9 Important Questions to Ask Your Bulldog Breeder

9 Important Questions to Ask Your Bulldog Breeder

Bulldog breeder in Seattle

If you’re looking to add a bulldog puppy to the family, it’s important you choose a breeder who is honest and reputable. This will help ensure that whichever bulldog puppy you go home with, he or she will be healthy and well tempered. Because even the most virtuous and well-intentioned bulldog breeders might not have the right amount of breeding experience and bulldog knowledge to be able to guarantee your bulldog meets AKC quality and health standards, which is particularly important if you are looking for a show-quality dog.

Here are nine questions to ask your bulldog breeder before you make your decision:

1. How long have you been breeding bulldogs?

While an experienced breeder is usually better, a lack of breeding experience doesn’t necessarily mean you should rule them out. However, a first-time or inexperienced breeder should have done their research and be extremely educated on all aspects of breeding, raising and showing bulldogs. If they’re new to breeding, ask them where they got their information and if they consulted with other breeders beforehand.

2. Is breeding a full-time business?

Unless your breeder owns several bulldogs, breeding shouldn’t be a full-time business. If it is, this could be a sign they’re over-breeding their dogs. For most breeders, the business is merely a hobby or at most, a part time job.

3. How old are the puppies?

It’s important that puppies remain with their mom and brothers and sisters for at least seven weeks. If the breeder is selling them at five or six weeks age or younger, go with another breeder.

4. Do you think a bulldog is the right breed for me?

A bulldog isn’t for everyone and an honest breeder won’t hesitate to tell if you they think you’d be better suited with another breed. A good breeder will care about his or her puppies and will want to make sure each of them go to a loving home. They’ll be honest about some of the pitfalls about owning a bulldog (for example, their shorter life span and plethora of health problems) because their puppies’ happiness is more important than making a sale.

5. Can I meet the puppy’s parents?

You should at least be able to meet the mom. This is a good idea because you’ll want to make sure she is friendly and confident; this is a sign she’s been well cared for and has a good temperament; which your puppy will hopefully have inherited. You want to try to avoid choosing a puppy whose mom acts overly shy or aggressive.

6. Where are the puppies kept?

bulldog drinking

A good breeder will make sure puppies have access to clean drinking water at all times.

 

Where we keep our bulldog puppies

A reputable breeder will house puppies in a pen that’s clean and spacious.

Bulldog puppy pen

If puppies are kept outside, they should be in a shaded area with access to water. If it’s hot or excessively humid out, however, puppies should be kept indoors.

You want to make sure the puppies are kept in a clean kennel area that allows for access to food, water, toys, and a comfortable sleeping and play area. If the breeder won’t show you where the puppies were raised or will only bring out the puppies one at a time, this a sign the puppies may  not have been well cared for.

7. Do you have the pedigree and registration forms?

This is particularly important if you’re looking to show your bulldog. Even if you aren’t, however, if you’re paying for a purebred dog, you want to verify that the puppy is indeed purebred before taking it home. A pedigree will be able to confirm this.

8. Can I see the puppy’s health record?

A health record will show you important information about the puppy’s health status as well as a record of what vaccinations he or she has received and when he or she was wormed.

9. Can I return the puppy if I change my mind?

While you should hope that this isn’t the case, you may decide that a bulldog just isn’t the best breed for you or that a puppy is more work than you can manage at this point in your life. If this is the case, you want to be able to return the bulldog to the breeder. A good breeder will care about their puppies enough to want to see them go to the best homes possible and will be willing to take back their dog at any time if its deemed that you and the puppy aren’t a good fit.


About Cascade Bulldogs

Cascade Bulldogs is a bulldog blog featuring celebrity bulldogs Snow White and Wildflower. Their owners are Eddie and Gail, two breeders and bulldog lovers who live in Seattle, Washington.

Share this post
Why pets are important