Bc Breeders

[Fynesse]

Quick question, we are thinking of getting another BC to keep my 10 month old BC company (he gets a ton of attention from us, but he just LOVES other dogs!) My only concern is being ripped off by breeders because of what we would like (merle or red/white). How do you know that the breeder is of a decent quality. We are only after a pet, not a show dog, maybe do a bit of agility for fun, but nothing major. Ive seen prices ranging from about 700-2000 (which I think is crazy for a pet!). From the breeders on here, what should I be looking for? Should different colours be costing a lot more than B/W, and should females be costing more than males, even though I have no interest in breeding and plan on desexing as soon as is ideal??????

Thanks in advance

[Dju]

Some breeders do list females as more expensive than males, but any breeder who raises or lowers a price because of different-colored puppies in a litter I would personally never buy from. Though, I don't think $700 is a crazy amount of money for a puppy, even if it is a pet. How much did your first puppy cost, and where did you get him from?

[Tay.]

Imo all puppies from the same litter should be sold at the same price, regardless of sex, colour etc.

Depending on the circumstances, $2000 seems a bit much. I think the average is about $800-$1000, anybody correct me

[Fynesse]

oh, don't get me wrong, I dont think 700 for a pure bred puppy is a crazy amount either, I think thats very reasonable, I was saying that I thought the 2000 was on the crazy side. The puppy we have was from a friend who had an accidental litter of puppies (not an ideal situation, but one less puppy that could have ended up at the pound) Obviously I would like our next puppy to be through the proper channels., though Im just unsure what should be a good price for what Im after. I think a lot of breeders see people like myself, who know very little about current prices, coming a mile away and up the price knowing that we don't know any better.

[Lemonlime]

Expect to pay $800-$1,000 depending on the state the breeder is in.

Run a mile from people charging more for "coloured" dogs or different sexes.

Make sure the breeder is DNA testing for CEA, CL and TNS. Yes all 3, not just 1 or 2!

Breeders should also be doing eye exams on their dogs and some breeders have started gonioscopy testing.

Hips and elbows should also be xrayed.

[dancinbcs]

Imo all puppies from the same litter should be sold at the same price, regardless of sex, colour etc.

Depending on the circumstances, $2000 seems a bit much. I think the average is about $800-$1000, anybody correct me

Most reputable show and performance breeders are currently charging $800 - $1000, regardless of sex or colour. That is for puppies from parents with three lots of DNA test results, hip and elbow scores. There are plenty of reds that show up in the litters from reputable breeders but as show quality merles are still very rare here, you could have quite a wait to get a merle from one of the couple of breeders that currently have merle in their yard. Most breeders actually prefer to stay away from merle because of all the associated possible problems like deafness and the fact that if you breed a merle into lines carrying red, then you never know which red puppies are true red or hidden merle.

[Fynesse]

Thats interresting dancinbcs. I obviously don't know a lot about genetics in BC's, just know that I like the look of the reds or merles! Is the deafness only a merle issue? I can understand breeders wanting to stay away from it. Im not completely set on colours, obviously temperament is vital as well, the puppy has to get along with other dogs, cats, rabbits, horses and people. If that means a B/W int eh end, then so be it. Thanks for the info guys

[dancinbcs]

Thats interresting dancinbcs. I obviously don't know a lot about genetics in BC's, just know that I like the look of the reds or merles! Is the deafness only a merle issue? I can understand breeders wanting to stay away from it. Im not completely set on colours, obviously temperament is vital as well, the puppy has to get along with other dogs, cats, rabbits, horses and people. If that means a B/W int eh end, then so be it. Thanks for the info guys

Excess white over the ears is sometimes linked to deafness but overall it is not a common problem in the breed. Merle to Merle matings are not allowed by the ANKC because the resulting puppies are often deaf or blind or have small eyes. If a dog is genetically red and merle at the same time, it will just appear red as the red masks the merle pattern, so it may then be bred to merle with resulting problems. Red and merle are actually both coat patterns and can occur with any pigment colour (nose, eye rims, etc). So the dog will have a pigment of black, choc, blue or lilac with the red or merle coat. Sadly many of the breeders, breeding just to profit from odd colours, have no understanding of genetics either and are doing red to merle matings.

[JulesP]

I always suggest a merle Aussie Shep to people that want a merle border. Red you should be able to get. You need to look for a breeder that has it pop up in a litter though rather than someone who is deliberately breeding for it. You might have a little bit of a wait.