Why do the "Backyard Breeders" get a bad name?

Question

Not all "Backyard Breeders are bad......I have 6 dogs (all same breed) and all are AKC .....beautiful dogs.........I have a small building connected to my house where they can come in and out ....like an extension to my beautiful home. I'm I considered a "Backyard Breeder" because my dogs are not running buck wild in my house? I barely make any money when I do have a litter.....I pay a lot out....I have pet insurance for all my dogs....makes the bills alot easier. They have regular vet checks.....shots...ect......I will not breed my beautiful dogs unless I get the ok from my vet. I don't want to ruin the breed I want to better the breed. Why do so many "Backyard Breeders" get bad names??

Another thing, what's wrong if a person wants to make a little bit of a profit for all that hard work they had done??? Y is money like a bad thing...I know you do it because you love it but damn!

Thank you Gentle

RaysinGyrl I think I know that just because the dogs are AKC doesn't mean much.....but I do have genetics testing done and all that.....it's just worth it. I love my beautiful furry friends!

Thank you Hellion

Bonsylar, I believe you said that backyard breeders have filthy conditions and breed and breed. Ok oh also and not caring for the dogs health and then they end up in shelters. Well Y would I want to be stuck with a dog with all these problems......?????? I feel bad for the dogs in the shelters but that wasn't my doing so ....I feel like I'm can contribute to maintaining the breed. I spent a fat amount of money on my purebreds and could show them if I'd like ...but I choose not to....so againist all breeding...I don't know about that...I don't care if you are a vet tech or spca vol. sorry!

I think that serious punishment should come to those who mistreat these animals or have filthy, gross conditions.....or not taking of the animals properly.....like vet checks ect......

Thank you Mac, yes I'm always around my dogs....I don't have pups very often cause I'm not into the breeding and breeding thing...even if I can afford it....I wouldn't do it to my baby girls.....but thank you for your input!

Answer 1

BYB are bad because they breed for the wrong reasons. One should always breed to improve the breed. The animals need to have blood work and heredity testing... and and and... just because the animals are AKC registered doesn't mean they are breed quality BYB's don't understand this.

Also, there are so many dogs sitting on death row or running loose in the street right now because there aren't enough people interested in adopting the dogs we already have. What is the purpose of creating MORE dogs to fend for themselves on the street or wind up piled ontop of one another after euthanasia?

Most licensed breeders don't make much money, if any money, breeding their animals. By the time the pups are fed, dewormed, fixed, vaccinated, etc. the breeder has put out a lot more money than they're going to make. Also, real breeders take responsiblilty for their litters FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIVES. In other words, if someone has to move 5yrs down the road and can't take the dog, the breeder will take it back.

Responsible breeders care more about the quality of the breed than making money. BYB's give puppy's away for free at Christmas, or breed their Chi to a Poodle just to make a new designer breed - with no regard to the health of the b*tch or her pups. Hense the Labradoodles, Maltipoo, etc. etc. designer breeds.

I have no problem with people breeding responsibly to improve the breed, but I do have a problem with people who write such assinine questions as "My dog is pregnant at 9mos, is this ok?" or "What would happen if I bred my Chi with a Great Dane." I just keep thinking, I hope these people don't have children.

SPAY AND NEUTER YOUR ANIMALS. We don't have any more room at the shelters!

Answer 2

Well, BYB CAN care about their dogs. The question is how can you "better the breed" if you do not know what an above average specimine is and what faults your dogs have and how to prevent the major ones from becoming a bigger part of the breeed????
Also a lot of BYB think that just because their vet says they are healthy enough to be bred, that is all they need. FEW invest the time and money in getting all the health clearances needed for their breed.
I think it should be a requirement that all dogs being bred at LEAST get a CGC. Then at least we know the owners have put forth the minimum effort to test temperment. They should also be required to have all the health clearances. Those two things should be met. It would be nice if only "better than average" examples of each breed were bred. That alone could improve many breeds.
If you are a BYB, you should at least do all health clearances, and be breeding above average examples of the breed that have sound temperments. Anything less and you are a BAD BYB.
I can live with BYB that at least meet those conditions.

I guess that last question would be do you use the Limited Registration to register puppies??? Or do you let the people go and breed as well?? If a puppy clearly has a bad fault does that one go on a Limited??????

Answer 3

If you are breeding dogs that are genetically sound and close to the breed standard, as judged by a show professional, and you take all the necessary steps to not be a BYB, then you are not one.

However, if you are breeding your dogs simply because you love dogs, then you *are* a BYB, no matter the other steps you take. Before you take personal offense at the BYB label, read up on what it is. If you are everything that you say you are, then you are not really a BYB.

However, I *do* find it offensive that you consider indoor dogs as nuisances. Breeding dogs should be parts of a family, not living life in a kennel. Otherwise, how do you decide who has proper temperament? Why have dogs if they aren't part of the family?

"I feel bad for the dogs in the shelters but that wasn't my doing so" This is highly ignorant. You are breeding dogs. Unless you personally oversee that each and every puppy you create is not EVER going to breed, you are a HUGE contributor to shelter deaths. Not realizing that you contribute to the high kill rate in shelters by breeding makes you seem ignorant and blind. Each time you create a puppy, a dog at a shelter loses a potential home. I don't understand what's so hard about that logic. An ethical breeder realizes this and does whatever they can to ensure that they have a minimal impact on overpopulation. Perhaps you *do* give limited reg. papers to pet quality dogs and hold the paperwork until they are fixed. Perhaps you don't. I just don't know. But I *DO* know that denial of your impact on shelters is naive.

