There are many things to consider before purchasing a puppy of any breed from a breeder. One of the most important aspects is your gut feeling. Do you feel comfortable with this person? When you call this person, do they act happy to help you, or do you get the feeling that they find you to be a waste of their time? If you were to announce that you wouldn’t be getting a puppy for quite some time, do you think that they would tell you to call them back when you were ready (and otherwise leave them alone!)? Are they courteous and honest and do they seem excited about their breed and the direction that their kennel is going? Do they slander other breeders? If you stated to them that you were thinking of getting a puppy from another breeder (a competitor) would they tell you that breeder’s dogs are of poor quality, or that the breeder is ignorant? Do you think that they are trustworthy? Do you feel that were you to call them in two years with a problem regarding the dog that you purchased from them, that they would still want to be involved with you and your pet? As far as kennels go, bigger is not always better, and small does not mean that more attention is given to the animals and details.
The next thing to research is their breeding stock. After all, these are the parents and relatives of your puppy, and your puppy is only going to be as good as its genetic potential allows it to be. Do their dogs look like Filas? Read the standard of the breed and critique their animals. Remember, no dog is perfect, and every one of them has its flaws, but there should be only a minor fault or two. Ask them why they chose to breed that female to that male. If they say it was because he was correct where she was weak and vise-versa, they are on the right track. They should readily admit each animal’s faults along with its spectacular points. If they claim that he was the only male available or they are both really kick-ass dogs, go somewhere else! Ask about the animals temperament. Can they be walked in a downtown atmosphere and behave? Are they protective? What do they do when put into different situations?
Ask the breeder if they are willing to send you copies of Championship titles, Temperament Test titles, and/or hip/elbow evaluations, or do they make excuses about not having titles and health certifications on their breeding stock? A dog with titles is not necessarily a good representative of its breed, but at least it shows an interest from the breeder to prove his/her dog and invest some money in their breeding program. (Each championship title can cost as little as $100 up to many hundreds of dollars, depending upon the distance traveled, accommodations, airfare, car rental, etc. A temperament test title will cost approximately $35, and hip evaluations can cost as little as $170 on up, so don’t take them lightly. They show a true interest and an investment from the breeder.) Not to mention if the dog has a Championship title, at least a few judges thought that it was quality enough to represent the breed as a champion.
With this in mind, you can see why some breeders charge over $1,000 for their puppies. While a high price is definitely NOT correlated with quality, some breeders have invested so much money in their breeding program to be assured that the parents of your pup are worth being bred, that they are justified to ask for some reimbursement. Most breeders will never make back the money that they have invested in their breeding stock. Keep in mind that the breeder had to purchase that original female, raise her up with quality food and care until she was two years of age, have her hips and elbows x-rayed (possibly have her spayed and get another female to try over again if her joints were not sound), enter her in shows and pay for her titles, pay for the stud fee and associated travel expenses to have her bred, feed her and her litter (which can easily add up to $5 a day), pay for any veterinary bills that she or her puppies incurred, etc. It is not uncommon for a breeder to raise up two or three females before one is considered a ‘keeper’ in terms of breeding.
The next issue that should be discussed is whether or not this puppy comes with a guarantee. A responsible breeder will offer you a written, signed guarantee which will state that the puppy is free of communicable disease at the time of sale, and that it will remain healthy for a defined amount of time. If you are lucky, this contract will also guarantee that the dog will be free from crippling hip dysplasia (HD) for a certain amount of time. Be critical about this part. Does the contract only cover dogs that have to be euthanized due to HD, or does it cover a dog that can not pass OFA, PennHIP, or another hip registration organization with average or better scores? At what age does this guarantee end? 6 months? One year? Three years? Or for the entire life of the dog? Don’t be embarrassed to ask questions. If the breeder gives you a difficult time, go some where else. It’s that simple. YOU are spending YOUR hard-earned money for a quality companion, and you deserve to have each and every question answered in depth. It is true that the guarantee is only as good as the people who sign it, and it will very likely cost you more to go to court to uphold a contract of this sort than it would to give up. A responsible breeder signs a guarantee because they want their buyers to feel comfortable with the arrangements of the purchase, they want them to have it in writing so that they can look at it if a question arises, and they will stand behind it largely because their reputation as a caring, ethical breeder is important to them. If a breeder does not offer a written guarantee, go somewhere else. They owe it to you as the purchaser of one of their pups to have something written down for your protection.
Last, but not least, why does he/she breed dogs? Do they do it for the fun of it, for the betterment of the breed, or to make some money? A good answer would obviously be that they do it as a hobby where they strive to produce the best Fila the world has ever seen and that they increase their chances by utilizing only the best, most sound dogs to accomplish their goals. They will not be interested in making money and they may well joke about wanting to break even some day! They will be excited about the dogs that they are breeding and the young upcoming stars that are about to hit the showring. They will only breed their females after they have reached two years of age so as not to effect her growth and development. They will only breed her once a year at most, and only for two or three litters. Then they will spay her and keep her as a pet or find her a loving home where she can live out the rest of her life as a spoiled-rotten house dog. They will not inbreed their dogs (father to daughter, mother to son, brother to sister), because to do so can be disastrous, and takes more knowledge than most breeders have. They will admit that they learn something new every day from their dogs, and you should get the feeling that the dogs are a huge part of the breeder's life, not just an animal that lives in the garage or out in the yard with a doghouse.
The most important thing that you, as a prospective puppy buyer can do to assure that you get a quality dog, is RESEARCH, RESEARCH, and do MORE RESEARCH!!!! Call everybody that you can find who breeds these dogs, ask for references, and call the references. Quiz those people on what they think of their breeder, whether or not they have ever had any problems with their pup from that kennel, and how did the breeder deal with them. Ask them if that breeder does anything special or anything that really bothered them. Do they check up on their placed pups, do they spend time after the sale is over for consultation, or did they drop the ball?
Remember, the worst that will happen, is that some stranger will think that you are annoying! WHO CARES ? ! ? If you did everything in your abilities to get a good dog that you are proud of and confident in its health and well-being, then you accomplished your goals! Good luck!
Click HERE to visit a great site that delves into the differences between a 'puppy mill' and an 'ethical breeder'.