Coal Valley Kennels - Coal Valley Newfoundlands KRISTEN REID * COAL VALLEY NEWFOUNDLANDS * SHIPPED ME A SICK DOG THAT COSTS THOUSANDS TO CURE West Frankfort Illinois

THANK YOU for your insight and thoughtful comments.... and your accurate and on-target thoughts about reputable breeders, and their policies and generally accepted procedures!

If you want a quality dog, go to a quality breeder.  They can be found at dog shows, working dog events, etc.  Look up the breed club.  In the case of Newfoundlands, it's the Newfoundland Club of America.  Google it.  There's a page on the site specifically geared to those interested in purchasing a puppy.  It gives a list of suggestions and questions to ask breeders.  There's also a breeder referral section, for NCA approved breeders in good standing with the club.  Go to club events near you.  There are regional NCA events all around the country.  OR go to all breed dog shows and look for the Newfs.  Talk to the handlers, and the owners, but wait until they're finished showing or it's well before they go into the ring.  Get to know the breed, first, then the breeders.  It takes a lot of work and research to find the right breeder for you. Be prepared to wait a year or more for a good quality dog.  And yes...show breeders DO place dogs in "pet" homes.  Not all dogs in all litters are show dogs, even if they come from top show parents.  MOST aren't, in fact.   You probably want a dog that looks like a Newf, so the breed standard is of extreme importance.  I'm sure you want one that acts like a Newf too...so good breeding is key.  Sweetness of temperament is the hallmark of the breed. Look up the breed standard.  Learn it...look for a dog that meets it.   Plus they should be interested in water work, and carting.  That's the whole purpose of the breed.  No dog is perfect, but if it's bred properly, it will meet the standard with only very minor deviations that only "show people" can easily spot, not major differences.    Quality breeders do all health testing on both parents with the goal of eliminating genetic problems like Hip Dysplasia, Elbow Dysplasia, Cystinuria (killer for Newfs), heart problems (another killer), and also often check patellas, eyes, and thyroid.  Get the parents registered names and look them up on OFA (Orthopedic Foundation for Animals).  ALL of these things, including the breeder's willingness to take back any dog he/she produced at any time for any reason...one who will stand by you through thick and thin, who is willing to mentor you and considers you family, who has a contract that doesn't require return of a beloved dog for a "refund" or another puppy...all are important.  Join Newf groups on Facebook or the internet.  Plenty are out there.  ASK before you leap and you'll get a lot of valuable information from people in the know, who have been involved in the Newf community for decades...who want to help new owners find the best breeders they can.  Remember, in the dog world...it's ALL about the dog.  If it's bad for the dog, for it's lineage, for the standard overall...that's not a breeder you want to deal with.  If a breeder isn't breeding for the betterment of the breed, then they shouldn't be breeding at all.  All dogs can have health issues, but a quality breeder stands by her dog and it's new owners.    I don't know this breeder, but this is just an FYI for anyone looking for a Newf (or ANY breed) in the future.  Do your research...and take your time before you buy ANY puppy.

I saw this report when I was looking up the phone number for the kennel I use for my dogs and found it interesting. I had never heard of this parasite before (Giardia) so I looked it up since I have two dogs and small children.

There is really no way to trace the parasite back to the kennel. The dog becomes infected with the parasite if they drink water that has been contaminated with feces. This could have happened anywhere....even at the airport or in transit. As for contamination to your children playing in the yard...everything I've read shows it is extremely rare for the parasite to be transmitted from dogs to humans.

The only thing I've seen with regard to the yard is to pick up after your dog immediately, which any respectable dog owner should do. I do believe the issues about the parasite have been greatly exaggerated. I'd also like to know how many different vets this dog has been to for treatment. There are non-toxic medications (why you would let your dog take a toxic medication and who would prescribe it I have no idea) for your dog.

The smart thing here would have been, if the second opinion yielded the dog was unhealthy and had a congenital defect, to ship the dog back. If the kennel would not pay for the shipping fee back and there was no clause saying you were responsible then you could have taken them to court as a civil matter.

You took the most expensive route and for that all I can say is I hope you learned something from this. Complaining about it now isn't going to help you and it doesn't sound like anything they would have done would have made you happy anyway.

