Since posting my original review two other people have posted with 5 star reviews and a third person contacted me via yelp messaging, whom bought a Collie puppy from Denise (of Northern Classic Collies) a month before I did.
Those two people left glowing 5 star reviews just as I read on the Northern Classic Collies website which I found quite encouraging when I decided to buy a puppy from Northern Classic Collies.
However, the third person told me a very similar story as mine. That person bought a 4 month old puppy from Denise in a PetSmart parking lot a month before I bought my 5 month old puppy from Denise a month later in a PetSmart parking lot (I recommend not doing this, insist on seeing the puppy at the kennel, in its own environment). So we assumed it was from the same liter. However the person's paperwork shows different parents for her puppy than my paperwork for my puppy. Which is a bit suspicious unless Northern Classic Collies actually had two different liters at the same time. Her puppy exhibited the same timid behavior issues as my puppy. They both bark frantically and ferociously at the slightest unexpected noise and at strangers when out for a walk.
After 6 months with our new puppy (she is 13 months old now), I have spent much time training and socializing her. She is remarkably less timid now then when we first got her at 5 months of age. I bring her to a local dog park every morning weather permitting. There is a group of other dog owners that I joined with and we all hang out together every morning. So my dog has gotten to know those people and the other dogs. Being around those other people and dogs has helped tremendously in changing my dogs timid behavior. The other people in that group have even remarked how much my dog as changed as she is so much more relaxed now. However I still can't take her on walks with a leash at the Duluth Lake-Walk because she still barks frantically at strangers approaching us from the opposite direction on the lake-walk and she gets terrified if the train goes by. I take her to Home Depot for a socializing exercise as they allow pets in the store, and to the pet store too, and she is fine now when encountering people there.
Also, after riding in the car to the dog park every morning her excessive drooling eased up after 4 months. Today she doesn't drool at all. I'm quite relieved with this burden. Most of the time she crouches down on the seat and every once in while she'll sit up and glance out the window, but mostly she crouches down on the seat. So she has a ways to go yet to be relaxed in the car.
Despite the other 5 star reviews, I remain disappointed with Denise's (from Northern Classic Collies) dishonesty concerning our dogs car sickness issues. I mean I clearly saw Denise wiping away dog drool from our puppys' chest with a towel when we pulled up to meet them and Denise quickly put the towel away when she noticed us pull up. The puppy started drooling immediately upon putting her in my pickup when we left and drove home. Clearly our new puppy had issues riding in the car before we got her. Denise should have been honest with us when my wife asked her about how the puppy traveled in the car... all Denise said was "fine".
Also, I remain irritated that she would not tell us what our dog's life was like for her first 5 months. I asked her straight out in an email because I wanted to understand how the timidness behavior came to be. But Denise evaded my question replying that the timidness could be overcome with training. She never did call me nor give me her phone number. But other people have written how nice Denise was and helped them through the whole process.
Based on my experience with Northern Classic Collies and from what I've read from others whom have purchased puppies from Northern Classic Collies, it seems to me that if there is nothing to hide, then Northern Classic Collies is a wonderful kennel. Its best to buy a puppy from them if they are 8 to 12 weeks old I think. It appears my puppy was confined to a kennel the first five months of her life and not socialized properly. But I don't know for certain because Northern Classic Collies wouldn't tell me. All they said was that they held on to our puppy because our puppy was the "pick of the liter". read more
