COMPARISONS BETWEEN THE "GOOD" BREEDERS AND THE "BAD" BREEDERS

Traits of
Responsible Or Good Breeders

Traits of Bad Breeders:
Backyard Breeders
Hobby Breeders
Wholesalers to Pet Store
and
Puppy Millers (big and small)

Really "Into" Dogs

And

Dog events:

(shows, training, clubs, etc.)

Not "into" dogs

(has "pets" around the house)

Belongs to dog clubs and organizations

Is not involved in the "dog world"

Proves quality of dogs and suitability for breeding by competing

for titles and certificates in conformation,

obedience,

agility,

hunting trials,

protection,

herding,

and tracking.

The best breeders title their stock on "both" ends.

Working titles and conformation titles.

Quality of dogs is almost always substandard.

The Bad Breeder

does not test his dogs in shows or trials.

The Bad Breeder will express disdain for organized canine events.

Yet, the Bad Breeder will go on and on about his 'rare' breed: white Dobermans,

The chocolate Dane,

The long-haired Whippet,

white Boxers,

the Dudley Lab,

the long-haired Rottie,

the expensive -Poo crossbred,

Royal, Giant, Super-sized,

or Teacup

anything.

Pups' pedigrees are filled with dogs who have obtained show titles/working certificates;

never

breeds dogs without "papers"

from a major kennel club such as

the AKC

the UKC

or

the CKC

Pedigrees mostly a list of pets bred by backyard breeders;

pups may not even have "papers"; may be mongrels

(XYZ breed + poodle.)

Supports rescue groups; knows his actions inevitably play some part in pet overpopulation and euthanasia

Honestly believes that because he places/sells all his pups, he does not contribute in any way to the needless slaughter of millions of dogs per year in shelters

Knowledgeable in every facet of breed,

including that of health issues/defects;

researches genetics when choosing mates

Not particularly educated about breed,

often not aware of his own breed's genetic defects;

does not consider mate's genetics

Knowledgeable about housetraining,

training,

socializing,

breeding,

health;

constantly reads dog-related materials

Has own ideas which may not coincide with professionals' opinions;

won't bother to read any of the hundreds of dog books available

Can and will help

and educate

puppy buyers re these issues

Says "Goodbye" and "Good luck"

Willing to give you his references

Has no references

Knows his puppies' ancestry

Knows nothing about the other dogs on puppies' pedigrees

Follows up on puppies' well-being;

collects health information affecting his dogs

Does not concern himself with the puppies' well-being

or

how puppies' health affects his breeding "plan"

Breeds to improve his own dogs, his bloodlines

and

the breed

Breeds just to breed

or

make money

or

to see his "great dog" procreate

Rarely breeds.

Does not use dog breeding as a business

and

strives for quality,

not quantity

Breeds regularly for money

if puppy mill;

or

if for ego,

breeds once in awhile

Rarely repeats a breeding

Often repeats breedings,

mainly

those that are cheap and convenient.

Breeds only dogs which meet breed standard

Dogs used for breeding

rarely meet breed standard

Breeds only dogs with stable temperaments

Breeds shy/aggressive dogs

with

poor temperaments

Breeds only dogs over 2 years old, and a limited number of times

Breeds dogs at almost any age, and any number of times

Mate choice could be anywhere in the country

(almost never breeds his own males to his own females)

Mate choice is that which is convenient,

cheap,

local

(very often owns both sire

and dam,

dogs may even be brother and sister

or

parent and offspring)

Does all genetic testing and will provide proof.

Does not breed animals with genetic defects or which are carriers of defects

Does no genetic testing; ignorantly breeds defective animals

or

those which are carriers,

thus,

perpetuating disease in breed

Puppies are sold from

waiting list created

before

the breeding even takes place.

Will NEVER sell puppies through

A pet store,

A puppy broker,

A raffle,

As a prize,

A charity event,

Or

Retail outlet.

Puppies are sold after birth in the local newspaper,

in a

first-come, first-served

manner,

or

the puppies are wholesaled

to pet stores,

to a puppy broker,

or

another type of retail outlet.

Pet-quality pups generally cost $500-600+,

come with pedigrees

from a known and respected canine club,

such as the

American Kennel Club,

United Kennel Club or

Canadian Kennel Club.

All pups are pet-quality

and are relatively cheap,

usually $200-$400.

There are some retail outlets

that sell expensive, mixed-breed, non-shedding mutts,

often called

"yuppie-puppies",

such as

cocker-poos,

schnickerdoodles,

shocker-poos,

labradoodles,

goldendoodles,

peke-a-poos,

lhasapoos and so on,

for up to $2,000.

