pup because you are interested in a puppy from this web site?


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## Ladysmom (Oct 19, 2004)

Here's the site:

http://www.teacupspuppies.com/

I'm pretty certain this is an internet puppy broker. As reptuable breeders won't sell their puppies to a third party and have no control over where they end up, the main source of puppies for these brokers are puppy mills. 

If you aren't familiar with puppymills, here's a good site to visit.

http://nopuppymills.com/

You are right to worry about their health and genetic disease. 

Another big red flag is the word "teacup" itself. There is no such term for Maltese. It's become a marketing ploy to sell undersized puppies to unsuspecting people. The Maltese standard is for a 4-7 pound dog. People who deliberately breed for dogs smaller than that are actually breeding dwarfs. Dwarfism in dogs has just as many health problems as it does in humans. Dwarf dogs can have underdeveloped organs (liver and kidney problems are common), have trouble regulating their body temperature and blood sugar. They have dental problems from such a small jaw. Worst of all, their life expectancy isn't as great, with some only living two or three years.


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## LexiAndNikkisMom (Apr 13, 2004)

Sorry I missed the part in your post when you mentioned the website. LOL! I was thinking you were talking about someone on here. I would avoid anyone that sells teacup, micro, mini, etc. maltese. 
The Myth About Teacup Maltese
"Teacup Maltese"

Check out this thread: Questions to ask a breeder. There is a lot of good information and links to other sites in that thread.

I would recommend not buying from any pet store, puppy broker, or puppy mill. For the price of puppy from a pet store you could get one from a good responsible breeder. No responsible breeder is going to sell their puppies to pet store or puppy broker.


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## k/c mom (Oct 9, 2004)

I went to the web site they have puppies listed right there with the other pet supplies as if they were not living, breathing animals but just another commodity for sale on their web site. It says interested parties should call or visit their showroom!! "Showroom" .. sounds like a place to buy cars... not puppies..









I didn't see any names on any of the puppies... not sure where "Vinny" is supposed to be.


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## FannyMay (Nov 18, 2004)

I checked it out. I found him under The Vinny fan club and that dog has alot of problems. Of course the first clue is that it's called a tea cup and the second clue is that these dogs are sold on a web page with more than one breed. Most reputable breeders stick to one breed (some do up to two). It's just too complicated keeping the two breeds separate so they don't cross breed. Anyway "Vinny" has his tongue sticking out because he was improperly breed and his ears stick up because of the same reason. That dog is way too small and his snout is too short. 
I would never buy ANYTHING from them! Don't support that puppy mill by even buying a bow from them. I wish they would get shut down. They make me so mad!


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## Chelsey (Dec 17, 2004)

Guys the thing is I think what happened here is if you click on the first page on spoiled maltese and click on breeders section the link for teacupspuppies is listed there. As a new commer they may think it is listed there as a rep breeder.

Regarding your question I saw it earlier but did not understand it, but as the person listed above they have several pupies listed there yokies as well, I think the vinny ears stick up because he was bread with a yorkie which would explain his small snout and ear sticking up. Also he is very very tiny.


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## k/c mom (Oct 9, 2004)

> Guys the thing is I think what happened here is if you click on the first page on spoiled maltese and click on breeders section the link for teacupspuppies is listed there. As a new commer they may think it is listed there as a rep breeder.[/B]


Joe, could you perhaps put a disclaimer saying that this breeder's list is not in any way a recommendation from Spoiled Maltese, etc. but merely a free listing provided by breeders. In a way, I wonder if the list is really the best thing to even have since it may be leading people to "bad" breeders/brokers inadvertently.


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## sassy's mommy (Aug 29, 2005)

> Guys the thing is I think what happened here is if you click on the first page on spoiled maltese and click on breeders section the link for teacupspuppies is listed there. As a new commer they may think it is listed there as a rep breeder.
> 
> Regarding your question I saw it earlier but did not understand it, but as the person listed above they have several pupies listed there yokies as well, I think the vinny ears stick up because he was bread with a yorkie which would explain his small snout and ear sticking up. Also he is very very tiny.
> 
> ...


This same part of the article said that he was ONLY 8 weeks old and 8 oz. when he came to them. A reputable breeder would NEVER let such a tiny puppy go that young. Please keep looking. This site has "RED" flags all over it. 

Chelsey mentioned the ears (this was mentioned in the website.) Also, they mentioned that he, ("Vinny") did not know his tongue is not supposed to stick out all the time. This is another genetic flaw in this pup. SOOOO, thus far we have seen extreme tiny (not good), ears that are not standard, and a tongue that is who knows what. Yes, he is as cute as can be. But his breeder is not breeding with the pup's best interest at heart. Sounds like a puppymill situaiton.


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## kodie (Aug 24, 2004)

After looking at that picture I can relate from my own experience... Kodie was poorly bred as you all know... he is the only pup to survive in the litter because the puppies were just tooo small... the parent were toooo tiny to be bred. Anyway... Kodie's one sister lived about 6months and she looked like a kitten... her ears stuck straight up and her tongue stuck out... but the reason for her tongue stuck out was because she had mental problems... it was very obvious when you saw her that she had many physical and mental problems. She ended up dying because of all her complications. I'm pretty sure I posted a pic of her... i'll have to get the pic at lunch time and post it. She was adorable though... she only made it up to about 1lb before she died. My point is... This pup in the picture that I see just posted probably has complications... I would stay away from breeders like this as well. It's a shame... I feel bad for the poor puppies because they did not asked to come into this world... these breeders bring them here with the complications.


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## Ladysmom (Oct 19, 2004)

Kodie's Mom, thank you for sharing your story of Kodie and his sister again. It's easy to look at Kodie and fall in love with his _extreme cuteness_ and not know his history and health issues.

As I mentioned above, dwarf dogs are genetic flukes and can have many problems, even mental, as Stacie said.

Whoever runs this website is not breeding these dogs, but brokering them. These puppies are from puppy mills and should be avoided at all costs!


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## Littlemans Mom (Apr 6, 2005)

As others have mentioned having teacup in the name is a big red flag in itself, there is no such thing as a teacup. Also, they do not seem to have any Maltese for sale at the moment. Anyway, they have several other breeds, which is another red flag, too many type puppies sounds like a puppymill. Vinnie is the owners personal pet , so he is not up for sale. Vinnie has a # of problems that she mentions in the story about him. I wish you luck in finding the puppy you are looking for, there are many good breeders out there, but I don't think this is one of them. Again best of luck on your search, they are a true joy and it is a pleasure to be owned by a Maltese


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## miss emily (Dec 7, 2005)

I would stay away from that site, and another one you might come across to stay away from is toypuppies.com.


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