Finding a Good Breeder
By Jill Terry
In my opinion, the best source is one of the official breed clubs. Most breed clubs have a code of ethics which their members must follow, and will usually know who has puppies available. You will find at least one official breed club on the Breed Information pages of this site.
One source we do not recommend is The Kennel Club. The Kennel Club keep a list of breeders who have puppies. However, no checks are carried out to ensure they are reputable breeders, you simply pay them money and you will be added to their list as long as you do not breed more than 4 litters a year and do not need a breeder's license. There are breeders on this list which I would certainly not recommend to anybody, and, in my opinion, are no better than puppy farmers. However, The Kennel Club are trying to improve on this and have started an accredited breeder's scheme. But as yet this is still no guarantee.
Another source is to visit some dog shows. This is an excellent opportunity to meet adult dogs of your chosen breed and talk to experienced people.And of course you can check out the breeders advertising with The Dog Scene by visiting the Breed Information pages!
Some responsible breeders are now starting to advertise in order to help steer people away from the irresponsible breeders and puppy farmers. But when replying to an advertisement in a paper remember that the majority of those advertisements are probably not from responsible breeders.
"Visitors always welcome", "health tests on sire and dam (good results)", "give full breeder support" ? these are just a few phrases that might wave a green flag and certainly worth visiting the breeder.Phrases which may wave a red flag are things like "ready
for Christmas", "low prices", "good hips", "adorable balls of fluff", those adverts that have lots of different breeds , and many more.
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Finding a Good Breeder was published by The Dog Scene on 10 Aug, 2006. © All rights reserved. You may download and print this article for personal or non-profit use only. Please feel free to link to this article.
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10 Aug, 2006 (Edited 10 Jun, 2007)
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