EXCLUSIVE: Gosselin Dog Breeder Will Keep Dogs Indefinitely
Sept. 17 2009, Published 5:01 a.m. ET
Jon and Kate Gosselin have already broken up the family and now they're giving away the dogs, so their eight children have got to be hurting. But don't worry about the dogs, Shoka and Nola, it seems they're going to be just fine.
Watch the video to see more of Jon and the dogs
"They want a hot dog," breeder Jeff Christopher told RadarOnline.com exclusively, with the dogs barking in the background. "I've got them for an undetermined amount of time. There was no discussion of a time when Jon is going to pick them up. Nothing is final."
Despite Christopher's optimism, the dogs are a casualty of Jon and Kate's divorce. The couple couldn't agree on the dogs and it ended with them giving the dogs up with the blame placed on Kate.
RadarOnline.com first broke the news that Jon has returned the family's two German Shepherds to their breeder.
Click here to read about Jon giving back the dogs
In the Jon & Kate Plus 8 episode clip (see video below), Kate expresses concern about the dog's training, and that's no surprise to those that know her. "Kate is an orderly kind of person," Christopher told RadarOnline.com. "She was never concerned about the dogs, she just wanted to train them, and so this time with the dogs gives me extra time to train them. They're at the perfect age for training, but they're family dogs so their training won't be that advanced."
Click here to read about Kate's new show
Christopher told us he is planning to watch the 15 month old dogs for as long as the family needs him to. "I've been asked to take care of them before, and now while all of this is happening to them they've asked me to take care of them again. I have a farm house that they love, plus a lot of their brothers, sisters, cousins, aunts and uncles live here.
The dogs have always been Jon's but he can't have them in his New York City apartment. That lead to a big argument between Jon and Kate which clearly led to the dogs being given away.
"They're in great shape," he said of the well taken care of dogs.
"They're maybe a little bit over-weight, they are well fed and I know they get a lot of exercise with Jon."
Click here to read about Jon's suicide bombshell
Jon caused a furor earlier in the year with his statement about the treatment the dogs receive at the hands of the children, telling People.com they "climb on them, pull their tails," but Christopher said that kind interaction with the dogs is healthy. "The dogs LOVE the children," Christopher told RadarOnline.com. "The dogs weigh more than the kids and they love playing with the kids. If they didn't have that kind of interaction with the kids you would have a de-socialization situation, which wouldn't be good for the dog or the kids. The children are part of the pack."
If Jon and Kate do decide to leave the dogs with the breeder he will not put them up for adoption. "They would stay in my family and I wouldn't give them to anyone else," Christopher told RadarOnline.com. "They asked me to take care of them and I will."
Shoka and Nala are brother and sister, and as they grow up Jon is facing a tough decision - which dog should he fix? "This is on his mind," Christopher says. "This needs to be taken care of sooner rather than later," he said, explaining that Shoka the male has the beautiful German line in his coat and Nala has the darker American coat, so Jon would be able to breed either dog, but isn't sure which one he wants to neuter.
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Having your parents go through a very public divorce and having your dad date other women is tough enough and then losing your beloved pets seems almost cruel, but Christopher told us that Jon "doesn't plan on breaking up the family, so nothing will be done that hurts the children."
Click here to see exclusive pics of Jon Kissing girlfriend Hailey Glassman
