Breeder refused to give us our puppy – what do i tell my kids?

I’m absolutely devastated right now and have no idea what to do.

We’ve wanted a puppy for a long time and spent ages finding the right breeder. After being on a waitlist for months, we were finally selected by a highly respected breeder known for this particular breed.

I met the breeder and the puppy’s parents multiple times and first visited the litter when they were about four weeks old. That’s when I met our puppy—the one the breeder thought was the best fit for us. I instantly fell in love. Because of COVID restrictions and the long travel distance, I went alone to these visits.

Naturally, my kids have been beyond excited. We’ve spent months preparing, buying everything the puppy could possibly need, and it’s all they’ve talked about.

Finally, today was the big day! The kids and I traveled to pick up the puppy and checked into a hotel nearby. The plan was to bring him home tomorrow. We arranged to stop by the breeder’s place today so the kids could meet the puppy for the first time.

Everything seemed fine—or so I thought. The kids were, of course, very excited. There was some squealing and loud voices, and one of them got particularly hyped up. But I didn’t notice anything too unusual.

As we were leaving, the breeder asked to have a word with me alone. That’s when she dropped the bombshell: she said my kids—especially one of them—were too loud, unruly, and rough with the puppies. She even said, outright, that she didn’t like what she saw in my child’s personality. Because of this, she refused to give us the puppy.

I was completely blindsided. I just stood there in shock, then got in the car and drove back to the hotel.

The worst part? My kids are still over the moon with excitement, completely unaware. They think tomorrow is the day. And now, I have to figure out how to tell them that we’re going home empty-handed.

Has anyone ever experienced something like this? How do I even explain this to my children?

For the record, I do respect the breeder’s decision—it’s her right to choose where her puppies go. But I just can’t understand what she saw that made her react this way. Especially the part about my child being “hard-handed” with the puppies—I truly don’t recognize that at all.

I’m just so heartbroken. 💔