Occasionally a puppy will be listed as one of the items for sale in a gala auction. If you’re considering selling a dog at your event, please watch this video. You’ll learn tips to help ensure the animal gets started off on the right foot with its new family.
Watch the video below.
I really appreciate the advice you have on this site, but I think you should really reconsider supporting auctioning off an animal at an auction. They are not property, they are living creatures and desrve to be treated as such. Getting a pet is a huge decision and spontaneously auctioning off an animal can lead to people making irresponsible decisions or taking the animal to a shelter. Even a certificate for vet care does not mean that the family or person is respnsible enough to take care of the animal. Families should meet an animal in a personal setting to introduce their children and other dogs before buying an animal. Furthermore, you are undermining the importance of adoption by treating animals as a commodity to be sold when so many sit in shelters and are killed every year.
Janine, I appreciate your thoughts. My family’s last 3 dogs came from rescue or shelter situations. And I myself wouldn’t dream of getting an animal any other way.
Yet we humans are a varied lot. People have their own reasons for wanting to spend $2k on an dog, even though they could drive to the pound and get one for free. I’m just not a big fan of turning a critical eye on others’ behavior because they could easily turn around and judge some “inappropriate” behavior in my life, too.
Honestly, I have never felt a twinge of regret for the puppies sold at my auctions. Not by chance, they are often sold into homes that already own a dog of the same breed. Those buyers are more than familiar with the dog’s temperament and responsibility. And the breeders themselves are picky! They arrange for a proper hand-off and even follow-up to ensure the family adjusts well to the dog. Frankly, the breeders I’ve observed are waaaaaay more particular about where their dogs go than any shelter is.
In our culture, a dog – despite being a living creature – is property. Though there is a movement to refer to humans as “caretakers,” the reality is that — at the dog park– we ask, “Who owns this dog?” Or “Whose dog is this?” Dogs — and children, for that matter — “belong” to someone. (And more than one of my friends has mentioned that it’s easier to have a child than try to adopt a dog from a rescue. I’m not sure that makes sense, either. Certainly some of my CASA and CAC clients would love to see a license required to birth a child.)
You can still have a great auction without selling a dog. Focus on acquiring other items … you’ll feel good about your revenue AND be able to sleep at night. 🙂 Good luck!