Breeder sold pups with mites, diarrhoea and rotten teeth, say buyers

Friday, 30 July 2021

Lisa Wiblin’s online listings show silky-eared miniature dachshunds or fluffy pomeranians displayed on soft rugs.

But the people who buy puppies from Wiblin’s property in Eighty Eight Valley, south of Nelson, tell a different story. Puppies riddled with fleas and mites, or carrying progressive retinal atrophy (PRA), a degenerative condition that can lead to blindness.

The SPCA have confirmed they are investigating Wiblin following a complaint.

Wiblin advertises on Facebook under Precious Pups, and has listed puppies on TradeMe under at least two usernames.

The people Stuff spoke with for the story asked to remain anonymous. Some forwarded abusive messages Wiblin had sent them, while others reported threats of police and legal action. Others were embarrassed about buying from the breeder.

Sarah bought her dachshund puppy earlier this year after seeing a listing on TradeMe by jack6.

In phone conversations and messages from Wiblin’s Facebook account, which Stuff has seen, the Auckland woman asked Wiblin about her pup’s background, health conditions and littermates.

“She told me what I wanted to hear,” Sarah said.

Wiblin assured her the dachshund had had the necessary health checks, and showed her paperwork that appeared to clear its parents of genetic conditions.

Sarah deposited the money into Wiblin’s account and the dog was flown to Auckland.

However, when she picked up her puppy, Sarah discovered it was riddled with worms. Suspicions mounting, she had the dog tested, and discovered the dog was a carrier of PRA.

When Sarah messaged Wiblin to let her know, the breeder said she had not known about PRA until that litter. Wiblin called Sarah a “drama queen,” and blocked her.

After posting in a Facebook group about her experience, Sarah received several “aggressive” calls and messages from Wiblin, she said. She blocked the breeder.

Sarah believed there were dachshund owners out there who did not know their pups were PRA carriers. “If they weren’t aware and bred the dogs, they could pass the condition on.”

In hindsight, there were red flags, Sarah said. “Dachshunds are a high-demand breed, and it’s strange to see them on TradeMe; breeders will have a waiting list.”

When Stuff phoned the number on jack6's TradeMe listing, Lisa Wiblin’s mother Pauline Tebbutt answered. The account was her late husband’s, Tebbutt said. Initially, Tebbutt said she was selling puppies on her son’s behalf. She later said the puppies were Wiblin’s.

“She does it [sells puppies] as an income to build their house.”

Helping You Help Animals (HUHA) co-founder Carolyn Press McKenzie has visited Wiblin's farm twice, rescuing two dogs from the property.

The animal welfare expert said the conditions, and Wiblin's treatment of the dogs, was “so many levels of wrong”.

“You could see the clear purpose was breeding and producing, it's quite a distressing thing to see.”

She described clutter, cages everywhere, and tired enclosures.

“They use every space available to have an animal caged and producing.'

She noticed a husky that had made a hole beneath its enclosure.

“That is a vibrant, energetic animal kept in a small area, the boredom must have been immense.

“Those animals are kept contained, they don't get the life skills a loved family member would get. They're institutionalised; when you get your hands on them they're very broken.”

Another woman who bought a dachshund from Wiblin late last year kept the pup just a few days before returning her.

“The puppy was sick; had bad grey diarrhoea and vomited. It smelled shocking, and had mites in her ears. I bathed her in the garage before letting her in the house.

“We paid $3000, and [Wiblin] withheld $500. A very foul-mouthed, horrible woman to deal with.”

A woman who visited Wiblin’s property late last year said the conditions were “awful”. She took a video, which Stuff has seen, showing puppies in crates stacked two high and four wide inside Wiblin’s home.

Urine dripped from the top cages onto the dogs below, she said.

“It smelled disgusting, like faeces and urine. The noise was horrendous.”

