Identifying Responsible Dog Breeders

If you are looking to get a dog, I still want to emphasize how important it is to rescue.  Again, if ever you need help finding a rescue/shelter dog, go to our contact page and let me know because I love helping people find the right rescue dog for you. Or, check out our video on how to use Petfinder to find a rescue/shelter dog.  There are millions of homeless pets in the U.S. and we can help make a difference in their lives.  That said, there are some people who just insist on going through a breeder, in which case I want to have a resource available telling people how to identify a responsible breeder versus an irresponsible breeder.

To recap the video and add some more info:

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Responsible Breeders: (do all of these and not just some)

- Don’t have puppies for sale, instead they plan breedings and wait to go forward with the breeding until they have a waiting list of people who want puppies so they know the dogs will have good homes

- Only breed one kind of breed, maybe two at most

- Keep their dogs in the home and in a clean, well-maintained area and not in an outdoor run or barn

- Will check you out as much as you check them out to ensure that the puppy will be getting a good home

- Will have you sign a spay or neuter contract to ensure that you won’t breed the puppy and to make sure there are no “accidental pregnancies”

- Will also have you sign a contract saying that if you can no longer take care of the dog that you will return him/her to the breeder so that they can properly re-home the dog

- Will explain to you the inherent genetic health issues the breed may have and will provide documentation (through organizations such as the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals) showing that the parents and grandparents of the dog have been tested for these issues.

- Do not claim to have “teacup” puppies (unless they breed poodles).  “Teacups” are just the runts of the litter and some bad breeders are trying to get super small dogs because they’re popular.  Problem is that they are much more likely to have serious health problems.  Plus, to get these small dogs they will breed two runts together and many times the female isn’t big enough to carry puppies.

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*For another great resource on the MINIMUM criteria of a responsible breeder, please go to this Humane Society  of the United States PDA File and print it out or save it to your computer.

**Remember…the problem of homeless animals and puppymills/bad breeders can seem overwhelming, but you can at least do a small part that will help move towards the goal of no more homeless animals and no more animal cruelty.  Rescue a pet and it will change your life in so many wonderful ways!

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Related posts:

1. Airline’s Puppy Deaths Spark Debate About Commercial Breeders
2. What Could Have Been- Obama Chooses a First Dog
3. Illinois Pet Stores Must Post Pets’ Info
4. Jon & Kate Plus 8 Demonstrate How Not to Get a Dog
5. Rolling Dog Ranch Animal Sanctuary

Tags: health contracts, orthopedic foundation for animals, rescue, responsible dog breeders, spay and neuter contract, teacup puppies