I located Jacqueline D.L. Belcher on the internet while looking for a beautiful, purebreed, healthy Weimaraner puppy. Since there are minimal Weimaraner breeders in the NJ, NY, PA area I felt lucky to have found her.
I called her cell phone and left a message and she returned my phone call immediately to discuss the sale of her Weimaraner puppies. She was extremely pleasant on the phone and seemed to have so much knowledge about Weimaraners and how to purchase from a reputable source.
I expressed my personal stories of how I was aching to own a Weimaraner for 8 years now and with the passing of my Collie I was finally ready to purchase one. I also provided her with all the reassuring information that any puppy I received would be well provided for and loved. I informed her that I was a Law Enforcement Officer and that the dog would receive extensive exercise as this breed requires such. The puppy would also have 24 hour daily care as someone is always home. I was fully prepared for this exact breed!
Jacqueline lived over 2 hours from my residence but she was so deceptive and convincing on the phone that collectively with my mother we decided to take the trip to see the 2 puppies she had left from the litter.
We arrived at her home where she was present along with a man she claimed to be her husband. Her son had also been there. When we arrived she introduced me to a Weimaraner not affiliated with the litter I was purchasing from. When we went into the house we only entered the first room which was the kitchen are.
Inside she had multiple large crates on the floor. One had a Viszla approximately 16-20 weeks old if I had to guess. The other crate had a Weimaraner also about 16 weeks old.
The two 9 week old weimaraner puppies she was offering to me we on the floor under a table playing when we approached. I immediately fell in love with one of the two and picked him up. At this time she disclosed some information to me that now looking back does not add up.
She told me a story that the father of the litter died the day after the litter was born due to an accidental ingestion of a deer carcus. At this time she presented what appeared to be old female Weimarner that she claimed was the mother of the litter.
I was concerned that the Weimaraner puppy in the crate that was not related to the litter for sale had an enormous lump several inches in size on the top of his head. When we asked what happened she said he bumped his head on the table. Being over excited at the time I did not suspect any time of malicious wrong doing but later on did. This was a puppy she claimed she had purchased from a western state in order to use it for breeding since the passing of the other male after the litter was born.
She said she was going to keep one of the females from the litter and continue to breed them. She also stated that the Viszla in the other crate was for breeding as well. At this time I paid her $850 in cash and she provided me with starter food and an AKC registration application.
On the way to the car I saw yet another full grown Viszla in the window. I even told her I would consistantly update her with photos of my new puppy.
Beginning days after I took my puppy home he began to have serious diarrhea filled with blood and mucus. I ended up taking him to the emergency clinic since it was a weekend and he was treated for intestinal parasites. This visit costed $260.00. I did call her on the day of the visit and left her a message on her cell phone but I never heard back from her.
Once his digestive tract seem to return to normal I did not worry anymore. As the next few months went along my parents and I noticed my puppy having eyesight issues. His behavior at times seemed very odd. He could not find objects during a game of fetch, did not recognize us on sight when we walked in the room, didn't even notice other animals within a few feet of him and was always looking all over and distracted. When he would hear something he would bark and look in the general direction of the noise but could not pin point where it was coming from.
Upon realizing what we were probably dealing with I was devastated. I made an appointment with my vet right away. My regular vet confirmed he had an eyesight problem but decided to refer me to a canine opthamologist. This vet visit costed me another $398.00 in order to check for tick born diseases that may have caused vision loss. Those tests returned a negative.
When I returned home I called Jacqueline and she picked up the phone. I immediately informed her that I would be following up with her next week once I had a definitive answer on the problem. She retold me that she has never had any problems with any of her dogs througout the years and that they are always checked for those type of problems and "it is probably just a fluke".
One week later I brought my puppy to a highly impressive canine opthamologist referred by my vet. It was confirmed that my puppy had congenital cataracts, distichiasis and mild microphthalmia. This visit ran me $130.88 also. The opthamologist immediately explained to me that this puppy should have never been sold this way and my case falls under the NJ Unfit for Sale Law/Puppy Lemon Law.
The estimated cost for the cataract surgery alone was $3000 - $3500. This doesn't include follow up visits and the surgery holds no guarentees. There are also a lot of possible complications that can lead to complete blindness of my puppy. I received a certificate of unfitness from the Dr. And the estimate in writing along with the NJ laws pertaining to my case.
I phoned Jacqueline upon returning home. Shockingly her home phone had been disconnected so I left a message on her cell phone. No response. Approximately a week later I followed up again with another phone message on the cell and this time sent an email stating that I needed to speak with her ASAP. We had corresponded before when I sent her pictures and updates of the puppy so she was familiar with my email address. I still have not heard back from her!
Luckily for me through some research of my own it has come to light that she has been doing this for years!
Jacqueline Belcher is NOT a breeder. She is an unlicensed dealer that seels sick puppies knowing they are defective prior to sale. This also means she is not supposed to have these animals AKC qualified, does not have them vet certified prior to sale, and apparently has been administering vaccines on her own. She has had complaints lodged against her multiple times before for YEARS.
She has broken many laws and is stealing people's money. Not to mention a breed such as this is losing it's good quality blood line. This is sick and twisted!
She is expected to relocate to the Pennsylvania area soon. Beware!
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