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BEWARE BAD BREEDER! I purchased 2 colored Boston Terrier puppies from Linda Johansen and daughter Krystin Johansen of Cypress Farm Kennel in Mathis, Texas, that I received on 1/11/11. The blue female was already vomiting and had severe, constant diarrhea as soon as I picked them up at the airport, and tested positive for both parvovirus and coccidia parasites within 48 hrs. Due to her critical condition upon arrival, my vet confirmed that she had been suffering from active parvo infection for a minimum of 2 days before being shipped. After emailing all vet records to Krystin, she eventually refunded me the cost of the first dying puppy. When I asked for a refund for the lilac male puppy, who was also infected before being shipped, in order to have him hospitalized, the Johansens terminated all contact via phone, text, and email. I have not heard from them since, and they have not responded to the BBB complaint that I filed against them. In my experience I have found that Cypress Farm Kennel is NOT the “reputable” breeder that they make themselves appear to be on their website and online, as I have evidence proving that they knowingly shipped me parvo infected and parasitized puppies that were obviously not “healthy” - as CFK had guaranteed in their contract.
A third puppy from the same litter was shipped to another state in active parvovirus at the same time, and another CFK puppy owner has contacted me after receiving her puppy NEARLY dead with pneumonia, without a health certificate, and so severely parasitized by worms that they were “coming out of both ends” and had infested all of her major organs. (I have veterinary documentation for all of these claims, and am therefore not liable for any form of slander or libel.) Cypress Farm Kennel has also bred and sold Australian cattle dogs, miniature pinschers, basset hounds, and puggles that I am of aware of. DO NOT TRUST THESE CON ARTISTS - THEY CARE NOTHING ABOUT THESE PUPPIES, ALL THEY ARE CONCERNED ABOUT IS THEIR OWN PROFIT. They have knowingly shipped sick puppies, with dangerous parasites that are easily contracted by humans, to families with small children across the country. They have gotten away with it because there is no legislation against these smaller scale puppy mills in the state of Texas - yet. DO NOT TRUST THE VALIDITY OF ONLINE PUPPY SALE WEBSITES! The “seller” can have any bad review deleted by flagging it as invalid. CFK’s last “good” review was posted on PuppyFind in 2008. I faxed all my documentation to support my bad review that had been hidden, and quality management reposted it, only to have CFK remove all their listings off the website. Krystin just had my “Cypress Farm Kennel Parvo Puppies” facebook page removed for “intellectual infringement.” I will not be intimidated by these people or deterred by them hiding behind the internet or lack of animal cruelty laws in their state. This is the truth, and if you are seeking info on this - or any other - breeder, I believe that the public has the right to know honest information about businesses false advertisement and fraud.
I absolutely agree, Zachary, this was the first and last time I've ever bought a pure bred dog at all - all my past dogs have been large mix breeds or rescues. I take full responsibility for this horrible mistake (buying from an out of state breeder online - not my poor puppies), and want others to learn from it - IF YOU WANT A PUREBRED DOG, USE A LOCAL BREEDER. ALWAYS GO TO THE BREEDERS HOME, NEVER MEET SOMEWHERE ELSE. NEVER SHIP PUPPIES - EVER. Amen. Sadly though, with all the (mis)representation of being a good, caring, responsible breeder who provided photos, and videos of the puppies, and damage control on puppy ad sites (I found her on her website, not an ad site), and with no complaints or negative reviews about this kennel anywhere on google or other search engines, I got duped big time! It's taken the past month for myself and other puppy owners to unravel all of this breeders lies - she and her mom have been at it for a long time apparently.
Thanks, I'm just relieved I found a site they can't have the complaint removed so that mine and other's stories can be shared with the public. Legislation is key - but if there is NO market for purebred dogs online, and no one buys from pet stores, then mills and irresponsible "back yard" breeders will cease to exist. Even with strict (or any) laws to prevent this sort of behavior - puppy buyer's are the only ones who can make a real difference. RESCUE DOGS OR LOCAL BREEDERS MET ON SITE ONLY. There will always be scammers trying to make a buck - even at the expense of helpless animals.
