21/04/2026
I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately, and honestly, reading this post multiple times and some other breeders experience has really made me thinking twice on how I've been doing things. I realize. It's obvious I haven't been cautious enough, and I’d never forgive myself if something happened to these babies.
Because of that, I’m changing how I handle puppy visitations.
Y'all need to know these little ones don't have a strong enough immune system yet to fight off the things they might be exposed to. Specifically, they are at high risk for Parvo until they’ve had their second or even final round of shots. Even a well-meaning visitor could accidentally bring something into the nursery that jeopardizes the whole litter.
On top of the health risks, we’ve also unfortunately dealt with people pretending to be buyers just to scout or rob us. My priority has to be the safety of my family and my dogs.
I know how exciting it is to see your new puppy, so I am more than happy to FaceTime with you anytime so you can watch them grow! I apologize if this is an inconvenience, but I have to do what’s best to protect my program and ensure these puppies make it safely to their forever homes.
Evidently, 🤔 I have one more thing to clarify that I did forget to include in my previous post about my process. 💭
💁🏼♀️ LETS LEARN SOMETHING 📚:
PLEASE READ the following ⬇️:
I DO NOT allow anyone to visit or handle the babies prior to going home.🏡
Yes 🙌🏻 I mean the entire 8 weeks‼️
I have a very valid reason for the “no visitors” policy…PARVOVIRUS 🦠.
I completely understand people’s apprehension in today’s society of unethical breeders, puppy mills, and scammers that you want to see the puppy in person. I get it…I understand it…It’s a valid point! BUT my reason for having the “NO VISITORS” policy, in my honest & humble opinion, is actually more important and valid.
Parvovirus (Parvo) 🦠 & other parasites are incredibly easy to transmit and/or track onto my property or in my home. How you ask?? Parvo can be transmitted via clothes 👖, hands 👋🏻 , shoes 👟, sidewalks, tires 🛞…basically anything. It’s like chewing gum in hair. It sticks to everything & anything and once there it’s there!!
1️⃣ Parvo is an extremely contagious disease that can be lethal in young unvaccinated (under-vaccinated) or elderly dogs. It almost always requires expensive veterinary treatment in order to save the puppy’s life. Survival is much more likely with vet care but never guaranteed.
2️⃣ Parvo is endemic in our region of Appalachia. It’s everywhere‼️You can almost assume that Every blade of grass, speck of dirt, or sidewalk has been exposed to the deadly virus. The 💩 maybe gone & no longer visible but the deadly virus is there…waiting to be given life and a victim.
3️⃣ Any unvaccinated adult canine can be an asymptomatic carrier of the parvovirus. 🦠 They may visibly appear healthy but in actuality, they are sick and spreading the virus onto everything they touch. This is how we ended up with a region to where the virus is endemic.
4️⃣ Common Symptoms of parvo are intense gastrointestinal upset 🤮that quickly lead to dehydration and inflammation of the gastrointestinal system 💩. Young puppies already have a higher risk for developing dehydration and hypoglycemia‼️
“Parvo Puppies” will decompensate quickly without veterinary intervention‼️The intestinal tract of these puppies is shredded by the virus allowing free passage of the normal
gut flora to pass into the vascular system. This leads to sepsis within hours to a day or two. Cardiogenic💔shock can occur without extensive veterinary intervention and unfortunately with some puppies they still will succumb to the virus.
5️⃣ The Parvo virus can survive in the soil for over a year. It can survive through drought and extreme heat🔥, or the freezing cold❄️. Once it’s in your soil…it’s there! This places any canine that lives there at a higher risk of developing the disease.
Parvo can survive inside your home on objects🛌/furniture🛋️/flooring 🪵for at least 90 days.
How can it be killed??
6️⃣ The only way to kill Parvo once inside your home or vehicle is will a diluted bleach solution or a Parvocide cleaner like KennelSol (my preferred product).😉 The solution must set for at least 10 minutes before drying in order to be effective‼️
7️⃣ Yes 🙌🏻 it’s possible that a fully vaccinated puppy or dog can still get Parvo—it’s not common—and recovery ❤️🩹 without lifelong effects is more likely. Vaccinated dogs usually have mild symptoms and usually only need limited veterinary intervention.
8️⃣ If you read this in its entirety then I hope 🤞🏻 you NOW understand why I say “I will never compromise on this policy of NO VISITORS.” “It’s a risk I’m not willing to take, or gamble with my dogs wellbeing and health”‼️
🌟Although, I understand why people want to see the puppy in person, or want to pick out their puppy from a litter based on personality…hopefully 🤞🏻 you now have a better understanding on why most ETHICAL breeders say “NO…NOT GONNA HAPPEN”‼️
IN MY SCENARIO I WOULD BE PLACING MY ENTIRE BREEDING PROGRAM AT RISK‼️ All it takes is for one puppy to contract the virus and spread it to every other litter on the ground. Placing pregnant & nursing mommas at risk due to the demand on the bodies already have them weakened…vaccinated or not! It would be a disaster in my situation, and I’m not a gambler. I WILL NEVER RISK IT JUST IN ORDER TO SELL A PUPPY!
💁🏼♀️ This concludes today’s TED talk. I hope everyone learned something about Parvo and will heed my advice about keeping vaccinations on schedule for your pups/dogs.
Thanks again,
Robin Mitchell
