posted 01-17-2004 12:35 AM         

Below we have written out some questions that you should ask potential breeders and the differences in answers that will come from responsible breeders vs. back yard breeders.

First let's define what the difference in RESPONSIBLE BREEDER and BACK YARD BREEDER is.

A RESPONSIBLE BREEDER is truly committed to the betterment of the breed. He/she may be a larger professional breeder or a small hobby breeder. Number of dogs is not important, but it is the effort behind the dogs that is.

A RESPONSIBLE BREEDER spends a lot of money on dog events (shows or trials), training, quality food and medical care for their dogs. They evaluate their dogs honestly and stand behind what they produce. They seldom make any profits on their litters.

A BACK YARD BREEDER may only own 1 female they breed, or maybe have a few "pairs". They can also be a large commercial kennel. It's the attitude towards breeding that will differentiate them from a responsible breeder.

A BACK YARD BREEDER is usually motivated only by profit. They may cut corners where they can. They often skip important genetic testing, type evaluations and temperament tests, or are not even aware of the necessity of them. They seldom will discuss their own dogs faults with you. Many are simply unaware of them, other will say their dogs are "flawless".

Expect to be interviewed as you are interviewing!!!
A responsible breeder will want to know a lot about you. He may ask you a lot of questions about your home and family. They will want to know your experiences with dogs, how you will house a pup, and why you want one. They are concerned with making sure you are right for one of their puppies. They may even refuse to sell one to you if they feel you are not the right home for one.

A responsible breeder will want to know what you are expecting out of your dog. They will want to know if you are looking to show or breed. If you are looking for a protection or other working prospect. Or simply want a pet. They may refuse to sell you the dog you want, as it won't suit your needs. They probably require pets to be altered. This is not a reflection on you, but simply that the breeder knows the puppies better than you and wants your match to be right from the start.

A back yard breeder seldom asks you any personal questions. They will sell a puppy to anyone with few or no questions asked. They do not care if you are not the right home for a dog of this breed (or any dog at all). They usually simply take your check (or deal cash only) and send you a puppy.

A back yard breeder will not care why you want this puppy. He will sell you one with severe breed faults and tell you it's show quality. He will sell you one with severe temperament problems as a working prospect. He won't care that you selected a very strong character male, yet you are a submissive person that won't handle the dog properly. He doesn't care whether or not you plan to breed your dog, as it won't be his problem when you do.

Pet Quality vs. show Quality. What is the difference?
Each litter only has a certain number of top quality prospect puppies. Not every dog of a litter is show or breeding quality. Generally there is a difference in price, with pets being less expensive as they are generally altered. If the show ring is your goal, ask the breeder to help you select the dog with the potential to be a winner. Ask him why he thinks so, or why not. Generally it takes years of knowing the breed to be able to predict "winners".

A pet quality puppy is one that the breeder has deemed to have faults of the breed and is therefore not suitable for breeding. This should not mean that the puppy has serious health or temperament defects. Pet quality puppies enjoy the same pedigree as their "show" siblings and should be expected to be as healthy and happy.

The breeder will help you select the one that is best for your needs. They generally don't sell the best potential pups to pet homes, when there are pet quality animals that will do just as well for you, and for a lot less money.

A back yard breeder may claim that all puppies in every litter are "show quality". Take your pick of them and you can't lose in the ring. Though this breeder has no way to guarantee that. Even those breeding for many years can only predict potential in a young puppy. Every puppy in the litter is often the same price, or females may be more than males, as you can breed her and get your money back right?

The questions to ask
What is the cost of the puppies?
While cost alone should in no way be the deciding factor of a purchase of a dog for your family, it's suggested you compare their price to the average for this breed. If the price seems rather high compared to average, or seems "too good to be true", don't hesitate to ask why. Expect to pay more for a show quality puppy vs. a pet quality. Expect to have a pet quality animal altered. Avoid ANY breeder who charges more for registrations and pedigrees.

A back yard breeder will sometimes sell you a dog cheaply with 'breeder terms". These terms are usually that you breed the dog and give him a certain number of puppies back. Few responsible breeders do this with total strangers. This is usually only done by Back Yard Breeders who wish to take advantage of someone who doesn't know anything about breeding, thus perpetuating the back yard breeder market. Do NOT be talked into a breeding commitment that you do not want.

What do you consider the positives and negatives of this breed?
A responsible breeder will answer your questions honestly. He will tell you the good and bad points about owning this breed. He will help you assess if this is the right breed for you, and if the type of dog he produces will fit with your family. He will be there throughout the life of your dog with his guidance and advise. He will inform you when he doesn't know an answer to something.

A back yard breeder will usually not answer many questions. He will only tell you all the great things about the dogs. They are perfect for everyone all the time. He will make things up if he doesn't know the answer. He will may never talk to you again once he has your money.

What are the genetic problems in the breed and these lines?
A responsible breeder is willing to discuss all of the conditions that affect this breed. He will honestly answer questions about problems that are known to occur in the breed and the bloodlines he is breeding. He will happily provide you with proof of testing of the parents. Some afflictions have no tests available at this time however.

A back yard breeder will often tell you that there are no problems at all in his lines, or possibly even in the breed itself. He rarely does any genetic testing of his stock. If he knows about problems in his dog's bloodline or even in previous offspring of the dogs, he will certainly not share it with you. He will claim to never have breed a 'bad dog' or will blame a genetic problem as a fluke he's never seen before.

