Reputable breeder or not?

[MrsZola]

Would you think that a breeder who only had a Facebook page, no website, was reputable or backyard?
Genuinely asking for a friend. I favour backyard FWIW.

Depends on what they say if questioned.

For example, how many dogs do they have, do they live in the house or in kennels, what age do the puppies leave, do new owners have to contract a contract agreeing to not to spay, can they return the dog if they can’t keep it, are they registered with anybody like the Kennel club or a working club eg ISDS for border collies, how many litters do they have per year, are they licensed breeders or hobby breeders etc

Those are a far better indicator of actually a ‘good’ breeder than a website.

Agree completely with @frostedviolets

Social media presence would be way down my list.

Lots of people don't have a website but have Facebook.

At least it's some form of a presence somewhere. Rather than gum tree adverts with changing names and numbers.

😱
Typos reading back!

Should say: ‘do new owners have to sign a contract agreeing to spay/neuter, can they return the dog if they can’t keep it’

Um... with no relevant information about them as a breeder, it wouldn’t make me think anything tbh.

People I’d class as good breeders quite often don’t have any real web presence...

Our breeder has a fantastic reputation, very experienced, fantastic healthy dogs etc. FB but no website.

I'd expect more commercial breeders to have websites unless it dates from time pre FB when more widely used. Facebook page is easier to set up & useful for breeders so puppy owners stay in touch more easily and handy for stalking what photos/posts have from the past. So I think content would be key but all the usually signs of good/bad breeder apply.

We are buying from a breeder with no website. She is licensed with the local.council and she also gave us the name of her vet. I phoned the vet who confirmed that all.her animals are cared for properly and they have no concerns about her. I'm.not worried by the fact she doesn't have a website.

I found my breeder on Facebook. Him and his wife are excellent at what they do - they have litters every two years or so.

Pups come with four generation pedigrees with champion beagles in their bloodlines.
All beagles are fully health tested and we have copies of the parents health tests.
All puppies arrived fully vaccinated and chipped and also came with a pet passport.

We were strongly vetted online before we met him, and again in person before we could put our name down for one of his pups.

He's in touch with every owner of his pups and we all speak regularly on Facebook and he's helped people with training issues etc too.

He's taken pups back over the years and would much rather do that than see any of them go to shelters or be rehomed on Gumtree.

A good breeder is a good breeder regardless of internet presence. Sadly his latest litter was his last so we can't get another puppy from him which is a real shame!

You can be an excellent reputable, KC registered to the hilt, breeder but not be very IT savvy and just have an FB page.

You could be a scum-of-the-earth puppy farmer with a barn full of very sad mum dogs who never see daylight, but have a very glossy website, even glossier social media.

There's more to a book than its cover!

You need to check out the breeder in all sorts of ways. Website or not, FB presence or not, doesn't tell you anything about how they handle their dogs.

Ask lots of questions as frosted advises. Ask about health, the longevity of their lines, what they do with their dogs (and if this ties in with what you want). And so on.

Doesnt anyone selling puppies and kittens have to declare themselves as "breeders" now with Lucys Law. I would only buy via the kennel club or champdogs breeder list or through a rescue.

@HappyHammy

Doesnt anyone selling puppies and kittens have to declare themselves as "breeders" now with Lucys Law. I would only buy via the kennel club or champdogs breeder list or through a rescue.

No. Only if you breed more than a certain number of litters per year.

Of course anyone selling puppies and kittens still need to follow the law - puppies must be seen with mum and cannot be sold before eight weeks of age. They also have to be microchipped before they go to their new home.

You only need a license to breed dogs in the UK if you breed more than five litters in a 12 month period.

www.gov.uk/dog-breeding-licence-england-scotland-wales

Thanks for the info. Hopefully at least no more petshops or farms

Thank you for all your replies