Reputable breeders

What does a person look for when looking for a reputable breeder? 

Many breeders will agree that a reputable breeder does the basic health testing of their chosen breed.

 For miniature American shepherds and Australian shepherds it would start with having hips X-ray with a qualified vet to get a rating with the Orthopedic foundation for Animals. You can find the potential parents of your dogs listed on this website if they have done OFA. You’re looking for a dog with a minimal ranking of fair, but a good or Excellent is what breeders strive for. If the dogs hips are not listed on OFA then likely they were never done. However, breeders have the option of using PennHip as well to get a score of the hips. These also can be added Miniature American shepherd to the OFA Database of health screening for a $25 fee. Well worth the fees to have them all in one place.

Also, the breed should have its elbows xrayed for dysplasia as a working active dog with elbow displasia can become very painful. This will also be listed on OFA’s website. 

Next is an eye exam by a certified canine ophthalmologist. This should be done yearly. This exam is very much like a human eye exam and will let you know if there are and defects and diseases. The breed does have cataracts, collie eye anomaly, progressive retina anomaly and many other issues that must be checked for. 

These tests above are physical tests looking for actual physical issues and have been done in most dog breeds for several decades now. 

Newer to the testing is DNA panels. DNA panels are looking for copies of the genes associated with a particular disease. In some cases a dog can have one copy of a disease and be ok and not affected by it. With some diseases it only takes one copy. This is where a reputable breeder should have educated themselves on the differences and know what they have to do to breed away from it. Most diseases do require 2 copies to be affected. Which means they got one gene from each parent. 

The DNA tests that are important to these breeds are:

CEA

PRA/PRAD

DM

HC or HSF4

MDR1

Once a dog has all of these tests done and submitted to OFA the dog will get a CHIC number. However there are fees attached to these tests and some breeders will not pay extra fees just to have all their testing listed in one place for the public to see. This cost for the DNA is very minimal at roughly $50. 

Ok the breeder you are looking at doesn’t do hips, elbows or eyes they only do DNA. My advice find another breeder! The hips and eye testing has been mandatory testing in these breeds for DECADES! A breeder skipping out on these are cutting corners and really don’t care if they are breeding dogs with any health issues! They don’t care that their buyers aren’t getting dogs that have been tested and cleared from these diseases that can complicate their lives. 

Why would you spend hundreds to thousands with a breeder that doesn’t truly care about the hereditary health of their dogs? You might get lucky and not have issues in the future. Kudos! Don’t take the risk for the sake of saving a few dollars. 

Your breeder only DNA’s their dogs. “At least they do some health testing.” Ya but DNA can’t tell you if your dogs parents have hip or elbow dysplasia. It can’t tell you if your dog will get one of the many many types of cataracts that the breed is subject to getting. 

Also if a breeder doesn’t actually understand these tests they may very well breed the wrong cross and you get a puppy with DM. 

Avoid the costs of extra veterinarian bills by getting a dog that comes from a breeder that does all these tests. 

Ok you’ve found a breeder that does all this testing! Omg! That’s a relief. Congratulations! Reputable breeders

What does a person look for when looking for a reputable breeder? 

Many breeders will agree that a reputable breeder does the basic health testing of their chosen breed.

 For miniature American shepherds and Australian shepherds it would start with having hips X-ray with a qualified vet to get a rating with the Orthopedic foundation for Animals. Www.offa.org. You can find the potential parents of your dogs listed on this website if they have done OFA. You’re looking for a dog with a minimal ranking of fair, but a good or Excellent is what breeders strive for. If the dogs hips are not listed on OFA then likely they were never done. However, breeders have the option of using PennHip as well to get a score of the hips. These also can be added to the OFA Database of health screening for a $25 fee. Well worth the fees to have them all in one place.

Also, the breed should have its elbows xrayed for dysplasia as a working active dog with elbow displasia can become very painful. This will also be listed on OFA’s website. 

