I started with the breed club
Circled my part of the country and which states I'd be ok with shipping from. (It would be tough to get a dog from Cali all the way to Florida for example)
and then went down the list.
Look at the list of things needed for a breeder to be part of the club, some are stricter than others and being on the list doesn't always mean the breeder is "good".
For example, some clubs say you can only have x litters per year, you must health test against this, etc.. which is great IMO
Then I went down the list from my state to others alphabetically and wrote down the sites I liked (just general obvious liked, they health test, dogs are my type physically etc..)
Then I went to the specific breed forum and did some digging and found the breeders people there tend to recommend/talk about. very helpful.
I always told myself NUMBER ONE. DO NOT look at the puppy page first. that is a TRAP!
Start with the sires/dams pages.
1. Look for the health testing you want
2. Look at the breeder bio, does it seem like they are breeding for the kind of dog you want? Does the breeder seem nice?
3. Look at the parents, are they nice dogs? did the breeder take time to describe temperament? variety of pictures? health testing?
4. Are the parents proven in some way? (show, agility, sport, working, therapy dog work)
Then of course, sniff around the rest of the website. Check out the puppies they have on the ground, the applications, things they require, pictures of passed puppies/dogs bred by them.
For example, breeders were taken off my LONG list for...
1. requiring fenced backyards. 2. breeding too many litters .3. raising dogs in kennels outside 4. outrageous prices 5. not shipping 6. cold, empty websites (no pictures of dogs at home having fun, no testimonials from owners, etc...)
Then use the magic of the INTERNET!!
GOOGLE " *name of breeder* *breed* forum*
chances are, you will find discussions or hate/praise for that breeder.
Google the breeders kennel name, google their name.. Do whatever you have to do lol
By then, I had my SHORT LIST.
and then with that, I started to compare them to each other and start emailing.
..Introduce yourself, ask questions, submit an application.
Is the breeder willing to talk with and work with you knowing you don't want a puppy RIGHT NOW?
Are they kind? helpful? open? knowledgeable?
And that was the REAL test for me. I would never go to a breeder that treated it like a sale, was rude, took forever to respond (or didn't respond), or wasn't nice.
I think the breeder/owner relationship is more than just a sale, so I tried to find somebody who was personable, kind, honest and that I got along with generally.
And with that, I found my breeder.
She was on my short list, but not one of the top contenders so I thought.
But we got to emailing, spoke on the phone and things just..fit! She was happy to talk about her dogs, ask me plenty of questions, etc..
finding a breeder who kept in touch with owners after the puppies leave was very important to me. So it was really her personal nature that pushed her to the top.
The facebook page for puppy updates/questions, her email/cell phone always quick to respond, and just, being a nice person!