There is a difference between puppy mills, ignorant backyard breeders, and reliable breeders who are working to produce good quality dogs. Granted, they are a definite minority, but they are out there. It took me two years to find a good one, but I did. Eight years later, I still think they're great.

A good-quality purebred dog, produced by someone who knows what they're doing, would be more likely to be a known quantity for someone who has a severely handicapped daughter, like Wildman does.

While I do realize that hybrid vigor is a big plus for health, mixed breeds can also be a real crapshoot, personality-wise, for a tricky situation like Wildman's. You want to know in advance what you are likely to get. This is not the time to get someone's castoff problem, caused by some fool who thinks a pup learns by ESP, has been fed the cheapest crap known to Man, and learned survival from a fast-moving metal-toed boot.

Not all Labs are stable. Not all Labs are healthy. But they do have a pretty good chance of being emotionally stable.... if you do a careful search and do your homework.

Rescue dogs can be great dogs. But some of them aren't.

Sue