How do you buy a dog safely?

[EddyF]

Hi. My friend would really love a Miniature Poodle but has no way of knowing how to ensure she is buying safely. Obviously Google throws out a lot of information but it’s confusing. Is it a registered breeder you look for? Also, are Miniature Poodles a healthy breed? I know nothing about dogs but wanted to gift her the money for a dog (as a Xmas present) hence my questions.

Doesn’t have to be a Miniature Poodle but it has to be a very small dog.

Thanks.

It’s no gold standard but a kennel club registered breeder is the absolute bare minimum starting place.
For poodles there is a mandatory health test for their eyes. If the breeder can’t offer that, again they aren’t even doing the bare minimum. Walk away.

A few other rules.
Any breeders with puppy’s ready for Christmas as generally dodgy. Good breeders avoid this time like the plague as their dogs are not toys to be given as presents.

You must see mum. Don’t expect any excuse no matter how convincing, if mum isn’t available walk away.

A small non working breed should be in the house full time. If mum stinks it’s likely a puppy mill and she’s been brought inside to look like she lives there. Do they seem nervous of the telly/washing machine/kettle etc - all red flags.

good breeders tend to only breed one type of dog. While I’d not be too worried about say someone who bred Japanese Chins ans Papillons, I’d be very wary of someone breeding, poodles, and poodle crosses and another popular small breed.

A good breeder will likely absolutely grill you about the home you are offering. If they are happy to take the money with little to no questions asked id be wary

Really good advice here. A puppy won’t be cheap so that’s a huge gift. Worth contacting the breed club for advice on recommended health tests and breeders. It’s so hard. And puppy farmers are sneaky and try to avoid being caught as such.

The Kennel Club website normally lists registered breeders. Otherwise there are lots of breed specific rescues. Generally a rescue will want to assess any potential adopters, a good breeder should want to as well. The kind of checks your friend takes would differ depending on what route she takes.

Does your friend have experience with the breed? Different small breeds have different needs, and whilst generally healthy as a rule, miniature poodles do have a couple of conditions they can be susceptible too. They also have different exercise needs than a pekingese for example.

Just a heads up that kennel club reg purely means it’s a pedigree. Not that it would be healthy or that breeders aren’t puppy farmers.

Oh I agree with this but I feel as an absolutely bare minimum place to start it’s important! Use it as a base and go from there in my opinion :)

Absolutely @Lastqueenofscotland2 . Just some people think it’s a mark of some sort of welfare standard too.

Champdogs is a good place to find breeders, it's where I found the breeder for my dog 10 years ago. We were very lucky to find her as it was their second and last litter from their dog and she did all the health checks and kept us very up to date before they were born and up to the 8 weeks when we went to get her.

I agree that a good breeder should often want to grill the potential owners - this shows they care. Also it's a bit like tradesmen - if they don't make you wait, they probably aren't very good. Normally a good breeder will have a waiting list.

Make sure you have a breeder that puts it in writing that they will have the dog back at any time in the dogs life should the owner die or not be able to look after it etc.

Personally I wouldn’t get a miniature anything as they have been deliberately bred to be smaller than what the breed is supposed to be and that may open up a whole load of health problems, genetic or otherwise. They may well be more expensive to insure.

While I agree with you generally about the miniature thing Bobby. Miniature poodles are a breed in their own right. There are three poodle breeds, standard, miniature and toy, with miniature (confusingly) being the middle size, standard and larger and toy are smaller. It’s not a breeding tiny versions of a dog for fashion, but an established breed of working dog that were bred to be different sizes for different purposes

That will be potentially thousands of pounds OP. I would expect a properly bred dog from a respectable and experienced breeder (the only type of breeder it is justifiable to purchase from) to be in that price range. It is also likely that she will have to join a waitlist for a litter. I'd be wary of any breeder that has ample puppies ready to go or various breeds and litters due as those are the mechanics of a puppy farm, not a person that cares for dogs and has a passion for their breed.

Poodles, and any dog interbred with them (cavapoo, cockerpoo etc) are intelligent dogs and therefore require a lot of engagement, training and enrichment in order to manage their behaviour and a puppy especially is a lot of work, really and truly, and will be for at least the first year to year and a half of it's life before it (potentially) calms down somewhat if that time has been spent properly and consistently training it.

As far as health concerns, Poodles are prone to a number of them. I think really your friend needs to google this herself and think about it properly, look into the various small dog breeds and see which suits their lifestyle and energy levels, how much exercise and enrichment that breed needs, and of course factor in the significant costs associated with having a dog.

Even if you were making a very generous gift then the costs of ownership are huge, good quality dog food is not cheap at all, nor are good quality treats, toys (which will need replacing constantly when compromised as they're dangerous, insurance, puppy classes (a must for socialisation), mental enrichment activities for the dog, a trainer if needed, a dog walker if needed, dog sitters if needed, harnesses and collars as the dog grows, coats for wet weather etc etc

It's important to make the decision to get a dog based on your lifestyle and willingness to commit to the 24/7 management of one, not just because you love dogs or think a certain breed is lovely.

As an aside I wouldn't gift that amount of money 'for a dog' that basis, she may well decide she doesn't want one or may spend the money on something else, and these sorts of situations rarely end well. If she can't afford the initial payment for the dog she can't afford to keep one and you can always spoil it when or if she gets one, or spoil her in other ways if she's someone you want to do something lovely for.

I don’t think any reputable breeder will sell a puppy as a Christmas present tbh

Genuine question - why would you be wary of someone breeding poodles?

I meant someone breeding poodles alongside poodle crosses, and other small popular breeds. Most reputable breeders only breed one breed

@Lastqueenofscotland2

Ahh, understood. Thanks.

Thank you all the great information; it’s very much appreciated.

By the way, it doesn’t have to be ready for Christmas; she would be more than willing to wait. The expenses are not a problem as I have an amount (around 1.6K) and if it costs more, she would need to put the additional money which she has. She is like my sister as I have known her since age 4 and we are in early thirties. Practically live under each other. We would need to have a proper discussion etc before anything is finalised.

The problem is searching for a breeder that is legit and has all the necessities of what has been mentioned in this post. We definitely won’t take shortcuts that’s why I have asked for what needs to be done to do this properly.

I gave her a suggestion for rescue dog but even this, we would to research. All I know is she wants a small dog.

Thanks again.