Reputable breeders are the link between the past and the future. Since they are well aware that the buyers of today may be the breeders of tomorrow, they do their best to educate the people who buy their dogs—to try to instill in them the ideals and values on which they have built their reputation.

The reputable breeder is like the head of a family. She has a responsibility toward the breed itself, toward the dogs she breeds, the dogs she hopes to breed and additionally to all the people who have dogs of her breeding. She spends astounding amounts of her time and money on matters she thinks are for the best interest of the breed.

The attitude of the reputable breeder is very different. Though the cost of properly caring for her dogs may cause her many sleepless nights and untold worries, she will never let a single puppy or older dog leave for a home that is not as good or better than the one she is providing. Even when a dog is sold, the breeders help and advice does not end; it continues throughout the dog's life, a responsibility cheerfully accepted by her without expectation or compensation.

It is this awareness of responsibility, combined with a true sense of continuity, that marks the difference between the true breeder and backyard/puppymill breeders. Every reputable breeder is an artist, motivated by a drive to create perfection in health, temperament, and structure according to the CKC or AKC breed standard. The backyard/puppymill breeders or dog dealers are motivated only by the desire to make money. They are only in the dog-business, selling puppies like over-the-counter commodities to anyone who can pay the price with no regard for total health, sound temperament, or correct structure.

While backyard/puppymill breeders or dog dealers are often high-powered salespeople, they never or seldom ask questions; their only concern is to sell the dogs and get them off their hands as soon as possible, in order to avoid additional expenses and work. Their interest ends when the sale is completed.

Responsible, reputable breeders will always answer buyers' questions, keep puppies they cannot place, allow bitches to recover sufficiently from one breeding before doing another, and take back any puppy that does not work out. They breed dogs because they love their breed and want to contribute to its betterment. They consider the puppies they produce to be their responsibility for the life of the that puppy, so they follow-up frequently to see what's going on. They evaluate their puppies as show and breeding quality or pet quality and sell pet puppies with a spay/neuter contract. Pet quality puppies are not deficient—they just may not meet the breed standard for size, color, coat type, bone structure, head type, etc. This just means that these puppies cannot or should not be shown and should not be bred. Usually pet quality puppies are sold at a slightly lower price than show quality puppies.

Reputable, responsible breeders build a good reputation slowly, based on dedication and consistent quality, not on volume, advertising in newspapers or on the net. Knowledgeable breeders study pedigrees of dogs from related lines as well as unrelated lines. They have a pretty good idea of what a certain breeding is likely to produce. These breeders also study the ancestors of these dogs to try and avoid breeding unwanted poor or deadly health in their lines. Breeding to the top winning dogs does not necessarily mean the puppies will be free of major health problems.

Responsible breeders strive to produce dogs that meet the official breed standard which is a description of the perfect specimen. Keep in mind however, the perfect specimen should be free of health problems, have a sound temperament as well as be structurally correct.