So the American dog-breeding situation – everyone knows it’s shitty but here’s why (very simplified of course):

Unlike it’s European counterpart, the AKC judges show-dogs solely on conformation. This means that breeders overlook personality issues in order to breed a better ‘look’. That’s why certain dogs with high conformations (in breeds like German Shepherds and Shetland Sheepdogs, for example) can have almost uncontrollable anxiety or other personality disorders.

Naturally this applies more to show lines than working lines, since a dog has to be functional in order to do what it was bred to do. (If you can, look for breeders who breed the working line instead of the show line.)

Couple this with the dog fads that go around and you end up with a lot of shoddy breeding (why Dalmatians have such issues with aggression and why you’re starting to see a lot of Labradoodles with incredible hyper-activity).

Basically there is absolutely nothing wrong with buying from breeders as long as you research them fully and don’t support breeders who are either breeding to get in on the hype or breeding solely for confirmation.

Make sure to visit the breeder you want to buy from. A good tip is that a truly decent breeder will have no qualms about inviting you over, showing you their kennels and talking about the dogs because they have nothing to hide.

If a breeder won’t let you inspect their kennel, that’s definitely a red flag.

Talk to other people who have bought puppies from that breeder and see how the dogs are doing. Maybe also talk to some dog trainers. Trust me when I say that the names of good dog breeders is the first form of gossip among trainers. Whenever we meet exceptional dogs we ask what breeder they’re from and tell all of our dog trainer buddies.

Definitely, definitely do you research on the breeder but also on the breed. Know what the dogs should be. Then ask to meet the mother of the puppies (father too, but dogs often take after their mothers).

A good dog from a good breeder is going to be absolutely wonderful, and it takes time to make sure you get that.

It goes without saying that you should also do research before you adopt dogs from kennels. A lot of dogs get abandoned at around one year of age because they don’t get any training and now they’re terrible teenagers who will settle down in time. But some dogs also get abandoned because they have issues so you should be able to know what a breed of dog is supposed to act like. If you don’t have time to look up every breed of dog then think about what dogs are bred for. Herding dogs are going to be energetic, shepherding dogs will be intelligent, sporting dogs will be smart and eager to please, terriers will be independent etc.

If you’re looking at a mutt then figure out what dog it looks like the most. Personality often goes along with appearance in dogs so knowing your breeds is still helpful even for mutts and designer dogs!