@KingRoland OP from a once totally clueless buyer who bought my doodle off pets4homes within 24hours, knowing nothing about buying puppies ethically or even anything about dogs generally.... (I'll get my hard hat for that!!)
...to another unsure potential buyer, how about this:
Step 1: Know the Breed Basics
- Decide which size suits your lifestyle: Standard, Miniature, or Toy. (and buying an actual poodle not a doodle will mean the size you buy is the size you'll get!)
- Standard poodles will require more food and exercise than miniatures and everything generally from grooming to food to vet stuff will be more expensive because the dog is bigger. That being said, standards are glorious!
- The Miniature version was bred hundreds of years ago to be a companion version of the (hunting and working) standard. So think calmer temperament, less prey drive but still dead clever and needs 60-90 mins of daily walks like most dogs.
- Understand that reputable breeders do not breed for “rare” merle colours or market puppies as “teacup” poodles (that’s a red flag).
Step 2: Start Your Search in the Right Places
The Kennel Club (KC) Assured Breeder Scheme is your safest starting point, but not all good breeders are members.
Look at these websites:
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The Poodle Council of Great Britain - they have actual contact details on this page for all the regional poodle clubs. Get in contact with your nearest one and have a conversation. If you contact them saying you're looking for a poodle and would like some help to get it right, they will be very happy to help you. They are very knowledgable and I'm sure happy to help.
- The Kennel Club's find a puppy function on their website
- Avoid Gumtree, Facebook Marketplace, pets4homes - these are often hotbeds for poorly bred dogs. Reputable breeders don't need to use these sites.
Step 3: Understand Required Health Tests
Every poodle breeding dog should be tested before breeding, and you should see proof for both sire (dad) and dam (mum). These are important because you want a healthy dog who's body won't crumble painfully before its time costing you a fortune in heartache for the family and vet bills.
A) DNA Tests – prevent passing on inherited diseases:
Conducted by Laboklin, Animal Genetics UK, or Pet Genetics Lab. ( a company called Wisdom Panel is not good enough for breeders - it's for curious dog owners. )
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PRA-PRCD (Progressive Retinal Atrophy – blindness)
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vWD Type 1 (Von Willebrand’s Disease – clotting disorder)
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DM (Degenerative Myelopathy – mobility loss in older dogs)
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NE (Neonatal Encephalopathy – fatal brain disorder) – mainly in Standards
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rcd4-PRA (late-onset PRA – especially in Standards)
The paperwork you should see for this is:
A certificate from the testing company, showing: Dog’s registered name, KC registration number, Microchip number, Clear/Carrier/Affected status. The breeder should show you certificates for both parents. (even if they don't own both parents)
B) Eye Examinations
Physical exam carried out by a BVA/KC/ISDS Eye Scheme Panel Vet (you can find them on the BVA website).
- Tests for cataracts, PRA signs, and other hereditary eye issues.
- Needs to be done annually for breeding dogs.
The paperwork you should see for this: An official Eye Examination Certificate signed and stamped by the ophthalmologist.
C) Hip Scores (more common for standard poodles so I'm told but I could be wrong) –
The breeder’s vet X-rays of both parents dog’s hips under sedation.
The X-rays are sent to the British Veterinary Association (BVA) where two independent specialists score each hip against 9 different features.
Each feature gets 0–6 points (0 = perfect, 6 = bad).
The lower the number, the better the hip, but ideally you want even scores on both rather than 0 and 4.
Paperwork you should see: A KC/BVA certificate showing left and right scores and total. Again, both parents.
D) How inbred is the puppy that you're looking at?
Inbreeding = bad. We know that right? You get all sorts of horrid problems by too much inbreeding. But how do you know?? The Coefficient of Inbreeding score (COI) is one of those things most first-time puppy buyers have never heard of, but it’s actually one of the most useful pieces of information you can get from a KC-registered litter. It's expressed as a percentage.
The Kennel Club publishes the breed average COI for each breed:
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Standard Poodle – around 4–5%
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Miniature Poodle – around 5–6%
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Toy Poodle – around 4–5%
What you want: pick a puppy with a COI lower than the breed average. If the breeder can't provide you with this, or at least the mum and dad's KC names for you to check the COI% yourself on KC website...then run. After all... they should know who the mum and dad are...
(KC names are just long fancy names as a way of identifying a particular dog amongst all their registered dogs... they're crazy names a bit like race-horses... think "White snow MoonRise Daunty" etc)
You might have noticed that health tests A-C above were carried out by different companies and different methods. You should see separate paperwork for each of these tests. If a breed shows you a bit of paper with everything official on one page they've made it up in microsoft word and you should run run run.
The tests also frightfully expensive to carry out, hip scoring can cost a breeder about £400 per dog. Dodgy breeders don't bother (it'll eat into their profits after all!) but poor hip structure can mean a painful life for your dog down the line.
Step 4: Shortlist Breeders Who Provide Full Transparency
Be bold and confident. You wouldn't buy a house without asking all the questions
- “Can I see all health test results for both parents?” (and I mean all... like above)
- “How many litters does the dam have, and how often?” (More than 4 litters in her entire lifetime or or more than one a year = red flag.)
- “Can I meet the mother with the puppies?” (If they say no — walk away.)
- It's been said that owning both the mum and dad as family dogs can be a red flag... what are the chances that the breeder just happened to own the perfect mating match for their dog? Good breeders plan a mating months and months ahead and travel to errrr.... get the deed done.
Step 5: Visit the Breeder
- Puppies should be raised in the home, not a shed or outbuilding.
- Mum should be healthy, friendly, and attentive to her litter.
- The breeder should be keen to ask you questions, in fact they should grill you — good breeders want to know their pups are going to the right home. A good breeder will want you to visit a couple of times.
- They will also want you to sign a contract that says you must return the puppy to them rather than a shelter if you cannot look after it anymore.
Step 6: Check the Paperwork Before You Pay
You should receive:
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KC Registration Certificate (purple certificate – shows “endorsed” status, usually “Progeny not eligible for registration” and “Export pedigree not allowed” until health checks are done — this is good practice).
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Microchip paperwork (required by law before 8 weeks old).
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Puppy Contract (ideally from The Puppy Contract scheme – puppycontract.org.uk).
- Copies of all health test certificates for both parents.
- Vaccination card (if any jabs given before collection).
Step 7: Don’t Pay in Full Until Collection
- A small deposit is normal (often £200–£300).
- Only pay the balance when collecting your puppy at 8+ weeks.
- Payment should be traceable (bank transfer, not cash in hand).
🐾 How to Tell if a Breeder is Ethical (this is where it gets heated on The Doghouse)
A decent, ethical breeder will:
- Put health and temperament above profit.
- Breed only from health-tested dogs (with proof).
- Raise puppies in a stimulating, clean home environment.
- Be happy to answer questions and provide lifelong support.(i.e return the puppy to them NOT woodgreen)
- Ask you as many questions as you ask them.
- Have a waiting list — truly ethical breeders don’t have constant availability because they don't breed their dogs like machines and plan matches carefully in advance with the best match doggy-dad.
- Don't despair at this part. It just means you might not get a healthy puppy this month from an ethical breeder who happens to live in your county. You might have to travel several hours, or wait until spring, and that is totally reasonable. It's the first investment you're making in your family dog, probably the most important one - and if you do it will pay off big time.
**
If in doubt at all, phone the number for your local poodle club in the link above via poodle council of great Britain, and ask them for help!
I'm sure I have made mistakes in the above or left bits out, but it must be so overwhelming to want to get it right, but having never done it before (and probably only doing once!)