Thinking About Purchasing a Purebred Dog?

Then think carefully.  There are wonderful, caring breeders out there.  The difficult part can be finding them.  All breeds have health issues and many issues can be eliminated or reduced via health testing of the dogs that are being bred, both mother and father.  An ethical breeder will do the necessary testing and show you in writing the results or show you where to find these results on the internet.  An ethical breeder will also socialize your pup extensively so that they're ready for anything in life.

Ethical breeders will belong to their breed national club and usually a local club as well.  They will actively show their dogs.  At least one parent of the puppy you're thinking about purchasing should have a championship.  Some breeders avoid ethical consequences by joining their national club but not as a "breeder member".  This means they do not have to meet the club standards for breeders.  This is not in the best interest of pet buyers.

Perhaps you're asking, why should I care if my puppy's parents have a championship?  How does that help me? It helps you a lot actually.  For one thing, you want a great dog with a great temperament, right?  Show dogs have to perform in front of the public.  If they get it wrong, they don't get a championship.  Show dogs also generally have health testing done although to some extent, dog shows are beauty contests. An ethical breeder will show you in writing or on the internet the pedigree of the puppy you are interested in.

Inquire about the age of the puppy's parents.  Dogs should not be bred until the age of two. By this age, the appropriate health testing has been done and the dogs are physically mature enough to have babies.

An invaluable source of information about dog breeders can be found from other dog breeders in the area.  This is a tip that a breeder probably won't tell you.  Remember I mentioned pedigree earlier?  Take that pedigree and look at the kennel names of the puppy parents (if different) and at least grandparents.  You can easily contact these people by searching the internet for their contact information.  Give them a call or e-mail and tell them you're thinking of purchasing a puppy from "whomever" and get their opinion.  I've never found a breeder unwilling to talk. 

Other references are important as well.  Ask your puppy seller for the names of people who have purchased puppies from them and contact them directly.  Ideally you'd like to speak to someone with a younger dog as well as someone with an adult dog. 

I mentioned ethical breeders are hard to find.  Here are a few places where you are LEAST likely to find an ethical breeder- the internet and your newspaper.  That's right.  While there are exceptions to this rule, ethical breeders rarely advertise.  Why is this?  They don't need to.  Those in the know are waiting for their puppies.  Where can you find an ethical breeder?  Start with national breed clubs.  You can use this link to get started- AKC breeder referral.

A few last caveats- don't go look at puppies first.  Any breeder that wants your first order of business to be viewing the puppies may not have your best interests at heart.  Who can resist a cute little face?  Do your homework, find some breeders who sound promising and research them.  If you'd like a wonderful, healthy lifelong companion this is the way to go.  A puppy from an ethical breeder may cost more than the newspaper.  Don't let that be a deterrent- taking all the right steps as outlined above and find your best friend for life.  I'd also like to point out that some unethical breeders will try to appear as something they are not and ask just as much money as someone who has spent time and money developing an excellent breeding line.  Again, buyer beware.  Raising and selling puppies can be a money making business or a hobby for someone who truly loves the breed.   Finally, any breeder that always has puppies available is running a money making machine and considered a red flag.  True hobby breeders who care about their breed never do this.  They will support you for life and answer any questions you may have at any time in the future. 

Good luck finding the companion of your dreams.  I'd be happy to answer any questions you have about purchasing a puppy.  Feel free to e-mail or call.