A
COMPARISON OF: |
Traits
of Responsible Breeders |
Traits of Backyard Breeders |
| "Into"
Dogs (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, field trialing, Schutzhund, herding, tracking,
earthdog trials, etc. |
Quality
of dogs is almost always substandard, however, he does not
test his dogs in shows or trials (Dogs are just pets or
"breeding machines") |
| Pups'
pedigrees are filled with dogs who have obtained show titles/working
certificates; never breeds dogs without "papers" |
Pedigrees
mostly a list of pets bred by backyard breeders; pups may
not even have "papers"; may be mongrels (Cockapoos, etc.) |
| Supports
rescue groups; knows his actions inevitably play some part
in pet overpopulation and euthanasia (one of every four
dogs in shelters is purebred). Even with all his efforts
to stem over- population, he knows "cracks" will lead to
canine deaths |
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 (Does not see his role in his
pups making pups and them making more pups and so on) |
| 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 house breaking, 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 see his "great dog" procreate |
| Rarely
breeds as he does not use dog breeding as a business and
strives for quality, not quantity |
Breeds
regularly if for money or if puppy mill; if for ego, breeds
once in awhile, or "just once" before neutering or spaying |
| 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) |
| 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 breeding even
takes place |
Puppies
are sold after birth in the local newspaper, first-come,
first-served |
| Pet-quality
pups generally cost $500-600+ (show-quality costs more)
|
All
pups are pet-quality and are relatively cheap, usually $200-$400 |
| 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 |
Raises
puppies outdoors |
| Stays
home to care for puppies |
Dam
and pups are alone for long hours |
| Feeds
only premium dog food |
Feeds
cheap, grocery store dog food (containing 4D meat/chemicals) |
| Visitors
remove shoes and wash hands to prevent spread of parvovirus
|
Has
no understanding and takes no precautions to prevent puppy-killer
disease |
| Keeps
pups with mom and litter a minimum of 49 days to ensure
sibling socialization and important lessons from pups' mother
|
Doesn't
know leaving litter earlier can cause lifelong temperament
problems or staying 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 |
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 |
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 past obtaining the funds |
| Sells
only to buyers with disposable income (AKC reports it costs
$1327 per year to properly care for a dog) |
Is
not concerned whether or not buyers can afford to properly
care for pups |
| Waits
for buyers who offer lifelong homes (Knows that only 30
percent of all dogs stay in one home throughout their lives)
|
Does
not reject high-risk buyers: (renters, young people, those
with poor track records, low income, other pets, dogs kept
outdoors) |
| Understands
dogs are "pack" animals; sells pets only to buyers wanting
to make pup an indoor dog and part of the family |
Doesn't
care if pups live as outdoor dogs or chained dogs, being
unhappy or anxious being isolated and separated from "packs" |
| 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 |
Encourages
buyers to breed, regardless of quality |
| Encourages
buyers to train pups; refers to good trainer |
Shows
no concern for pups after sale; knows no trainers |
| Makes
sure buyers understand pup's considerable need for time,
attention, exercise and training |
Does
not provide even his own dogs with enough time, attention,
exercise or training |
|
|
|
|
Responsible
Breeders
Improve the Breed
|
Backyard
Breeders
Damage the Breed
|