Again, if you happened to be one of the people that got a healthy puppy from this breeder, consider yourself lucky. Lucky you are not saddled with the thousands of dollars of vet bills I have had to deal with. The dog was not only sent to me with Giardia, the dog that I received also has a CONGENITAL EYE DEFECT that requires surgery. So if you got a litter mate that does not have that condition, again, consider yourself lucky. After faxing four different vet opinions and reports (that I paid for) showing the condition of this dog, and having spent WAY more than the dog even cost in the first couple weeks I had it, I asked this breeder for a refund of the price I had paid for a HEALTHY dog, or partial payment towards the eye surgery and other vet bills I had incurred in the 3 weeks I had owned the dog. She refused, and told me to ship the dog back to her at MY expense. Any reasonable person would want to do what was best for the dog, not what was best for HER WALLET. This woman was ONLY concerned about the money, and not interested in getting the dog she sent me healthy. And as far as the person that said she was at the airport when the dog was shipped to me, and the dog was not flea infested, the breeder told me she had given the puppy a flea bath THAT MORNING because she noticed some fleas, and that was probably why the dogs eyes were bloody red and drooping when I got her. Her eyes were reacting to the flea bath. (which it turned out was not the case, but entropian that was making her eyes irritated and drooping).
If someone has gotten healthy dogs from this breeder, I am genuinely happy for you. But that was not the case with me. And even more appalling then the condition of the puppy she shipped me was her attititude when it was proven beyond a doubt to her that the puppy had serious health problems.

To whom it may concern:

I do not understand the real issue here. My Dog Asa, came from Coal Vally. He is wonderful, and the breeder in question was wonderful as well. I picked up my dog, on the appropriate day and in fact the breeder met us half way between my home and hers. Asa has been, and continues to be in perfect health. He has had no issues whatsoever. And when i received my dog i was given not only a little packet of information, but the papers that included the vet info and what Asa had or had not been treated for. Now the list was small seeing as Asa was a young puppy. However, i still have that paper with list of shots etc, and use it every time i see my local vet here in Kentucky. I personally would recommend this breeder to anyone she was nice, caring, loving, and great. She sends my fiance and i regular emails checking up on Asa and wondering how we are. Furthermore, she invited us into hr home to meet our puppy, well pick our puppy, on puppy picking day. I would call it by some other name but i know not what else to call it; it was the day we picked our puppy. My fiance and i were able to meet Chance and the females, including the Mother. We had a few puppies to choose from, and chose Asa. He received a ribbon with our name on it and were allowed to stay and play as long as we like. May i remind you this was the breeders home we invaded for a few hours just to play with our new puppy. All of this plus i was able to ask questions, get intelligent answers, and play with the parents of my puppy (well the dad, mama was fat happy and had puppies to care for).

The entire experience was amazing. The thing that really got me about this particular breeder however was a personal phone call received while in her home. During my time there she received a call about a show dog of hers. This dog did not take 1st unfortunately. If i was correct in the understanding the dog won best in class but not best overall. Now, i am a competitor by nature, and i figured she would be upset. But the emotion and disappointment was amazing to me. It was as if someone had said her child wasn't good enough. It was true heart felt compassion for her dog and her family. She acted as if it was her fault that her dog wasn't picked. This was not in anger but in emotional out cry of sorrow. Something you expect to see of a mother when er child skins his knee. It was at that moment that i knew i was at the correct breeder. She not only breed animals but loved her animals. The consistent emails and picture swapping between my fiance and her now is just further proof of this breeders passion for her animals.

I can not speak for everyone, or every dog, BUT i am happier with Asa than any animal i have ever had. And i have owned Exotic Parrots, Australian Sugar Gliders, Dogs, Cats, Exotic fish (salt and fresh) and the list goes on. I have met breeders in the past, and have yet to find one as caring and truly personable as Coal Vally. I would recommend Coal Vally and its puppy's to everyone. In fact i have! Thank you Coal Vally for the wonderful addition to my home.

I hope that people who have an axe to grind find somewhere else to do so because Coal Vally is Ace's in my book. And i can't wait to get Asa a cousin to play with ne day.

