What actually is a “puppy farm”

[Newyearnewmewoooop]

Looking into getting a puppy, and I have been looking on Pets4Home to check out the breed that I want.

I keep seeing on posts on here about puppy farms, and how bad they are. What/where are they?! Is Pets4Home a puppy farm!?!?

Im not a dog person but from what I believe its all to do with unethical breeding, suboptimal care for the mother and muliple litters one after the other for monitary benefit

Please consider a rescue. My now 1 year old dog was initially a foster at 9 weeks old and we went on to adopt him.

Generally it's a breeder without a licence who keeps dogs in crates and breeds them over and over, usually with poor care and hygiene.

https://www.pdsa.org.uk/pet-help-and-advice/looking-after-your-pet/puppies-dogs/could-you-spot-a-puppy-farm

Actually I’d say most puppy farms WILL have a licence, which is far from a measure of ethics. It used to be so much easier before the government muddied the waters by insisting that hobby breeders be licensed and you could just advise people to avoid licensed breeders like the plague.

Don’t buy online. Avoid that website. Rescue or contact a breed club for advice on breeders.
A puppy farm is a commercial breeder. Someone who breeds just for financial gain. They don’t care about animal welfare, health or temperament.
There are also backyard breeders. People breeding from their pet dog without the knowledge to carefully choose a stud, raise puppies properly or know enough to do the specialist health testing before breeding.

To @Newyearnewmewoooop- it is a minefield, and there is no single answer. Pets4Homes is not the best way to look for a puppy - Champdogs at least insists on some breed-specific health testing, although their approach is flawed.

The best thing to do is not to look for a puppy, but to look for a breeder via the breed club. Find one who asks you as many questions as you ask them, or more. Check that they have generations of dogs living with them, of good temperament and in apparent good health (supported by recognised health testing schemes, NOT ‘vet checked’, which means nothing).

When you find them and they are happy to add you to their waiting list and then have patience until they have a puppy available for you.

Commercial breeders are not all the same.

I wouldn't buy from one because I'd rather go to a hobby breeder that breeds occasionally and responsibly for the benefit of the breed and not their pockets.

Some commercial breeders have exceptionally high standards of care and are very responsible and they care for their dogs. They may have 5 plus litters a year. Always licenced.

Commercial breeders that do not care and just churn out puppies with no thought for the bitches they breed from, how the puppies are reared or where they end up. That's what I'd call a puppy farm. Breeding umpteen litters a year. Very likely they are licensed!

My choice, the hobby breeder might or might not be licenced because whether you need a licence is purely based on how many litters you breed in a calendar year. I'd rather go for the breeder that does it well, doesn't do it often or for the money. I'd certainly not base my decision on whether the breeder was licenced or not. Licensing is just a money spinner for councils.

@Chipntack if a breeder has five plus litters a year they are one to run a mile from. They either have far too many dogs to give each one any attention or they are breeding far too often from each bitch. Plus they aren’t giving each litter of pups the time it takes to raise them properly.

For starters, anyone who sells on Pets4Homes.

Find a breed you want to enquire about and find the breed club and contact them, instead. They will talk to you about if the breed is suitable for you and put you in contact with reputable breeders.

My understanding of it is that the bitches are basically treated as breeding machines until they wear out, and the breeders don't much care about animal welfare, socialisation, congenital abnormalities, health or anything like that. They are in it for the money.

Pets4Homes is not a puppy farm, it's a website where people can list animals they have for sale. Anyone can post on there, so, a lot of puppy farms list their animals on there.

To me the definition of a puppy farm is someone who is breeding puppies with a main motivation of profit without regard for the welfare of the animals. e.g., trying to maximise profit by getting the bitch pregnant as soon as possible, keeping breeding bitches until they are exhausted and then discarding them, the animals may also be kept in unsanitary and cruel conditions, they might not have space to run around and play or proper care etc. They don't care if the litter has several dead or unhealthy puppies as long as there are enough to turn a profit. They don't care if the puppies go to happy homes with good owners or any old person with whatever motivation as long as they get their money.

If you want a pet, then presumably you love animals and want to give them a happy long life free of unnecessary suffering. If you buy from a puppy farm, your cute puppy has come at the expense of the life of another dog or multiple dogs, who will only ever know suffering because they are being used for multiple pregnancies (or puppies born unhealthy who are left without care because they aren't profitable). Morally, that doesn't seem right for an animal lover to support something like this. Of course most puppy farmers try to hide the fact they are farming and pretend the litter was accidental or they did it "for the kids" etc.

Even if you have purely selfish motivations and don't care about the suffering of the mother dog, puppies from puppy farms can be born with health issues because they haven't been bred responsibly (especially fashionable breeds) or they can come to you riddled with fleas, worms and lice with poor socialisation because they have been removed from the mother too early and not had any experience of a normal family home.

Backyard breeders are probably somewhere in the middle, not necessarily cruel in intent, but may overlook several things which are important for the health of your dog. But as said, most puppy farmers will make out that they are amateur/backyard breeders.

It’s so hard to know and you’ve got lots of good advice so far.

Something to note is just because you got to visit a litter in a lovely home, it doesn’t mean this is actually where they live and aren’t puppy farmers. Puppy farmers know you won’t buy from a dirty shed so will rent or buy properties in nice neighbourhoods as stage homes.

You should always have the opportunity to meet both parents and see the mum dog with the puppies. If the breeder makes an excuse for why this can’t happen, they are probably a puppy farmer.

If a breeder asks for a deposit before you have seen the puppies in person, and before they have any information about you. They are probably a puppy farmer. A true breeder for love will want to check you are a suitable home for their precious puppies.

I found my dog through a Facebook group for his breed, I found a previous post of a lady with her new puppy who tagged the breeder and a couple of other people had commented they also had puppies from previous litters, I messaged a couple to check about their now adult dogs health and temperament and then contacted the breeder who asked me lots of questions over the phone and then put me on her waiting list for her next litter. I trust that recommendation much more than a breeder that just says they are ethical and licensed.