Here's to CFK being the Walmart (or dollar store) of the colored boston terrier world... It's all marketing - the lower to the cost of the product, the higher the sales. If just a couple families every year or two walk away with several thousands in dollars vet expenses for sick or dying puppies, it doesn't bother CFK... they are still in the black. They'll slink away for a while, toy with the idea of retiring lol... then bust out some more cute puppies to sucker people into buying online. NO REPUTABLE BREEDER HAS TO MARKET THEIR PUPPIES ON EBAY. There are reasons for this.. and I have never seen a "FAQ" page on any breeder's website that tries to explain away the simple and blatant facts... CFK shipped 3 sick puppies. All had parvo. 1 died. CFK severed all contact with the sick/dead puppy owners. They can no longer advertise their dogs on PuppyFind because so much documentation was supplied that allows the website to disregard the breeder's request to HIDE negative reviews, if they had kept their ads on PuppyFind, there would be 5 negative reviews warning other prospective puppy buyers. A year later, they are breeding again, selling puppies for half of what other colored breeders are, and telling prospective puppy buyers exactly what they want to hear. All the health testing in the world is worth nothing when your puppies are dying and the breeder won't call you back. I would never risk buying a puppy online again EVER, and especially not from a breeder with all these separate complaints from people across the country. You are lucky, but foolish nonetheless for doing business with someone with such a horrendous reputation - it is their job to sell puppies, that is their game, and they've had many years to hone their craft. You also mention that you don't think they are bad breeders b/c they have been doing it so long that there would be more complaints. Once again - MARKETING and DAMAGE CONTROL is their JOB. Families have to move on with their lives with sick or live or dead puppies, CFK waits for the storm to pass, and then keep on breeding. Seriously has anyone seen a "FAQ" page that extensive, defensive, and pathetic? That alone should be testament enough to any intelligent prospective puppy buyer to STEER CLEAR. To all the less sharp tools in the shed, good luck with that.
Cypress farm kennel — Purchased a sick puppy
"May 2010 I purchased a Boston Terrier puppy from Cypress Farm Kennel I was told the puppy would be shipped when she turned 8 weeks old . I picked the puppy up at Philadelphia International Airport I was shocked and sickened by the condition of this puppy . The puppy was dehydrated, sick and had Diarrhea all over her. She also had a eye infection with a corneal ulcer. A baggy with adult size food was taped to her little crate. When I rushed her to my Vet she only weighted a pound not normal for a 2 month old Boston, The puppy was so worm infested it took months and thousands of dollars to get it under control. Parasites pose a serious Health t to Humans especially children and Cypress Farm Kennel be investigated for shipping puppies across State lines that could make a child sick or blind."
THIS was an entirely separate puppy/owner/incident 6 months before my CFK puppy arrived and died of parvo (along with 2 other parvo littermates who survived).
The administrators on the following webites are either Krystin Johansen herself and/or other colored boston terrier breeders who censor any comments or posts that speak out against Cypress Farm Kennel's unethical behavior. BEWARE! The sources that I mistook for positive reviews are nothing more than additional false advertising from breeders!
