| I'm in Ontario, though I won't go into "who" but having done the "good breeder" search myself I can tell you the "why" that matters to me.
I do not like the look of a euro type dog, so that eliminated several breeders off the bat; figure out what your prefer and that will narrow the field a fair bit.
Next was health testing. I will NOT buy from someone who is not enrolled in the heart program at Guelph, so that part was a no brainer.
I talked to quite a few prominent breeders in Ontario and was completely turned off. One did nothing but brag about wins and beating so and so into the ground etc...they said nothing about the dogs, the personality of the parents, and seemed to not care who they sold to as long as you showed up with cash.
Another was so focused on money all they talked about was how much this dog sold for, or how much that bitch brought in, or how much the stud fees on another dog were etc...again, nothing about the dogs themselves.
I have to live with my puppy. I do not want to buy from a breeder who has all their dogs sitting in a kennel until it's time to whelp. I wanted someone who lives with their dogs and loves them as pets first, show dogs/breeding dogs second.
That's how I chose the breeder I am waiting for a puppy from. I'm also willing to wait for however long it takes to get what I want, so I can afford to be picky.
Figure out what you are looking for and why, and then find that breeder with whom you feel comfortable. If you're lucky you'll find the right person and a relationship should form, something above "here's your puppy, thanks for the cash". |