Massachusetts Puppies For Sale From Vetted Breeders In MA (2024)

FAQs

How do you know if a breeder runs a puppy mill? ›

The breeder seems to always have puppies available. There is no puppy contract or minimal paperwork required to purchase the puppy. They offer puppies at ages younger than 8 weeks old. There are no records or veterinary exams, and the vaccines are not given by a veterinarian.

Most reliable breeders earn their reputation by providing healthy pups to good homes resulting in “word of mouth” references. Meet breeders at local dog shows or look online for local breed clubs and review the AKC Breeder Referral page on their website www.akc.org.

The easiest and most convenient way to find a breeder and the right dog for you is through www.akc.org. The AKC web site offers potential puppy buyers access to a wealth of information on buying a dog, selecting a breeder, and dog care.

Puppy mill brokers often pose as individuals with a puppy to sell. You'll see this tactic frequently online and in your local newspaper. No excuses for not visiting. Professional dog breeders want you to see their facilities, their litter and the breeding parents, and will never deny your request to visit.

After all, it can take months or years to find the perfect puppy, especially rare or designer breeds, which often come with lengthy waiting lists. To make things easier, many dog breeders will sell puppies online and have them shipped to their new pet parents.

Because puppies from puppy mills are more likely to have health problems due to poor care, many consumers are faced with significant veterinary bills or even the death of their puppy soon after purchase.

Verify their registration with the club. Ask and Be Asked — If you are doing business with someone who doesn't ask you any questions, you could be dealing with someone that has a puppy mill. A true breeder wants their puppies in good homes. You will have to tell the breeder some things about yourself and your home.

Ask you several questions about yourself, your lifestyle, and your family situation. The breeder may ask to meet your entire family. Good breeders want to make sure their animals are placed in loving, responsible homes. They will go to great lengths to ensure this.

The AKC Marketplace is one of the best places to start your search for a puppy, as long as you are vigilant about the above warning signs. AKC Marketplace conducts thousands of kennel inspections a year and is the only online resource to exclusively list 100% puppies from AKC-registerable litters.

Get a referral

Remember, a responsible breeder will never sell her dogs through a pet store or in any other way that does not allow her to meet with and thoroughly interview you to ensure that the puppy is a good match for your family and that you will provide a responsible, lifelong home.

How to spot a puppy mill? ›

Dogs in puppy mills are kept in inhumane conditions, often caged for their entire lives, and bred repeatedly without regard for proper care or careful breeding. “Puppy mill” conditions can include: Small cages with wire floors that hurt dog paws and legs. Cages stacked on top of one another without ample ventilation.

Look for these red flags:

The seller has many types of purebreds or “designer” hybrid breeds being sold at less than six weeks old. Breeders who are reluctant to show potential customers the entire premises on which animals are being bred and kept. Breeders who don't ask a lot of questions of potential buyers.

Ethical dog breeders almost never have excess puppies. If they ever do, they keep them until they can find them homes. Backyard breeders and puppy-mill operators may hang on to them, turn them over to a rescue or shelter, or give them away.

How Much is a Puppy? When purchasing a purebred dog, you can expect to pay $500 to $3,000 depending on the type of breed and the location of the breeder. For example, the cost of a French Bulldog puppy can be two to three times more expensive than a Beagle puppy.

Puppy-mill breeders force dogs to reproduce repeatedly until their bodies wear out from the strain of being continually pregnant in such impoverished, harsh conditions. At that point, female dogs are worthless to a breeder and are often dumped at an animal shelter, auctioned off, or cruelly killed.

1. Oklahoma. Oklahoma dog owners spend less than half the national average to acquire a dog. In Oklahoma, the average cost of acquiring a dog is $219 lower than the nationwide average of $391.

Dig up any information you can about the seller before agreeing to the purchase. Ask for their full name, phone number and street address. Do a quick online search to see what the internet is saying about them. If you can't find anything, the name and address are likely bogus.

What happens to the pups that don't get sold? Mostly, they end up in shelters, one way or another. Ethical breeders will have a queued list of owners before even considering breeding their dog, so they'll never have a situation where a puppy isn't possible to rehome.

Puppy mill dogs are likely to exhibit compulsive and repetitive behaviors such as spinning in circles, pacing or staring blankly into space. Puppy mill dogs typically show less aggression than most other dogs. They are typically less excitable and energetic than other dogs.

Puppy mills are places where purebred or “designer” dogs are bred solely for the money they can bring in, with no regard for the dogs' welfare. The puppies are housed in overcrowded, unsanitary cages. Puppies are taken away from their mothers too early and are not socialized with either dogs or humans.

What are the evidence of puppy mills? ›

Look for these red flags: The seller has many types of purebreds or “designer” hybrid breeds being sold at less than six weeks old. Breeders who are reluctant to show potential customers the entire premises on which animals are being bred and kept. Breeders who don't ask a lot of questions of potential buyers.

To date, 36 jurisdictions in California – including the cities of Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Diego and San Francisco – have enacted similar ordinances, and the signing of AB 485 makes California the first state in the nation to enact a statewide prohibition on pet store sales of dogs from puppy mills.