https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/All-Color-Boston-Terrier-Club/126799717349227
https://www.facebook.com/#!/bostonterriersofcolor
http://members.boardhost.com/coloredbostons/
CFK chose to post their new FAQ's in RESPONSE to the fact that myself and other sick puppy owners publicized their lack of professionalism in dealing with the illnesses and death of puppies that they shipped. Glad to hear you got a healthy puppy. Others have not. Please share the link to the Puppyfind advertisements you are referring to, because if there have been recent listings, all negative reviews should have been posted as well. There was no health GUARANTEE shipped with the puppies who had parvo. They were only shipped with bill of health/shot record from the vet that was a week (or more) old. There has never been any mention from CFK about the very sick, underweight puppy shipped to PA in 2010 who was so parasitized by worms that it was near death. That owner supposedly contracted worms while nursing this puppy back to health (with extensive veterinary treatment as well), and stated that CFK terminated all contact with them as well, never returning calls or emails. I would be very curious to see if CFK chooses to address this incident and complaint against them - as of yet, I have not seen anything from CFK addressing this sick puppy. Any accident can occur, and if it WAS clear (which it is not) that the parvo puppies were not infected while still in CFK's possession, then none of this would be happening. The reason that several CFK puppy owners are upset with CFK is due to their CUTTING OFF ALL CONTACT WITH FAMILIES WHO RECEIVED SICK PUPPIES. One would think, for all of their supposedly reputable breeder characteristics, that they would not ignore these families or sick and dying puppies that they claim to care so much about. Of course they are sweet and kind to their "CFK family" whose dogs are WELL and not sick or dead. Just a reminder CFK is a BUSINESS. They mention in the FAQ that they were reported to PETA, the ASPCA, animal control, the BBB etc... Why would they also not respond to the Better Business Bureau complaints filed against them if they had nothing to hide? Instead they waited nearly a year and post their (extremely jaded, manipulative, and FALSE) version of the events that transpired with the parvo puppy owners, in addition to their sob story fairy tale about a healthy puppy was that was not spayed and eventually returned to CFK - ultimately painting themselves as the victims. It was so horrific for them to think of poor "Phoe" not being spayed and potentially bred by some unscrupulous breeder, and being pawned off from one home/breeder to the next... yet as soon as they get her back, they breed her at 11 months old?! Oh, I'm sorry, perhaps 11.5 months. I'm sure after so much "trauma" she endured in her first year of life that was the BEST and most caring thing to do to the poor little puppy who finally made her way back to her "princess." LOL
PS You have no idea what "mean" or "harassment" is...because you are on the "princess'" good side.
Link to scanned vet records from 1/13/11 documenting positive parvovirus and coccidia, not very professional, but proof nonetheless - the same that was emailed to and received by CFK.
http://cypressfarmkennelparvopuppyowner.yolasite.com/
http://cypressfarmkennelparvopuppyowner.yolasite.com/
Cypress farm kennel — Purchased a sick puppy
May 2010 - Separate owner, separate litter, underweight, severe worms, corneal ulcer... CFK terminated all contact with owner after shipping sick puppy.
Krystin has yet to address anything related to shipping this sick puppy as well - just 6 months before the parvo issue. Am really curious about why there has been no mention or attempt by CFK to explain this separate incident (of the same unprofessional behavior I am speaking out against)...
http://cypressfarmkennelparvopuppyowner.yolasite.com/
Cypress Farm Kennel Colored Boston Terriers — Proof of LIES against puppy owners on CFK FAQ website
Vet records documenting the proof of my puppy's positive parvo results within 48 hrs can be viewed on this site. Vet records from the owner of the severely parasitized puppy shipped in May 2010 are also visible to the public. CFK has yet to respond to the complaints posted by this DIFFERENT puppy owner that CFK terminated all contact with her as well (6 mo before doing the same with parvo puppy owners in Jan 2011).
Thank you for taking the time to look at the real documentation of CFK pet owners. The complaints posted on line have all been made by pet owners (not breeders) who have no ulterior motives than exposing the truth and warning the public.
This is a website for complaints. Here is the link to 4 separate complaints from 4 different people about Linda and Krystin Johansen selling sick puppies and their unethical business practices, as well as links to report them to the ASPCA, Internet Crimes Complaint Center, and the Better Business Bureau.
Linda Johansen &thefrenchbulldogmom& — Krystin Johansen &Cypress Farm Kennel&
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.
I beg your pardon but generalities never hold water.Not ALL local breeders are good, nor are all club breeders(this person you are commenting on is key in a breed club as a matter of fact) and not all internet sellers are bad. Not all rescue dogs are safe to be with your children nor can be placed without a great deal of experience and knowledge.Thye are either of mixed breed and characteristis fo severl breeds or have be abused and distrust the world.