What health tests have the parents had?
The parents should be free of CHD as recorded by the OFA or other acceptable genetic registry. Ideally, elbows and knees should be checked also. For a list of other problems this breed suffers from, please visit our health topics page. A breeder should be able to show you proof of these tests being done.

A back yard breeder may not even know what these tests are, and may be confused when questioned about him. He may make excuses like "all my dogs are healthy", or "her movement is good so there is no need to x-ray her". . The Dogo Canario is a high pain tolerance breed and many CHD affected dogs show no lameness, even into advanced age. Do not accept excuses for lack of tests.

What is the pedigree behind the dogs?
A responsible breeder will openly discuss the pedigree behind his dogs. Most responsible breeders have gone through the trouble of obtaining quality animals from Spain to assure they are breeding correct animals. He will tell you the good and bad qualities about the dogs in the pedigree of his breeding stock. He has his breeding dogs confirmed to be of breeding quality by qualified judges. He can evaluate a pedigree to find good mates for his dogs.

A back yard breeder will only know about the pedigree as he reads it. He often has no idea who those dogs are. He is usually more concerned with throwing "champion titles" in the pedigree at you than the quality of the dogs with them. He may use terms like "imported" to validate that he has quality dogs. Imported is NOT necessarily a sign of quality, only place of birth of the animal. Sometimes imported doesn't mean from Spain either. He will tell you that confirming a dog isn't necessary as "his dogs win big at American Shows". What he neglects to mention is that often the judge does not know the breed well, or that only his dogs are in competition there.

What are the strengths and faults of the parents and puppies?
A responsible breeder will tell you all the faults that the sire and dam have, as well as be able to assess them in the puppies. He will be able to show you the good and bad traits of each puppy and guide you in selection to best suit your needs.

A back yard breeder will usually have "perfect parents", without faults. This is entirely impossible, as no dog is perfect. They often have no understanding of breed type, or simply say they only breed for "pets" or "working animals". Even these dogs deserve to be proper examples of the breed. They are not able to assess the puppies good and bad traits, nor help you select the best one for your family.

What was the goal of this litter?
A responsible breeder will able to answer this question. They will tell you the specific reasons for the mating of this female with that male. They often use stud dogs owned by other breeders to ensure the best available dogs are paired together. They generally breed for themselves first and after selecting the best prospects, offer the rest of the litter for sale.

A back yard breeder will generally not have an answer to this question. The "goal" was simply to produce puppies. They may keep a puppy to have one they produced, but often sell the entire litter. Beware of "both parents on premise" advertisements. While many times the breeder does own both sire and dam, they don't generally make that a selling point. A back yard breeder wants to advertise you can see both parents, but usually this means they did not breed to the best possible male, but the closest one.

How many litters per year do you breed?
A responsible breeder may have many dogs, but not many litters each year. Generally no more than he has buyers waiting to purchase them. Very good breeders often have a waiting list for their puppies.

A back yard breeder may have many litters per year, depending on the number of bitches he owns. He may have puppies of many different ages available, as he often doesn't have enough buyers for a litter before breeding another.

How many litters has the bitch/stud produced? When was the previous litters born? Can I see previous offspring?
A responsible breeder will not over breed his females, nor breed them before maturity. They generally have no more than 1 litter per year, and are retired from breeding by a reasonable age. A good stud dog may have sired many litters, and can often be used still into older age. A responsible breeder will happily show you previous offspring of the dogs and give you references to owners of them.

A back yard breeder may breed his females many times in her life. She may produce a litter every season, and may have started on her first cycle, when she was still a puppy herself. She may be still used for breeding well into advanced age. If the bitch is 3 or 4 and has already had 4 litters, or if she is 9 or 10 and still producing....beware. This is a sign of profit breeding. A stud dog may have never been breed outside his own yard. Many times they will not provide any references to previous offspring of the dog. Or may brag about their one dog produced in many years that had some type of accomplishment.

Can you provide references or other breeders I can contact?
A responsible breeder will happily provide you with information to contact previous customers of theirs. They generally have other breeders they associate with who they are happy to share with you.

A back yard breeder often doesn't have references to provide you. He often doesn't maintain any contact once the pup leaves his property. They rarely have other breeders to deal with as they are afraid of the competition of sales.

Do you have a contract or guarantee with your puppies?
a responsible breeder will offer a written guarantee outlining sales conditions and terms of guarantee of the dog. It should be clear on all points. If a dog was sold as show quality, will it be guaranteed to finish? If it is a pet, required to be altered? It will be a fair contract that will equally protect both buyer and seller. If for any reason you are unable to keep your dog a responsible breeder will take it back, no matter what the circumstances of the dog.

A back yard breeder usually doesn't offer a guarantee in writing, some flat out say there is none. He may verbally offer to replace the dog if it has a problem, but good luck enforcing that in court. His guarantee, if there is one, is generally very one sided that benefits only him. If you are unable to keep your dog, he will not usually take it back. He has no room, no time, or you can't find him at all.

posted 01-17-2004 04:23 PM         

Latly it seem like this board has turned into a (BYB are us broard) I just hope people read that artical and realy check them selvs.

Last year in Ct. alone there wer something like 6 thousand dogs put down state wide that found there way into the dog pounds & shelters, The state of CT does not place Pittbuls or pitt crosses they are put down immediately And CT is a small state I can only imagin what the numbers are like in the bigger states with bigger city's

90% of these dogs wer stupidly bred=poorly bred full breeds,pitt crosses and muts.
How many responsible breeders put out these types of dogs NONE! so where are they all coming from? well I think that answer is clear.

Just my 2 cents

Deus