You've said some things that don't fit the label, but you've also said some things that tremendously fit the label. I don't know enough about yout practices to be able to label you one way or another, but I'd warn someone buying from you to ask very specific questions and really scrutinize you because you aren't obviously one way or the other.

Answer 4

Hi! Being a vet tech, and a dog lover, I have strong feelings about this issue. But I have to say, that from your description, I wouldn't call you a "backyard breeder". You're doing a lot of things right.

For me, a backyard breeder is someone who knows nothing about genetics, or about basic animal husbandry and breeding. A responsible breeder eliminates undesirable traits in a line. For example, when I acquired my border collie - from a wonderful breeder - he was hip certified and eye certified, both for several generations. My blue heeler on the other hand, I adopted from a shelter. She is a behavioral mess (heelers are prone to aggression, and she is very dominant and aggressive), and has had two legs fixed (TPLO's on both - genetic predisposition). I am sure the breeder didn't have a clue what they were doing. That's a backyard breeder. It makes me angry, because the dog pays for it - life is hard for her emotionally, and two major leg surgeries were not fun for her, and have left her with lifelong arthritis. Now she's suffering with a problem with a third leg.

A backyard breeder takes a few dogs of a certain breed, not really knowing about their heritage (or not caring about it), not having any medical testing done, and throws them together to produce puppies for money. This breeder doesn't worry about the mother's health between breedings. Or if she's bred too often, or too much. This breeder doesn't hip test or eye test the pups. This breeder lies about the pup's shots to save money, or gives the minimum. THAT is a backyard breeder. (You wouldn't believe how many LIE about the pups being AKC registered, even forging paperwork!) These breeders separate the pups from the mother too soon, risking the pups become aggressive later as adults, because they weren't with mom long enough to learn proper boundaries (such as bite inhibition).

I know that most great breeders don't make money, because all the profit goes into paying vet bills. They go the extra mile to produce great dogs. Do I think a little profit is wrong? No! But I do think the priority should be the health and quality of the dogs.

It sounds like your priorities are right.

As far as where you keep the dogs - they should be getting a lot of human contact every day, to be well socialized and safe dogs. It's really important, if you are selling them. (I'm sure my heeler could have benefitted from it.) Pups develop personality in the first weeks - and need a lot of handling and love, to be forever affectionate andsafe dogs. But if you can say that you do this (play and cuddle them every day), and they are clean and well-cared for and warm - you don't need them running in your house.

Chin up! :)

Answer 5

Dog shows (and the dogs bred from the winners) are to keep the dog breeds pure.
Back yard breeders have no interest in keeping the breeds seperate. In fact, they are making more money on the so called, "designer breeds".
You are the exception to the rule.
Mostly, these animals are not cared for. They live in over crowded, filthy cages and bred litter, after litter until they die of it. Regardless of temperment, genetic flaws, and the health of the animals. The puppies are taken away from mom too early so that she will get pregnant again. Vet care is non-existent.
DON'T BREED OR BUY WHILE SHELTER ANIMALS DIE!
Just because you find them homes, doesn't mean they will keep them their whole lives. Also, if people buy a pup from you, they're not saving one from a shelter.
I object to anyone breeding dogs. There are too many of them being killed in shelters. Pure breeds as well as "mutts". Only a few are so rare that they need to be bred so they don't die out. Not every dog needs to be bred. No one NEEDS to breed. If you need the money, get rid of some of the dogs.

So, that's it in a nut shell.

Answer 6

Honestly the only ingredient you are missing is showing your dogs to PROVE they fit the standard and are a good representative of the breed.


Most BYB's don't do any testing, have poor health care in alot cases. They do things as cheap as possible to maximize profits. Do no research on breeding or the breed, they just stick dog A and dog B together and wait for pups to hit the floor.

Answer 7

Let me tell you why, I just picked up a 4 week old Chihuahua puppy that I wasn't suppose to get until mid-December, because the woman I bought her from was more interested in the money then she was this little chi. She is the reason that backyard breeders have such a bad name, that old adage that one rotten apple spoils the whole bunch. There ya go, some people care only about the money and how much they can get out of the dogs they have in there possession, not the breed or the age.

Answer 8

Because they don't always do things right. Sometimes not all the right shots, and sometimes they don't care about the ***** and make her give birth until she's too exhausted to live. We got ours from a "backyard breeder" and they didn't cut the dew claws on the puppies. We had the back ones removed in surgery, but the front ones are too deep. It's bad to keep them in because one day they might catch on something and tear off, which is unbelievably painful for a dog.



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Answer 9

I personally agree with you I dont think other people should judge someone else just cause they want to start up a business even if is breeding dogs,,, its their business not anyone elses,,, I breed Min Pins and I do it for the love of the breed but like you said what is wrong with having the money that you make off of them plus you are just trying to get your money back from all the tests and/or all the hard work that you have done to get a great litter of pups,,, this is my opinion and everyone has one

Answer 10

Backyard Breeders get a bad name because of the few that are. I rescued a Jack Russell Terrier (Sadie) that came from a Backyard Breeder out of Baltimore, MD. He breeds Jack Russells for show and hunting and when they are neither he takes them out back....need I say more? Sadie is the "Alfa" female, so to speak. She does not get along at all with other females. The only males she gets along with are the ones she can dominate. She will hump their head and if they let her, everything is ok....if they don't let her....we have to pick her up right away. Size is not an issue with her...she wants to be boss. Other than that, she is as sweet as can be. I understand that the backyard breeder needs all of his Jack Russells to get along but taking them out back is a little extreme to me. It's those kind of things that give you guys a bad name. I don't think you need to worry about that...it sounds like you have a real big heart. Keep it true. Best of luck making honest money.