Next is an eye exam by a certified canine ophthalmologist. This should be done yearly. This exam is very much like a human eye exam and will let you know if there are and defects and diseases. The breed does have cataracts, collie eye anomaly, progressive retina anomaly and many other issues that must be checked for. 

These tests above are physical tests looking for actual physical issues and have been done in most dog breeds for several decades now. 

Newer to the testing is DNA panels. DNA panels are looking for copies of the genes associated with a particular disease. In some cases a dog can have one copy of a disease and be ok and not affected by it. With some diseases it only takes one copy. This is where a reputable breeder should have educated themselves on the differences and know what they have to do to breed away from it. Most diseases do require 2 copies to be affected. Which means they got one gene from each parent. 

The DNA tests that are important to these breeds are:

CEA

PRA/PRAD

DM

HC or HSF4

MDR1

Once a dog has all of these tests done and submitted to OFA the dog will get a CHIC number. However there are fees attached to these tests and some breeders will not pay extra fees just to have all their testing listed in one place for the public to see. This cost for the DNA is very minimal at roughly $50. 

Ok the breeder you are looking at doesn’t do hips, elbows or eyes they only do DNA. My advice find another breeder! The hips and eye testing has been mandatory testing in these breeds for DECADES! A breeder skipping out on these are cutting corners and really don’t care if they are breeding dogs with any health issues! They don’t care that their buyers aren’t getting dogs that have been tested and cleared from these diseases that can complicate their lives. 

Why would you spend hundreds to thousands with a breeder that doesn’t truly care about the hereditary health of their dogs? You might get lucky and not have issues in the future. Kudos! Don’t take the risk for the sake of saving a few dollars. 

Your breeder only DNA’s their dogs. “At least they do some health testing.” Ya but DNA can’t tell you if your dogs parents have hip or elbow dysplasia. It can’t tell you if your dog will get one of the many many types of cataracts that the breed is subject to getting. 

Also if a breeder doesn’t actually understand these tests they may very well breed the wrong cross and you get a puppy with DM. 

Avoid the costs of extra veterinarian bills by getting a dog that comes from a breeder that does all these tests. 

Ok you’ve found a breeder that does all this testing! Omg! That’s a relief. Congratulations! 

BUT that’s still not a reputable breeder. For the love of…. You are thinking!

A reputable breeder also shows their dogs in at least one venue. AKC being the most well known I’ll start there. So what is showing their dog get them? A bunch of little 2-3 letter acronyms at the front or end of the dogs name!

For the love of god really?? Who cares????!?? 

YOU should! 

So the dog has a CH In front of their registered name. That means it finished its Championship! That’s a great thing as 2 or more judges deemed the dog quality enough to give it points to earn its championship. Now here’s the caveat, it still doesn’t mean the dog is worthy of being bred and frankly sometimes quality. Breeders get hung up on breeding to finished champions because well they are chasing ribbons and don’t know themselves what is correct or not. So this is where you need to have a conversation with the breeder to understand why they bred to that dog. If you are looking to get into showing and breeding yourself this is a HUGE deal that you need to focus on. 

Ok, maybe the breeder or you don’t care about championships. You are looking for a dog sport buddy! Or a good pet with a great temperament. 

This is where you want to look for titles at the end of the name. CGC’s are Canine good citizens and the basics of it is your dog can handle being in public around other people and other dogs without loosing their minds!

However, a well trained bad tempered dog can still past these tests in the right environment so look for a dog that’s done more then one thing. Look for TDI or ATT. The first is therapy dog title and the other is literally American Temperament test. If the dog has passed these and a CGC or even better CGCA and CGCU not only are they well trained they have likely done a lot of socializing and training to be able to pass all these. 

Now, obedience titles BN, CD, CDX. Rally titles RN, RI, RA, RE, RM. Agility titles NA, OA, NAJ, OAJ. Dock diving DS. Barn hunt RATN, RATO… Scentwork SCN, SCA, SCE.

