Once you have found a breeder, your next step should be to find out whether they are reputable, or have questionable reputations. There are many things that can go wrong when dealing with breeders: they may not be reliable, they may misrepresent the breed (i.e. “cute” poodles are actually medium-sized ones), or they may have a bad reputation (i.e. “Poochzilla”). If you find them on a list of recommended breeders posted by the Petmd website, it is worth checking that list and seeing if any of those names appear there again. If you do contact them, it is always good to ask for references from previous customers as well as from other reputable breeders who know them (as opposed to lists purporting to be “recommended” by trusted sources).
If you do want to consider buying from this breeder, make sure you understand what you’re getting. Is the dog healthy? Does it look healthy? Are there any health problems? As with all breeding programs, there is a very good chance that the parents are rarely chosen solely because of their ability to produce healthy puppies; if this sounds like your puppy was selected on the basis of its looks alone, then that is really not the way things work — and considering how many different health issues can affect puppies in their early years, this kind of selection can lead to lots of problems down the line if it continues unchecked (which is why we recommend doing an allergy test prior to purchase).
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