Messi is cute and fluffy and expensive. The Cavalier-Poodle mixed dog is known as a “designer dog” and is the Christmas gift Jess Cuthbert bought for his girlfriend.
“Her dogs have always been adopted,” he explained, adding this time they couple wanted a specific dog with a calm demeanor.
The “Cavipoo” is known for being calm and good with kids and the elderly. So Jess dropped $1,700 on Messi. Plus, the breeder at Three Oaks Farm came highly recommend.
“My brother just bought a dog,” Jess told News 2’s Rebecca Collett.
Shortly after bringing Messi home, the couple realized something wasn’t quite right. The dog’s hair wasn’t the texture they expected, and Messi is not calm.
“I know he’s a puppy, but he’s yappy,” Jess explained.
For $100 Jess confirmed Messi’s lineage through a pet DNA test.
“There wasn’t even an ounce of what he said was in this puppy,” Jess said of the results. “There was no Poodle. There was no Cavalier.”
The DNA test showed Messi is actually half Yorkshire Terrier, a quarter Bichon, and a quarter Havanese.
“We’ve gone through several different feelings,” Jess said.
The couple explicitly told the breeder they didn’t want a Terrier.
Goose Creek veterinarian, Dr. Jan Crowe says a Terrier and Cavalier have opposite dispositions.
“That’s not anywhere close to the same,” Dr. Crowe, Creekside Vet Clinic owner, told News 2.
Dr. Crowe warns not to be awed by a dog with “papers”.
“In the 90s the CKC came out,” she explained. “For $15 you could name your breed,” she explained.
She said there is virtually no oversight for breeders in the Continental Kennel Club.
“CONTINENTAL KENNEL CLUB accepts registration applications for processing and issues registration certificates based on the accuracy of the information submitted by the registration applicants, and CKC accepts no liability for any inaccurate, false, or fraudulent information submitted on registration applications,” according to CKC website.
So before buying a designer dog, Dr. Crowe recommends requesting a DNA test; getting good recommendations from previous customers; and seeing the dog’s parents on site.
“People are being terribly misled,” she explained.
Jess said he wished the couple had asked to see Messi’s parents when they picked the puppy. Though Messi isn’t what Jess expected or paid for, the family has grown to love the pup.
“We’re going to keep it. We love him,” he said.
The breeder at Three Oaks Farm apologized and refunded Jess’s money plus the cost of the DNA test after News 2 contacted him. The breeder explained that he was helping place another breeder’s dogs and was mistaken on Messi’s combination.
