[Breeder] The practice of mating selected dogs with the intent to maintain or produce specific qualities and characteristics. A person who intentionally mates dogs to produce puppies is referred to as a dog breeder.
Generally, there are four types of breeders of the Epagneul Breton in the United States.
Hobby/Professional breeders
These breeders have extensive knowledge of the breed, health risks, study genetics and make informed decisions about the dogs to reproduce. They keep up-to-date on new research and continue to educate themselves about the Epagneul Breton in the United States and abroad, you are not going to see this type of conscientious breeder across the board as experience and ability will vary from breeder to breeder. Many hobby/professional breeders gain knowledge about the breed abroad to advance their breeding program as the breed is very young in the United States and the ideal dog is perplexing to most American trainers. They will test their reproduction in field and show events specialized for the breed and select dogs to reproduce based on character, temperament, conformity, sporting ability and health. This is not done universally as the qualities of dogs and experience vary. They have similar goals, care deeply about their reproduction and want to assure that they are being placed in good homes. They will limit the registration on puppies reproduced until proven in health, conformation, temperament and working ability to advance the breed to the best of their ability/knowledge.
Breeders that compete their dogs in field and show events are likely to charge more for their puppies, especially if they have “Champion” potential. The sky is often the limit when considering the purchase of a “breeding” quality puppy.
There is a line that is drawn between Hobby and Professional breeders. Usually a professional will have more dogs thus a larger gene pool to produce from, they will have more experience in whelping litters and breed knowledge as that comes with more dogs. They look at themselves as a legitimate business and run the operation as such which includes recordkeeping, accounting, and reporting income to the IRS. They are likely to have contracts to sign, health guarantees for their puppies, and lifetime support in the form of information about all things related to their reproduction.
This lifetime support also extends to accepting a dog back in the event that a family can no longer keep it.
Professional breeders will operate for years with multiple generations of dogs whereas hobby breeders usually have 1-2 generations and fade away.
Backyard Breeders/Puppy producers
The name is normally reserved for people who have little knowledge and experience. There are many reasons why someone would decide to be a breeder in this category.
- They want their children to experience the wonder of birth.
- They have a beloved dog and want another one just like him or her.
- They think they can make extra money on the side.
- They have friends or family members who want a puppy.
Backyard breeders/Puppy producers may sell their puppies for less money, but that is not always the case.
Some have an inflated sense of puppy values, are good salespeople, and end up tricking people into purchasing their puppies for all the wrong reasons.
The puppies may or may not be eligible for AKC and UKC registration.
The major problem with backyard breeders/Puppy producers lies in their possible lack of knowledge of breed standards, common health risks of the breed, inadequate knowledge of canine obstetrics and care of the newborns.
They usually sell their pups without health guarantees or even in some cases vaccinations.
The production from Backyard breeders and Puppy producers contaminate the breed, they sell puppies with open registration with little care for the future of the breed in the United States. Identified as of late will breed fashionable tri-color dogs for easy sale to make a quick dollar.