Dog breeding in the UK as a council-licensed breeder has become increasingly difficult over the past few years, with high licence fees, first-licence veterinary inspection fees, and copious amounts of paperwork.
A post on a licensed breeder platform was so shocking that I telephoned the UK Kennel Club to check. Lo and behold, and to my surprise, the information I had read was correct.
The kennel club was allowing people to breed two litters a year without a licence, and not allowing the third litter to be registered. There can be only one reason for the change in rules, and it has to be profit.
This not only makes selling for licensed breeders more difficult, having to compete with unlicensed breeders selling un-tested puppies under the market price, but also results in more unhealthy puppies being sold, and puts more pressure on rescue centres that are already at bursting point.
One of the biggest issues that responsible breeders face is the public not doing enough research into purchasing pets from ethical breeders. Instead, a prospective owner will read that the puppies are born to health-tested parents, and are kennel club registered. But this is not enough!
Much of the general public think the UK Kennel club are the be-all-and-end-all of the dog breeding world when in fact they are little more than a puppy registry. As a licensed breeder myself for many years, we have had constant battles with unlicensed, unethical, and unscrupulous people breeding litter after litter, selling under the market value. This has made it hard for ethical breeders to make a profit from their puppies.
My own puppies are fed top-quality food, and handled every day, including for nail trimming and checking inside the ears etc., and wormed regularly. More basically, spending time simply sitting with puppies, letting them come to you for affection, helps to make a gentle, calm, balanced puppy.
The difference between a well-bred, -raised, -loved puppy versus a puppy-farm puppy is vast.
A well-bred puppy will be happy to meet new people, bouncy, enthusiastic, curious, looking for mischief, bright eyed, and playful. The breeder will have already started with toilet training and bite inhibition, as all puppies will test the boundaries when they are young and teething.
When searching for a new family member, one must check these things before choosing the cutest bundle of fluff.
What Makes a Breeder Ethical?
Licensing and Transparency: They are licensed by their local council and happy to show you certificates and star rating.
Health Testing: Parents are DNA-tested and screened for breed-specific conditions. You should be shown paperwork. No Pressure Sales: Ethical breeders will talk to you to ensure their puppies go to the right homes.
The breeder should be selling their puppies with a contract of sale to ensure that if you can’t cope with your puppy, or your circumstances change, the puppy will be on a return to breeder contract. This is how responsible breeders alleviate the stress on rescue facilities.
The puppy will come to you with a starter pack of food, and a guidance sheet on feeding times, what the puppy has been wormed with, and a worming guidance sheet for the coming months.
A vet-check certificate to show the puppy has been examined by a qualified veterinarian for basic health and heart murmurs.
Aftercare guidance and advice should always be available.
If you’re happy after talking to the breeder and you feel the breeder ticks all the boxes for you then make an appointment to go and meet the puppies and their mum. While you are with the breeder you should see happy clean puppies in a pen with mum inside the house.
Living Conditions: Puppies are raised in a clean, stimulating, family environment, not kennels or cages.
Meet the Parents: You should be able to see the mother (and ideally the father if he is owned by the breeder) to assess temperament and that he looks healthy and happy.
Puppy Farms
A puppy farm can be a large-scale commercial dog breeding facility, but also a smaller breeder with a handful of females but breeding two litters a year instead of one litter. These facilities often house dogs in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions, with little to no access to veterinary care or proper nutrition, or even natural light in some cases. Female dogs are bred repeatedly and often well past the legal age a female should produce a litter of puppies, often leading to health issues and genetic defects in the puppies they produce. Puppies from puppy farms and unlicensed breeders are typically sold to pet stores or online platforms, which are often marketed as purebred, which is not always the case.
As a breeder, I have worked with puppies who have been raised in puppy farms and have behavioural issues as a result. Responsible breeding practices are essential for producing well-adjusted and socialized dogs.
I believe that we have a responsibility to speak out against the inhumane practices of puppy farms and unlicensed breeders and support legislation that protects breeding dogs and puppies.
Buying a puppy for which you feel sorry because of its poor condition and forlorn expression also promotes bad breeding practices.
Breeders and buyers have a shared onus to do better.