The comments made concerning this breeder by one of her other 'customers'... such as "Why would you buy a puppy from a breeder you have never seen?" speak for itself. I TRUSTED this breeder, Coal Valley Newfoundlands, when they stated they had healthy dogs and loved the breed. But this person is right... and now I know after learning the hard way... Why would ANYONE buy a dog sight-unseen, and from an unknown breeder. Yet this is the way this breeder continues to sell puppies... sight unseen (except via pictures, which can be very deceiving and not the actual puppy you will be shipped)... and completely advocates shipping them out of state. This is they way the majority of this breeders puppies are sold... and now their own 'friend' is saying "why would you buy a dog that way" ?????
Also, the comment about the breeder paying any of my thousands of dollars of vet bills is ludicrous. They wanted a second opinion about the dogs congenital eye defect and paid ONE $40 office visit for the 2nd opinion they wanted. I took unpaid time off work and my gas to go to a vet of their choosing 30 min. away. And have now spent another $2500 and counting to try to get the dog healthy, and you think that is generous of the breeder or something?
In addition, you state the breeder GAVE me my money back?
Again, if you are not the breeder, I don't know where you are getting your information from, but they did not GIVE me my money back.
I had to hire an attorney and pay for legal advice on how to proceed to file a claim and BE AWARDED my money back through negligance and breech of contract (shipping a defective puppy) on their part. IF you call that GIVING me my money back, that is just crazy. They had no choice. It was not a GIFT by any means.
What I was NOT given back was the countless dollars and hours spent treating a sick dog, needing eye surgery and with chronic diarreah that has now given the parasite she came with to my other dog and has now completely infected my yard.
As far as returning the dog AT MY EXPENSE (so I would be out yet ANOTHER $400) , the breeder stated repeatedly she would not give me a refund, and would replace the dog when and if she had another litter.
WHY would I want another dog from this breeder??? I told her I was considering putting the dog down since the costs of threating this puppy , in the thousands of dollars and still not healthy, were becoming out of my price range. The only reason I have not put the dog to sleep in my children are in love with it. But I CERTAINLY would not ever take another dog from this breeder.

In response to newfoundland lover's remarks, I have to say that I am NOT the breeder or the kennel this person is referencing... I do however, have two of her wonderful newfoundlands- both females, and have personally owned dogs for 40 years. I have rescued dogs from horrible conditions, crated mothers not ever being let out of their cages but to be bred, hundreds of puppies of multiple breeds sick and abused... these are "puppy mills" and I know for a fact that Coal Valley is wrongfully being persecuted by someone who has not nor has ever seen the kennel, which is not a "puppy mill". Any responsible owner would not have their puppy shipped from a kennel they have never seen. Not to mention, if your dog was so sick, why didn't you return it and get another puppy when there was another litter? Because she is NOT a puppy mill she did not have another puppy at the time... what part of that don't you understand? I didn't see you writing that Coal Valley paid for your initial vet bills and stated there was nothing detrimental to the health of your puppy... I didn't see you state she gave you your money back for your puppy just to get you off her back... Here's my question... Why put yourself and your family through the pain and suffering you so claimed happened? To me, it was a no-brainer... You could have returned the 'so called' sick puppy and gotten another. I was at Coal Valley, picking up my puppy after driving many hours to get my puppy, when yours was being taken to the airport... There was a contract in the paperwork she sent you, just as I received mine... I saw it taped to the kennel the puppy was shipped in... maybe you should be going after the airline, not the breeder for not giving you the proper paperwork, not to mention, did you ever think the puppy could have contracted something from the other dogs in the plane? Your puppy was bouncing and happy and healthy when I was there!! No fleas, no eye problems... I personally know of many people who have purchased puppies from her with no issues... Please stop trying to blame a REPUTABLE home breeder for a puppy getting fleas or a parasite!! Perhaps instead of bullying this poor woman who does not run a CASH COW business, you might want to take the time from posting insults on a website to fully understand what your hurtful implications can cause. Making someone cry and become sick with worry about a puppy she can not see, is wrong. I will continue to recommend Coal Valley for those who are wanting a Newfoundland puppy as I have stated, they are extremely REPUTABLE. No matter what this one owner may state.

