This is the classic case of let the buyer beware! I was in the market for a rat terrier puppy and found one in the newspaper for $300. I called the breeder and we arranged to meet, and I asked her to bring the dog's papers when she came. She didn't bring the papers, just a sweet little gray and white puppy with eyes that matched her fur, who I fell in love with immediately. The contract that the breeder offered me was on yellow tablet paper and it insisted that I have the female pup spayed at the age of 5 months. I really wanted the animal and wasn't planning on breeding, so I offered to send her the spay info and then she could send me the papers. Silly me.

It wasn't long before I started noticing some breed discrepancies between my new puppy and my adult rat terrier. The new puppy had a voicebox that didn't quit; my other rats had been extremely quiet both as puppies and as adults. She had serious separation anxiety issues, whereas RT's are generally an independent kind of dog. Her coat was much thinner than a normal RT coat. Plus, she had a bald spot on her head that worried me. I was afraid she might have mange or something, but finally it started growing back in.

Well, needless to say, I sent the breeder the spay documentation at the appropriate time, and she never sent me the dog's bloodline papers. After trying to contact her several times, I finally looked her up on the internet (which I should have done first.) Apparently she breeds American Hairless rat terriers. The puppy she sold me for $300 without any papers was supposed to have been hairless but had a full coat (sans the bald spot!) so it was inappropriate for breeding purposes. That explained both the breed discrepancies and her unwillingness to send me the paperwork.

Fortunately, the animal is healthy, good natured and fits well into our family, but as I said earlier, I blame myself for not doing the research first, or I could have gone to a reputable breeder and paid the same price for an animal with a registered bloodline. Moral of the story: don't buy dogs out of the newspaper, and if you do, realize that what you're getting may not be entirely what you had in mind.