Wiblin told her she had been banned from TradeMe, the woman said. She said she had asked friends to sell puppies on her behalf, and asked her if she would, too, the woman said.

Nelson woman Lisa told Stuff the puppy her mum bought from Wiblin was underweight, and riddled with ear mites and fleas.

The puppy’s rotten, crooked teeth had to be removed before its first birthday, Lisa said.

When she contacted Wiblin to let her know, the breeder blocked her, she said.

A vet who has dealt with the owners of some of Wiblin’s dogs told Stuff that dogs affected by PRA can lose their sight from as early as two years old.

“The tests are widely known about, anyone breeding dogs should be testing for genetic defects that can be identified through DNA screening.”

The vet does not work with Wiblin’s animals. However, she has kept tabs on the breeder for a long time. Over one three month period, the vet noted about 15 litters for sale, with each litter averaging five or six puppies.

She cited unethical practices: such as breeding a father and a daughter together.

The vet and others who spoke with Stuff have contacted TradeMe, the SPCA and the Ministry for Primary Industries repeatedly, as well as contacting people who have bought Wiblin’s puppies to warn them of genetic conditions.

“[Wiblin] is not the only one in the country but she’s one of the worst I know of,” the vet said. “The sheer numbers of animals being pumped out … it’s puppy milling, there’s no other word for it.

“There’s no concern for the pup’s long term welfare, or the suffering and distress the owners will go through.

“If people knew where their dog came from, I don't think they would be buying off her.”

Another woman who contacted Stuff owns a dog that was rescued after spending 13 years on Wiblin’s property.

The woman said she had never encountered a dog so badly damaged.

“I’ve worked with rescue dogs for years, but he was the worst I have ever seen. I have never seen an animal freeze with fear like that.”

It took a year of work before she could handle the dog, she said. Two years later, he’s a completely different animal.

However, he still shows signs of what she believed was many years kept in a cage, and she believed he had post-traumatic stress disorder.

“It really breaks my heart thinking about how many others are like that, it’s mentally damaging: dogs can have mental issues just like us.”

Lisa Wiblin and her husband Michael spoke with Stuff on the phone. They denied the puppies were in poor condition and claimed the set up had changed since Stuff visited in 2018.

“All the animals that leave the property get a vet check,” Michael said.

The animals that arrived at their destination with health problems either developed them after they left the property, or were due to mismanagement by their new owners, he said.

Despite Wiblin being a breeder “all her life”, she was unaware of PRA until recently, Michael said.

“Vets had never told us about it. Unless someone tells you about it, you don’t know about it.”

Now, they were taking action, Michael said.

“We’ve just spent over $1000 on tests, we have got four clear [results], one is affected, which is going to be desexed.”

Breeding a father and daughter was a “common practice,” Michael said.

“A lot of breeders do it to cement a bloodline… We haven’t had any bad pups from doing that.”

Wiblin said she had not advertised on TradeMe for at least two years, and the jack6 account was her mother’s. While she had emailed and phoned buyers herself, received money to her personal bank account and dealt with complaints, this was on her mother’s behalf, she said.

In a later call to Stuff she said she was not making money selling dogs – she was making a loss.

“If there’s a problem I pay my way. I don’t do it to make money.”

The animal rights advocates Stuff spoke with say Wiblin has contravened TradeMe's animal welfare code. Among other conditions, this requires sellers to inform buyers of genetic conditions; keep up-to-date with parasite treatments and limit litters to three per breeding animal.

TradeMe’s policy and compliance manager James Ryan said for privacy reasons, he was not able to discuss Wiblin’s activities.

“If we were to receive any concerns about any breeder or the welfare of any animal onsite, our Trust & Safety team would investigate immediately. However, we can only act on solid evidence rather than unsubstantiated allegations.”

An SPCA spokeswoman confirmed they were looking into Wiblin’s practices.

“SPCA is currently investigating a complaint in relation to this breeder and therefore we are unable to comment further.”