I think whomever filed the response that Coal Valley Newfoundlands is a "reputable breeder" is Coal Valley Kennels themselves, worried their cash cow puppy mill business will be hurt.
When I purchased my puppy online, there was NO CONTRACT signed, and I paid by credit card.
After spending THOUSANDS - literally THOUSANDS of dollars in vet bills, and having my other dog and yard infected by a parasite that I now can not get rid of, and having the breeder tell me I could ship the dog back to her AT MY OWN EXPENSE but she would still not give me a refund of the purchase price, another dog, because she had none, nor refund the money I spent on vet bills trying to cure her sick puppy, did I retain an attorney and file a dispute with my credit card company. As anyone knows, having charges reversed on a credit card are not easy, and only after submitting hundreds of pages of vet bills and notes and reports attesting to the disgusting condition this dogs was shipped to me in did the credit card company decided in my favor, DUE TO OVERWHELMING EVIDENCE this is a puppy mill that is shipping out dogs infected with life altering, incurable parasites. I am still stuck with not only the thousands I have spent trying to cure the dog Kristen Reid shipped me, but now my other sweet puppy is infected as well. I have been told the only way to make sure the dogs do not keep reinfecting themselves is to EXCAVATE my one acre yard. Nice.
In addition to the giardia the puppy was shipped with, did I mention the dog also had worms, kennel cough, was infested with fleas, had ear infections in both ears, an eye infection, and a congenital eye defect, entropian, that requires surgery?
This is the kind of garbage this lady ships to people out of state and thinks she can get away with it.
It the person responding says they purchased a puppy from this lady and the dog was healthy, they should consider themselves lucky.
For anyone else considering purchasing a puppy from Coal Valley Kennels, I would suggest looking up GIARDIA in canines on the internet and seeing how expensive and difficult it is to get rid of. Some dogs NEVER get rid of it. The dog she shipped me has had diarreah three times a day since I got it. It is highly contagious, and has now infected my other dog. My other puppy is not suffering from mal-absorbtion of food and is very skinny despite eating constantly thanks to the Giardia. They have been treated for six months with toxic medications and have not gotten better.
I implore any one considering getting a dog from these people to go elsewhere.
See the puppy and the kennel you are considering in person. Anyone can tell you anything over the phone or the internet.
In addition, I noticed there is now a puppy contract stating that any PARASITES the dog comes with is not considered a valid reason to return a dog and is not part of any health "guarantee" they might offer. I WONDER WHY???? We are not talking about just any PARASITE here.... this is not like worms or fleas. This is an insidious, disgusting, third world country parasite that will RUIN the dogs life, your life (and YES- GIARDIA TRANSFERS TO HUMANS ALSO - good to know while you are scraping up diarreah all day) , will infect any other pets you have, will ruin your yard and bankrupt you with vet visits and toxic medicines that must be given 4 times a day and may or may not work.
I think consumers are smart enough to decide on their own if they want to risk buying a dog from Coal Valley Newfoundlands, or go elsewhere.
I have nothing to gain at all by writing a fradulent report, other than to give a heads up to other potential puupy buyers.
I have also noticed Coal Valley Kennels will only accept a cashiers check or money order now, no more credit cards. Again, ASK YOURSELF WHY.
The evidence I presented to the credit card company (over 100 pages) was so overwhelming that she shipped me a very sick dog that I don't think she even bothered responding to that either.
It is absolutely CRIMINAL what this woman did to me, my other dog, and my yard.
I gave this breeder every opportunity to make right what she did by shipping me a sick dog, and she walked away. Oh, she DID pay for one $40 vet consultation... at her insistance, I took the dog to a vet SHE CHOSE for a "second opinion". When her second opinion turned out to be even more damning for her that the vets I already went to, she walked away. So she spent $40 to find out the dog was on deaths door, and I have spent over $3000 and counting.
Nice of her, wouldn't you say?

As an owner of a Coal Valley newfoundland, I find it hard to believe that someone could be so cruel to the owner of this home based kennel. I know for a fact and was present when the original poster of this listing called and harrassed the owner of the kennel, stating there would be a lawsuit, etc... if the owner did not "comply" with her demands. Not one of the puppies from this litter was sick, had parasites, etc... or any of the claims that this poster injustly accused the owner of the kennel about. Being a dog owner for 40 years, I know, if this puppy had everything she stated wrong with it, the entire litter would have been infected. Not to mention, the owner of Coal Valley Newfoundlands did, in fact, pay for vet bills in accordance with the contract that was accepted by the owner of this puppy. This woman was offered another puppy in exchange for the one that she had, but refused to send the puppy back. She even went so far as to accuse the owner of being a puppy mill. This is ludicrous!! The fact that the owner of Coal Valley did not have another puppy to exchange at this time only proves she is NOT a puppy mill.

She is a very responsible breeder who takes great care of her puppies and does everything to assure there are no problems with her litters. She gave this woman every option she had, but nothing would appease this owner. She was sick for days after this woman called and was in tears for hours after trying everything she could do to make this woman happy and being mis-treated verbally. Nothing was going to make the owner of this puppy happy.

I am 100% positive in stating that I would look no further than Coal Valley Newfoundlands for my next puppy as I have witnessed first hand the dedication and love that goes into her kennel.