I sell on the net.I live in a small town with "hunting dog "mentality and do not want my pups placed here. I price them to specific market, screen buyers very carefully and take excellent care of my indoors babies.Don't blame the buyers. That person talks a good game and manages to delete anything negative said about them.The buyers have already suffered and now they arebeing attacked too? By saying ALL internet breeders are bad is as silly as saying all puppy buyers are ignorant, uninformed, etc.It simply defies sensibilities for people to start with a statement so fraught with error to build a foundation on.
Better to say, talk to the breeder, then talk some more.Ask and ask again.Read and ask again.When you feel you sufficiently know who you are dealing, purchase whether on line or not.They have to be vet examined so is the vet complicit in this scenario? I think so.
I have so many references and stand by my vow that our relationship BEGINS with your purchase, NOT ends and that takes care of a multitude of problems.Don't bother bombarding me with negative comments.I am too busy sweeping up my own backdoor.
Cypress Farm Kennel has never had Parvo. Please see this link for more information on the above:
http://cypressfarmkennel.com/frequentlyaskedquestions.html
My name is Sam and I am a Cypress puppy owner. Previous to my purchase I researched Cypress Farm Kennel. I found the online complaints posted on this site. I also found where Cypress Farm discusses them on their website. I understand why Cypruss posted what they did on their website. This person has attacked them left and right and seems to be the only one that has caused a stir. Id feel it appropriate to defend myself from the allegations of a person that has gone on a Internet slander campaign. This is why I wanted to post and it will be positive. I believe that if Cypress has been breeding for as long as they have if they were poor breeders as these complaints suggest them to be then the Internet would be loaded with complaints about them from many different people. Sorry your puppy became ill, but I am very happy with my puppy from Cypress Farm. I would never have been able to afford such a nice puppy in the color of cream like mine is with all of the extra perks I got with my puppy. She came BAER tested, parents already tested for cataracts, and she is so smart all for only $600!
I thank Cypress Farm and am so glad that they didn't stop breeding because of this unfortunate incident. I recommend them fully and if you have any questions about my puppy you are more than welcome to email me.
I find the comment likening Cypress Farm to Wal-Mart as disrespectful and down right mean to those who own puppies from Cypress Farm Kennel. The person who said it, meant it to be degrading so I am taking it as such. I own a Cypress puppy and love him dearly. I actually found him through Puppyfind this last November which is odd considering that you said that "They can no longer advertise their dogs on PuppyFind." I did see my puppies ad as well as his litter mates advertised as well. If you are incorrect about that in your post this leads me to believe you are incorrect about other things as well. For instance, saying that a puppy was shipped without a health certificate. That is impossible per my understanding as the airlines require a health certificate for any puppy to fly and will not even accept them at the counter without it. If a puppy was shipped without it that is the airlines fault. I wonder what else posted above is incorrect.
I found the FAQs page of the Cypress Farm website http://cypressfarmkennel.com/frequentlyaskedquestions.html helpful because previous to reading the FAQs I did not know about the Parvo events. Their honesty to have it published on their website and their making sure that I read the FAQs page in it's entirety and was aware of the Parvo events before they would even accept a deposit from me was one of the reasons I decided to go with them. They could act like it never happened and let people find out on their own, but they chose to do the right thing by writing about it on their website and directing those to it to gain knowledge of the events before new puppy buyers can even purchase a puppy. That sure doesn't seem like a breeder trying to hide anything to me. That sounds like an honest, reputable breeder.
Thank goodness they are the WalMart of Colored Boston Terrier breeders because I wouldn't have been able to afford a puppy that was already BAER tested, pre-patella examined on top of being a well socialized, happy, healthy puppy in the color that I wanted. I was looking at having to pay $1200 or more for a puppy that was not even health tested but got my gorgeous boy for only $700. I could not be happier. I am truly sorry to hear about your poor experience but perhaps you should be more choosey with your words and not be so mean over something that was an accident and so apparent it wasn't their fault.