Fastcat BCAT, DCAT, FCAT. Herding HS, HDAS, HSAD, HSAC. 

Are definitely more involved and training to get. This not only shows you the breeder is dedicated to training, but to achieving more with the breed. This is not an all exclusive of the titles but a good handful of what you might find on many Australian shepherds and miniature American shepherd registered names. Titles mean they are working towards a goal with the dog and in the breed. Dedication to the dog and the breed is what a reputable breeder should strive for. 

Ok you’re thinking I have found a reputable breeder! They do all the health testing and they title their dogs!! Yes! Congrats! Hold up though….

Do they offer a health guarantee and a contract? No? What is that??

So a health guarantee is going to spell out what they cover on your dog if something was to happen. Now this doesn’t mean that 3 years from now your Fluffy bottom naughty pants has diarrhea and a fecal exam shows a problem the breeder is going to cover that. Come on now! Worms and bacteria etc.. come from everywhere and happen. You might mention it to the breeder, but overall my advice is don’t! When little things like this happen breeders get the feeling you’re complaining or don’t like the dog. 

If your dog starts limping and your concerned because they don’t sit right. Or seem overly sore after a hike. Take your dog to the vet. You can see what the vet has to say and if the vet says maybe hip dysplasia talk to them about doing an X-ray to confirm. Contact the breeder, don’t be a douche. Let them know what’s going on. Hip injuries happen and can cause dysplasia as can poor diet, over excersize, being overweight through growth stages. These are considered environmental causes. Depending on your contract with the breeder is what will spell out what needs to happen. If you bought the dog as a breeding show quality dog I would hope that they would be willing to replace the dog or refund it. If not this is not a breeder I would consider reputable. If you bought a pet it will literally be something you have to discuss with the breeder. They might replace your dog or give you a full refund or partial. That is what a contract is for.

A contract is an agreement of what the breeder expects of you and what you can expect from the breeder. If a breeder does not have one of these then I would not consider the breeder reputable. 

Let me take this one more step. If the contract is only for a year and not 2 plus years I also would not consider this a reputable breeder. Many issues such as hips and eye issues will not come to your attention until later in life. A reputable breeders contract is 24 months or longer. 

Read it thoroughly. If your dog has a health issue you might have to return that dog to get a refund or a replacement and that might be hard to do for someone buying a nice companion pet dog. 

Reputable breeders WILL:

Take the dog back for any reason 

Have a health guarantee and contract 

Do ALL the health testing

Title their dog in some event

Be a HUGE amount of information and knowledge 

Will stand behind their dogs and be proud of them and their new owners!

<a href=“https://www.waterfallaussies.com/“> Waterfall Miniature American shepherds <\a> <br>

<a href=“https://www.exquisiteaussies.com/available/“> Exquisite Miniature American Shepherds <\a> <br>

<a href=“https://www.stillwaterranchaussies.com/“> Stillwater Ranch Miniature American Shepherds <\a> <br>

<a href=“https://paintedblueaussies.com”> Painted Blue Aussies: Australian Shepherd Puppies <\a> <br>

BUT that’s still not a reputable breeder. For the love of…. You are thinking!

A reputable breeder also shows their dogs in at least one venue. AKC being the most well known I’ll start there. So what is showing their dog get them? A bunch of little 2-3 letter acronyms at the front or end of the dogs name!

For the love of god really?? Who cares????!?? 

YOU should! 

So the dog has a CH In front of their registered name. That means it finished its Championship! That’s a great thing as 2 or more judges deemed the dog quality enough to give it points to earn its championship. Now here’s the caveat, it still doesn’t mean the dog is worthy of being bred and frankly sometimes quality. Breeders get hung up on breeding to finished champions because well they are chasing ribbons and don’t know themselves what is correct or not. So this is where you need to have a conversation with the breeder to understand why they bred to that dog. If you are looking to get into showing and breeding yourself this is a HUGE deal that you need to focus on. 

