How do I know a good breeder?

I know it is hard to choose with all the choices of breeders and puppies. There are many dishonest breeders and scammers and thankfully many good breeders. If a breeder is serious about improving the breed and not his wallet this is the kind of breeder you want. People that offer "click here to buy now" no questions asked are not good places to buy a puppy. They obviously do not care where the puppy goes so they sure will not care about you if you have problems with the pup now that they have your money. Look for breeders that have had a particular breed for many years. These breeders know the dogs and their bloodlines better than a novice breeder. Knowing particular bloodlines allows a breeder to breed in good characteristics and avoid health and temperament problems.

Do not fall for misleading gimmicks to get you to buy a puppy. One instance is a web site advertising "Genetic Bulldogs". No such thing. This is a big sales pitch to make you think you are getting a better healthier dog. They also claim their dogs are not line bred. Ask for a pedigree on their stud dogs. If a dog's name is in the pedigree more than once it is LINE BRED. His dogs are very line bred. Once again a gimmick or he can't read a pedigree. He also is NOT the breeder of champions like he claims. Ask to see an AKC champion certificate with him listed as breeder... you never will.

Miniature Bulldogs.

Again a mixed breed usually a Bulldog/Pug cross.  If you want a small Bulldog, consider a French Bulldog. They are purebred and are wonderful little dogs. Reputable breeders will have no problem with you speaking with their vet or people that have their dogs. This will tell you how healthy their dogs are. If price is a deciding factor for where you get a puppy you may want to consider another breed. You get what you pay for.

Imported English Bulldog Puppies

Stop and think... do not buy on impulse. Yes.. all pups are cute but, do you really want to support this kind of  money motivated business? The puppies and the new owners are the ones who suffer. The more the importers sell the more they bring over to resell. Do research before you buy a puppy from anyone. There are more importers on the net than ever before.

There are many wonderful and reputable breeders all over the world. Reputable breeders will NOT sell their pups through someone else no questions asked. If you are thinking of purchasing a Bulldog puppy from a breeder that imports English Bulldog puppies for resale here in the U.S. please reconsider. This is a business to importers to make money nothing else. A lot of these puppies are sick with viruses or other health problems. And you may have a very difficult time getting the pups papers. Most of these puppies are coming from Russian puppy mills or similar European countries puppy mills.

If you want a Bulldog from Europe or anywhere else in the world go to the BREEDER not through a broker (a Broker is a U.S. based website selling imported pups) or internet Pet store. 

SCAMS

You usually cannot buy a purebred Bulldog for under $1500.00. A lot of these scams will say shipping included. Well, shipping on a major airline is at least $230.00 it is more in the Summer time plus you have the shipping crate and health certificate cost. These people are usually in Nigeria or some similar place. Most of these ads are on Puppyfind  or similar breeder directories. The scammers steal breeders photos and use them as their own to scam people. You will send money and never receive a puppy. Since these people are usually out of the country you have NO recourse. Ask for at least 4 photos of any pup you are interested in.

What is the difference in different Bulldog breeds?

There are only 2 breeds of Bulldogs recognized by the American Kennel Club as purebred. These are the Bulldog (English Bulldog) and The French Bulldog. Other Bulldog breeds such as Olde English Bulldogge and American Bulldog or Miniature are not recognized as purebred by The AKC. These dogs are not the same as a Bulldog. Olde english Bulldogges are sometimes crossed with Pit Bull. These dogs get much larger than an English Bulldog and sometimes can be aggressive toward people and other dogs. English Bulldogs are very sweet tempered and love everyone.

Common Misconceptions.

Blue eyes in a Bulldog is not good nor is it rare. It is totally against the standard of the breed and some of these dogs are DEAF.  BLACK Bulldogs are not more valuable.   There is NO rare Bulldog color do not fall for this scam. There is no Miniature Bulldog recognized by AKC as purebred. They are a MIXED breed.  If you want a smaller Bulldog get a French Bulldog they are purebred.

Organizations Other Than AKC

The AKC is the largest and most respected purebred dog registry in the U.S.  Anyone buying a purebred Bulldog or French Bulldog puppy born in the U.S. should demand AKC registration.  A number of years ago, the AKC started inspecting large volume breeders to help ensure that their puppies were being raised with at least a minimum acceptable level of care and to help ensure that the breeders’ recordkeeping was adequate to have confidence that the applications for registration they were submitting were likely to be accurate.  Needless to say, many breeders did not meet the AKC’s standards.  A number of registries were then formed to provide registration papers to substandard breeders who were not willing to comply with the AKC’s standards.  They include American Pet Registry (APR or APRI), Continental Kennel Club (CKC, not to be confused with the Canadian Kennel Club which is the Canadian national dog registry), and others.
 
Dogs born in foreign countries should be registered with the national registry for that country.  (This can be confusing because, just as it happened in the U.S., registries have been formed in foreign countries, to provide registration documents to buyers who do not comply with the requirements of the national registry.)  The national registries of foreign countries other than Canada and Great Britain belong to Federation Cynologique Internationale (FCI).  According to FCI’s website, FCI “includes 84 members and contract partners (one member per country) that each issue their own pedigrees and train their own judges. The FCI makes sure that the pedigrees and judges are mutually recognized by all the FCI members.”  Puppy importers make a lot of misleading statements about FCI.  First of all, they claim their puppies are FCI-registered.  That is false.  The FCI does not operate a registry and does not issue registration papers.  The papers are issued by the national registries of the member countries and they vary widely in how well they police the accuracy of registration applications submitted to them.  In fact, from time to time some FCI member registries refuse to honor registrations from other FCI member registries because of concerns about high rates of fraud.  Some importers also misrepresent that the FCI regulates the quality of dogs that can be bred.  FCI does not do so, and neither to most of its member registries.  In fact the only such policing of which we are aware is done by some German breed clubs.  NONE of the registries in the countries from which Bulldogs and French Bulldogs are being imported for resale regulates the quality of dogs that may be bred.  To make the situation more confusing, some unscrupulous breeders have formed another organization with a name confusingly similar to FCI’s.  FCI states the following with regard to that organization:  “The Federation Cynologique Internationale (FCI) informs all its members and contract partners that it holds no official relations with the Federacion Canina Internacional (www.webfci.org) and its members and that it does not recognise this Federacion.”
 
Many importers have been furnishing fraudulent foreign registration papers with puppies they sell.  The rate of fraud is so high that when application is made for AKC registration based on registrations of countries from which Bulldog and French Bulldog puppies are being imported for resale, the AKC routinely forwards copies of the registration documents back to the country of origin to determine whether or not they are genuine.  AKC rules require that application for registration of a foreign dog be made in the name of the person who imported the dog and that application then be made for transfer of ownership.  Any importer who provides a buyer with foreign registration papers in the buyer’s name and tells the buyer to apply for AKC registration in the buyer’s name is instructing the buyer to commit a fraud on the AKC.

Most Importantly, Do Your Research.

Bringing home a healthy, well adjusted, puppy will pay dividends for many years.