As far as you posting links to those sites claiming that Kristen is the admin. If she is, that speak mountains of good things about her. The BT Facebook page is such a wonderful source of knowledge for Colored Bostons. I have learned so much and met so many people that I have things in common with through that page. I was able to organize a meetup with some of those members. They have even raised a lot of money for Boston Terriers in need. That page doesn't allow any bad posting so of course they would censor you if you were posting anything like what you have here. The other places you pointed out are great too and again don't allow posting negative in nature so of course they wouldn't let you post this stuff on their pages. I don't know why you seem like you are surprised by that. That is not why the pages are there.
Hang in there Cypress Farm! We love you guys!
Love my Cypress Farm puppy and am currently awaiting my second from them. I am so excited! Sorry you had such trouble with your puppy. I've found them to be nothing short of perfect in my experience. To each his own.
i posted this on another complaint but wanted to make sure it was seen by all who view
"hi all, i just wanted to send a thank you to blake for posting about cypress farm. i hadn't heard of them until my friend was actually posting on this site in regards to a complaint about a local business near where we live. i had been looking for a boston terrier for a while but hadnt found the right puppy because i hadnt found a breeder i was comfortable with. i read your complaint and was shocked! how can a breeder do this to an innocent puppy buyer? i was shocked both because of the situation you were in and to find on cypress farms website that there were bts of color. i couldnt believe bostons came in blue so i started more research on the breed. if it wouldnt have been for your many posts on a multitude of online mediums i likely would have disregarded cypress as a reputable breeder to get a puppy from all together just by reading this page. maybe it was the sheer amount of times you went posting about cypress online that made me delve into them as breeders further? to myself viewing you posting this story anywhere possible gathering comments from all these random individuals in what seemed like an effort to mob and destroy them on some personal level peaked my interest even more. comments made by individuals were obviously made by those who have issue with cypress apart from this parvo thing for whatever reason or sometimes the contents even seemed like yourself agreeing with your original posts? it was because of these reasons i began an interest in cypress and decided to do further research on them. in my search for a reputable blue boston breeder i realized quickly just how far above other breeders of blue Bostons they go to to be sure their puppies are of the best quality and healthiest they can be before they go to their new homes. i was not able to find one other breeder that offered blue puppies for sale at cypress prices who's puppies were not only from health tested parents but also had the puppies juvenile hereditary cataract tested clear, baer hearing tested, and pre-patella tested along with being registered with akc. i decided to complete their puppy application and an hour later we were talking on the phone about my getting a pup. i was very pleased when before going into details about their available puppies for sale they asked if i had looked into adopting from a rescue first. i have never had a breeder try to help me rescue a dog before trying to sell me a dog. we talked for a couple hours that first day. i learned so much about the breed that i hadnt known before. i was very impressed with her diverse knowledge of the breed. i never did bring up the parvo, until she did. yep she did! she asked me if i had read their faqs page, which i had. she asked me if i had read about the events of jan 2011, which i had. she then went through the events over the next hour going over any questions i had about it. the phone conversation was incredibly educational and again, she went above what i expected. i was sold on them being the place i was going to buy my new boston puppy from when i was ready. i am happy to say that i asked to be added to their waiting list and after a wait that wasn't to long thank goodness my puppy was born. the next 8 weeks were horrible waiting to bring him home but they were made so much easier with the tons of updates that cypress farm kennel provided me with during that time. i received 14 video updates, including video of her home and where the dogs all live and play since i wasnt going to be able to go to their home to pick up my puppy. that was perhaps the most comforting. i received a ton of pictures in countless numbers there were always so many pics coming in. i felt like i got to watch my baby grow up from birth in person. it was great! i am very happy to say that i got my lovely blue baby the beginning of march and he is everything i could have ever asked for and now two of my friends are currently on cypress list awaiting their puppies but it sounds like its going to be awhile as the list is lengthy. i truly thank you blake for posting about your experience because if you wouldn't have, i would have never learned about cypress. i want to thank you additionally for posting about it through so many avenues because if it weren't for your persistence to tell everyone about your experience it would have never lit the fire under me to learn more about them and i wouldnt have my gorgeous jacob. thanks again blake! "