Puppies are sold with health guarantees

Puppies are sold with no guarantee

Puppies are sold with contracts

No contracts;

does not care what you do with puppies

Requires pups back if new homes don't work out

Says "Find them good homes"

Dogs on property are friendly, socialized, trained

Dogs on property may be aggressive or shy, and untrained

Does not own more dogs than he has room,

time or money for;

Dogs are groomed, exercised, healthy, happy

Puppy mills are overloaded, "warehoused" dogs are not groomed or exercised, don't look healthy or happy.

Will show you pups' parents if available, or if not, will have pictures

Might have to "lock up" pups' aggressive

or shy parents

(dogs that should never have been bred)

Raises puppies indoors,

in the house with the human family.

The pups should be right in the middle of a loving home.

Raises puppies outdoors

Or in a garage

Or in a basement.

Or in a kennel, isolated from the family.

Breeder stays home,

up to 3 months,

to care for puppies

Dam and pups are alone for long hours,

in a kennel, crate or a x-pen.

Usually are forced to play, eat, sit, sleep in their own excrement.

This means that these puppies will be hard or even impossible to housetrain.

Feeds only premium dog food

Feeds cheap, grocery store dog food

Visitors remove shoes and wash hands to prevent spread of deadly puppy killing disease.

Has no understanding

and

takes no precautions

to prevent

puppy-killer diseases

Keeps pups with mom and litter a minimum of 49 days to ensure sibling socialization

and

important lessons from pups' mother that can minimize temperament problems in the future.

Doesn't know

or

care that allowing a puppy to leave the litter early,

such as 5 or 6 weeks of age,

can cause lifelong

temperament problems

or

that by allowing a puppy

to stay too long

can hurt

bonding with humans

Socializes

pups by systematically handling them and exposing them to

various noises,

children

and other animals

before

sending them to new homes.

A good breeder

will crate train,

housetrain

and

obedience train the puppies of the litter,

so that the new owner, YOU,

will have a

pleasant experience when you get your new puppy home.

Does not understand

or

want to be troubled with any kind of training;

just tries to keep puppies quiet and contained until sold

Tests pups to match their temperaments and drives

with

buyers' personalities

and

lifestyles

Knows nothing about puppy-testing

or

matching puppies with buyers;

allows buyers

to pick the "cutest" one

Can honestly evaluate pups' quality

Says all pups are high quality

Never sells to "impulse" buyers

Is not concerned about buyers being prepared for pups

Never sells two pups at the same time to a novice

Always ready and extremely willing

to sell two pups from the same litter at the same time.

Would consider this

killing two birds with one sale

Interviews prospective buyers, checks home

and references,

refuses to sell to substandard homes

Sells first-come,

first-served

to whomever has the cash;

does not find out which homes are substandard.

Wants to meet whole family;

won't sell if children are abusive

Does not consider anything besides making sure the check clears.

Sells only to buyers with disposable income.

Is not concerned whether or not buyers can afford to properly care for pups

Waits for buyers who offer lifelong, loving homes.

Does not reject high-risk buyers:

Renters,

young adults,

people who want to purchase a puppy for another person as a gift,

families with very young kids,

people who want a dog

for

superficial reasons:

the popular

"yuppie-puppie",

type of coat,

color of coat

or

looks alone,

ignorant about breed,

or

people who plan on keeping the dog

outdoors

year around.

Understands dogs are "pack" animals;

sells pets to buyers who want to make pup an indoor dog

and

are willing to spend the time

and energy to make the dog a healthy,

happy part of the family.

Will require proof

that the dog has completed training classes as part of contract.

Doesn't care if pups

live as outdoor dogs or chained dogs,

doomed to being

confused,

scared,

stressed,

unhappy,

anxious,

isolated, and

lonely.

Totally and completely separated

from the

human "pack"

In other words,

eternal damnation

in

DOGGIE HELL.

Sells only to buyers who make pup's safety a priority

Does not consider pups' best interests

Encourages or requires

buyers to spay/neuter

pet-quality pups.

The very best breeders

sell the young pup already spayed/neutered

and

microchipped.

Encourages buyers to breed,

regardless

of the quality of the puppy.

Encourages buyers to train pups as early as possible,

which is often at 8-9 weeks of age;

refers to good trainer

or/and

a good puppy class.

Shows no concern for pups after sale;

Does not discuss the importance of training and socialization

as important tools needed

to help the puppy to grow up safe and sane.

Makes sure buyers understand pup's considerable

need for time,

attention,

socialization

exercise

and

obedience training

Does not provide even his own dogs with enough time,

training,

medical care,

attention,

exercise

or

socialization

 :p>

 :p>

Responsible

Breeders
Improve

the Breed

Backyard

Breeders
Damage

the Breed