Where best to find a non pedigree puppy

[ladylook]

We have decided the time is now right to add a dog to the family.

Because we have an 8th and cats I cannot find a rescue which would have been my preference.

Therefore a puppy would be best for us so we can raise it with the child and cats from the start.

Is there someone where safe/reputable to find puppies? I don't really want a pedigree, happy for a mixed breed.

TIA.

8yo not 8th!

I have two lurchers, both were bred by people who breed them to work.

In the search for our dogs I found that in true working circles they breed for trainability and temperament, as well as for health - no one wants a working dog that is prone to the issues that so many pedigree dogs have!

Watch the breeds though, we have a saluki x who is the perfect dog, gentle, lazy, obedient, and a bull lurcher (greyhound staffie x) who is incredibly intense and probably not a child friendly dog!

I just have no idea where to start.

The issue with non-pedigrees is that many will be puppy farmed, given fancy names and priced at several thousand pounds.

You may find some farms still have scruffy lurcher or terrier mix litters for sale but these will be from working stock and probably not ideal for a first time owner with children and cats.

What is it you want from a dog in terms of personality and looks? Are you happy to do lots of grooming? What about exercise needs and being left alone? I would personally recommend having a think about what you want and then looking for a pedigree dog that would fit the bill.

I bought my puppy from an advert on pets4Homes, which is no doubt full of arseholes and scammers but that wasn’t my experience and actually is only really a modern day advert in the paper/shop window. Mines also a lurcher and was home bred by someone who wanted a pup off his bitch to work and exactly as the previous poster said he was bred for functionality and for doing a job by a person who understood dogs beyond what they look like or what stupid name they’ve got. I’m still in contact with the person who bred him.

@Flaunch

I bought my puppy from an advert on pets4Homes, which is no doubt full of arseholes and scammers but that wasn’t my experience and actually is only really a modern day advert in the paper/shop window. Mines also a lurcher and was home bred by someone who wanted a pup off his bitch to work and exactly as the previous poster said he was bred for functionality and for doing a job by a person who understood dogs beyond what they look like or what stupid name they’ve got. I’m still in contact with the person who bred him.

We’re still in contact with our dogs’ breeders, and in touch (via working dog groups on fb) with our dogs’ siblings, which is lovely.

My son knew one of the breeders who matched him with his dog, they regularly chat and they love to hear how the dog is getting on.

We got our non pedigree on Pets4Homes as we specifically didn't want the show version of our breed. We wanted the working version as we find the show version to be unhealthy and completely incapable of doing the job it's originally bred to do.

You do have to be vigilant but not everyone advertising on the site is a puppy farmer:

Try the Countrymans Weekly Newspaper. It's been around for decades and forever been somewhere puppies like lurchers/terriers/spaniels and labs have been advertised, plenty of which non pedigree. HTH

The thing is, reputable breeders will always breed to improve the breed - whether that's health, temperament, etc.. None of them will be breeding crossbreeds
Even if you don't want a show prospect pedigree puppy, the reality is that most (if not all) responsible breeders will have pedigree and show quality dogs. They make lovely pets too. So I don't exactly understand why you're so opposed to pedigree puppies

Not saying it's impossible to find good genuine breeders of non pedigree dogs, but it will be much much harder.

@Stellaris22

We got our non pedigree on Pets4Homes as we specifically didn't want the show version of our breed. We wanted the working version as we find the show version to be unhealthy and completely incapable of doing the job it's originally bred to do.

You do have to be vigilant but not everyone advertising on the site is a puppy farmer:

You can usually get breeders of both show and working type dogs (typically they would come from different lines)

If you want a working dog you can still absolutely find a good ethical breeder who places importance health & working ability in mind, no need to resort to pets4homes

My working springer spaniel (no pedigree) came from P4H. Exchanged loads of emails with photos with the breeder, then several long 'phone calls. It's only like the classified ads in the local paper, so just be vigilant

@Spanielsarepainless

My working springer spaniel (no pedigree) came from P4H. Exchanged loads of emails with photos with the breeder, then several long 'phone calls. It's only like the classified ads in the local paper, so just be vigilant

Our basset hound is more working line than show, and from P4H. We have been in contact with her litter mates and she's lovely. Having seen how bad the show bassets pedigree can get I couldn't buy into that. Bassets are bred to hunt and have stamina, show pedigrees can't do that.

Lots to think about, thanks everyone.

I'm very nervous of buying from a puppy farm but hadn't considered that might be where crossbreeds with the 'fancy' names might be from!

I guess I have an idealised vision of the mongrel Heinz 57 dogs my grandparents always had that seemed to be easy to come by 30 years ago!

I live semi-rural so I'll speak to some of the parents from my son's school who live on farms and see if they can point me towards what I'm looking for.

I want a dog that enjoys long walks and has an easy temperament. If I was to go pick a breed I'd like a golden retriever for the temperament... my favourite dogs are German Shepherds but am not sure a first time dog owner like me wouldn't find them too much?

DH grew up with dogs so we are not totally new to it.

DH works from home 4 days a week and I'm a social worker WFH a different 4 days (except when I go out on visits) so there should always be someone home. This was not the case pre-covid but the WFH is here to stay for us.

I would definitely take some time to do breed research on what would work best for your family. As others have said, if you’re going for a puppy, pedigree should mean proper health tests.

The other option for crossbreed pups are rescue BUT when they have pups in they usually will never hit websites and will be going to people who have already contacted and spoken to the rescue.

German Shepherds are lovely but can be intense. You would also want a fully health tested puppy or you end up with a dog with hip dysplasia or similar :( a dog that can’t walk to the end of the road let alone a long proper walk.

Have you thought about rescues who foster first?

One who comes to mind is Pererra Dogs, you'll find them on Facebook and Instagram. They bring dogs from Romania and foster in the UK initially, then list the dogs with requirements. They do have dogs who are suitable to be homed with children and cats after assessment. Friends rescued from there and the team really seem to know their stuff. You might have to wait till a suitable dog is available, but it could be an option?

I would strongly advise against a German Shepherd - they are big, strong, intelligent dogs who need huge amounts of mental and physical stimulation - and they also need consistency and an owner who really knows what they're doing.

If you want a family friendly breed who can do lots of exercise I would look at spaniels, toy poodles, labradors, golden retrievers or even beagles.

I know beagles aren't the most popular on MN but they are fantastic with children and are, sadly, used in laboratories because they are known to have excellent temperaments and to be good with people.

Our friends got theirs from a overseas rescue £400 and is a darling. My other friend got one from an well established charity from overseas and has been very emotionally traumatised.

Ours was a cross "designer" breed from a lady that had one other litter. We got her at 8 weeks and she a confident, friendly and biddable little dog. She has not had a bad day in her life and it shows, love and kindness give you a lovely dog.

We found both our Labs through word of mouth in the local area. With our first I stopped to ask a man with one I knew he had got from a local breeder and he was happy to talk about the pros and cons of that particular line. So then I approached the breeder who quizzed me and DH about our experience with dogs etc and we were accepted for the next litter.
Current Lab comes from a farm where they breed for work. Was also able to talk to owners who had their dogs from previous litters. That came from talking to people at work and letting them know we were looking for another Lab.
It’s surprising how many people know reputable breeders once you start putting feelers out!