Ok, maybe the breeder or you don’t care about championships. You are looking for a dog sport buddy! Or a good pet with a great temperament. 

This is where you want to look for titles at the end of the name. CGC’s are Canine good citizens and the basics of it is your dog can handle being in public around other people and other dogs without loosing their minds!

However, a well trained bad tempered dog can still past these tests in the right environment so look for a dog that’s done more then one thing. Look for TDI or ATT. The first is therapy dog title and the other is literally American Temperament test. If the dog has passed these and a CGC or even better CGCA and CGCU not only are they well trained they have likely done a lot of socializing and training to be able to pass all these. 

Now, obedience titles BN, CD, CDX. Rally titles RN, RI, RA, RE, RM. Agility titles NA, OA, NAJ, OAJ. Dock diving DS. Barn hunt RATN, RATO… Scentwork SCN, SCA, SCE.

Fastcat BCAT, DCAT, FCAT. Herding HS, HDAS, HSAD, HSAC. 

Are definitely more involved and training to get. This not only shows you the breeder is dedicated to training, but to achieving more with the breed. This is not an all exclusive of the titles but a good handful of what you might find on many <a href=“http://www.Waterfallaussies.com”> Australian shepherds and miniature American shepherd <\a> registered names. Titles mean they are working towards a goal with the dog and in the breed. Dedication to the dog and the breed is what a reputable breeder should strive for. 

Ok you’re thinking I have found a reputable breeder! They do all the health testing and they title their dogs!! Yes! Congrats! Hold up though….

Do they offer a health guarantee and a contract? No? What is that??

So a health guarantee is going to spell out what they cover on your dog if something was to happen. Now this doesn’t mean that 3 years from now your Fluffy bottom naughty pants has diarrhea and a fecal exam shows a problem the breeder is going to cover that. Come on now! Worms and bacteria etc.. come from everywhere and happen. You might mention it to the breeder, but overall my advice is don’t! When little things like this happen breeders get the feeling you’re complaining or don’t like the dog. 

If your dog starts limping and your concerned because they don’t sit right. Or seem overly sore after a hike. Take your dog to the vet. You can see what the vet has to say and if the vet says maybe hip dysplasia talk to them about doing an X-ray to confirm. Contact the breeder, don’t be a douche. Let them know what’s going on. Hip injuries happen and can cause dysplasia as can poor diet, over excersize, being overweight through growth stages. These are considered environmental causes. Depending on your contract with the breeder is what will spell out what needs to happen. If you bought the dog as a breeding show quality dog I would hope that they would be willing to replace the dog or refund it. If not this is not a breeder I would consider reputable. If you bought a pet it will literally be something you have to discuss with the breeder. They might replace your dog or give you a full refund or partial. That is what a contract is for.

A contract is an agreement of what the breeder expects of you and what you can expect from the breeder. If a breeder does not have one of these then I would not consider the breeder reputable. 

Let me take this one more step. If the contract is only for a year and not 2 plus years I also would not consider this a reputable breeder. Many issues such as hips and eye issues will not come to your attention until later in life. A reputable breeders contract is 24 months or longer. 

Read it thoroughly. If your dog has a health issue you might have to return that dog to get a refund or a replacement and that might be hard to do for someone buying a nice companion pet dog. 

Reputable breeders WILL:

Take the dog back for any reason 

Have a health guarantee and contract 

Do ALL the health testing

Title their dog in some event

Be a HUGE amount of information and knowledge 

Will stand behind their dogs and be proud of them and their new owners!

<a href=“https://www.waterfallaussies.com/“> Waterfall Miniature American shepherds <\a> <br>

<a href=“https://www.exquisiteaussies.com/available/“> Exquisite Miniature American Shepherds <\a> <br>

<a href=“https://www.stillwaterranchaussies.com/“> Stillwater Ranch Miniature American Shepherds <\a> <br>

<a href=“https://paintedblueaussies.com”> Painted Blue Aussies: Australian Shepherd Puppies <\a> <br>