Some stories stay with you long after you put your phone down.
Learning that Sandra Moore-Doby’s entire litter of ten Borzoi puppies had been stolen from her property in Tennessee was one of those stories. They were just five weeks old. Local reporting confirmed the reported theft, and updates circulating within the dog community described the puppies being resold. It is difficult to imagine the worry, anger, and helplessness of finding an entire litter gone.
Our hearts go out to Sandra and everyone working to bring those puppies home.
As breeders, we cannot read something like that without thinking about the puppies sleeping under our own roof. The little faces we check before bed. The mother we sit beside. The hours spent weighing puppies, washing bedding, watching everyone eat, and noticing the smallest changes.
We know how much love fits into five weeks.
This situation has brought an ongoing conversation here at Dark Point Kennel to the forefront: how we welcome people into our program while protecting the dogs who depend on us.
Why We Are Changing Our Visiting Policy
We live on a remote property. We have security cameras, and we have dogs we believe would be inclined to protect their offspring. Those things give us some reassurance, but they cannot give us a guarantee.
Nor should protecting a litter ever have to fall on the mother herself.
What happened in Tennessee is a painful reminder that we need to make decisions based on what we can reasonably prevent. It is also the push to address something we have wanted to tighten up for a long time: biosecurity.
Going forward, we will be limiting access to our property and puppy areas. We will no longer offer casual visits to meet young litters. Any approved visit or puppy pickup will be arranged with us directly, in advance, with clear boundaries around where visitors may go and which dogs they may meet.
We understand that meeting puppies is exciting. When you have been waiting for a litter, seeing pictures can make you want to get in the car immediately. We understand that feeling because we share it.
But our responsibility begins well before a puppy leaves with their family. Sometimes that means asking everyone to wait.
The Risks We Cannot See
Security is only part of this decision.
Biosecurity simply means taking practical steps to reduce the chance of bringing disease into the places where our animals live. With young puppies, those small decisions matter.
Someone can love dogs, have perfectly good intentions, and still carry contamination on their shoes, clothing, or hands. Parvovirus, for example, can travel on contaminated footwear and other objects. A visitor does not need to bring a visibly sick dog for an exposure to happen.
Living in the woods does not remove that risk. Neither does keeping a clean home.
We are also a working farm, which makes us especially mindful of what moves between different animal areas. Boots worn for chores should not simply walk into a puppy space. Hands, equipment, and clothing deserve the same thought.
We already put considerable effort into caring for our dogs. Clearer boundaries around visitors are another part of that care.
Staying Connected as Your Puppy Grows
We want our puppy families to feel involved, informed, and comfortable asking questions. We know that choosing a breeder requires trust, and we take our part in earning that trust seriously.
We will continue sharing photographs, videos, and honest updates about our puppies as they grow. We can talk about their personalities, explain our decisions, discuss health testing, and help families understand the dogs behind each pairing.
Limiting visits also means being more intentional about how we help you follow along.
Our puppies will continue receiving thoughtful handling, age-appropriate experiences, and the daily attention that goes into helping them become confident individuals. We will manage those experiences with their health and development in mind.
A Responsibility We Take Personally
There is no policy that can promise nothing will ever go wrong. We know that.
But when something makes us stop and reconsider how we do things, we owe it to our dogs to listen.
We have spent a long time thinking about these boundaries. What happened to Sandra’s puppies made it painfully clear why we should put them into place.
To our current and future puppy families, thank you for understanding that the puppy you are waiting for is already deeply loved here. Before they ever sleep on your couch, ride home in your car, or become part of your everyday life, they are part of ours.
Keeping them safe is a promise we make to them—and to you.
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