How to Find a Good Dog Breeder (and Spot a Puppy Farm)

Updated 15 October 2026

You have chosen a breed. Now you have to find an actual puppy, and this is the step where the whole thing can quietly go wrong. It is also the step where a first-time buyer has the most leverage. Almost everything you need to know is visible on a single visit, if you know what you are looking at.

A puppy farm breeds dogs at volume, with the puppies' welfare coming second to the number sold. The animals are usually kept out of sight, sold through a middleman or met somewhere convenient, and moved on before any problems surface.

The clearest single ‘tell’ is choice. A puppy farm will have a lot of puppies available, often across several different breeds. A small breeder has one litter of one breed, and often a waiting list. That difference is the most reliable thing separating the two.

Volume on its own is not proof of anything. A large kennel can be run properly, and some are. It simply gets harder to look after puppies well as the numbers climb, so the standard you apply should go up rather than down.

A well-run place is easy to spot. The kennel is clean, there is no smell, and the dogs look healthy and happy. They come forward to be petted rather than hiding in corners. Those small signals are the ones worth trusting.

The best breeders tend to be small-scale. They know their stock and they have few litters. They know and can tell you about each dog you meet as an individual.

They have done the health testing, and they can show you. A responsible breeder holds certification for the parents, covering the problems their breed is known for. Most will also have taken the litter to their own vet for a certificate of good health. Ask for both. Nothing concerning dogs can be guaranteed, but certification makes problems much less likely.

Kennel Club registration is worth what it costs. The Kennel Club will not register a dog if the required tests have not been done, so registration is a check that this has already happened. It makes the puppy more expensive, and that is exactly what you are paying for, so it is worth it.

They will take the dog back. A good breeder treats a litter as a responsibility for the whole of each dog's life. They will take a dog back at any point if the home stops working, then rehome it through their own contacts. Do not expect your money back. Do expect them to take the dog.

They are licensed if they need to be. In England a breeder needs a council licence if they breed three or more litters in any twelve-month period and sell any of the puppies. A licence is also needed to run a business breeding and advertising dogs. But licensing in itself is not a guarantee. Many of the best breeders are small scale and do not need a licence.

Do your research. The Kennel Club website lists every recognised breed alongside the health tests a good breeder should have carried out. Each one links to more detail on the condition. Some breeds have nothing listed at all, and those are the healthiest.

Your research should provide you with the questions you should ask. Rather than asking whether the puppy is healthy, you can name the condition the breed is prone to. Then ask what the parents were tested for.

The questions that matter most:

• Can I see the puppy with its mother, where they were born?

• Have you got all the paperwork, and is the puppy Kennel Club registered?

• What health tests have both parents had, and can I see the certificates?

• Can I see the puppy's certificate of good health from your vet?

• Do you take a dog back if the home stops working?

• How many litters do you breed in a year?

Ask them out loud, and listen to how they are answered. A breeder who is proud of their dogs will enjoy these questions. Anyone who becomes vague, or starts explaining why the usual checks are not possible this time, has given you an answer, and it is not a satisfactory one.

Seeing the puppy with its mother, in the place it was born, is the single most useful thing you will do. You should be able to stroke the mother and see her behaving normally with her litter.

It helps if the breeder has two or three other adult dogs around. It is the easiest way to see what your puppy will actually grow into. Colour in particular can change a great deal, and a sandy puppy can come back a glorious chestnut red a few months later.

Choose the puppy that comes forward. You want the lively, responsive one that approaches you. The puppy hiding at the back is the one that appeals hardest to the heart, and that is exactly why it catches people out.

Most of the signs are practical rather than dramatic, and they cluster around access, paperwork and age.

On access. A breeder should be willing to have you at their kennel, where the dogs live. If they are a long way away, send a friend who lives locally to look. Meeting at a service station, a car park or a third address is not a convenience, it is a red flag.

On paperwork. Every certificate should exist before you hand over money. "It has not come through yet" is a reason to walk away. All those checks cost the breeder cash, which is part of why a properly bred puppy costs more.

On the mother. If she is not there, and there is an explanation, treat the explanation as a red flag. "We have sold her" is the most common one.

On age, where the maths does the work for you. A puppy imported into Great Britain legally cannot be younger than fifteen weeks. Rabies vaccination cannot be given before twelve weeks, and there is a twenty-one day wait afterwards. If a puppy is described as imported and is younger than that, the paperwork does not add up.

On price. A low price is not automatically suspicious. The one ordinary reason for a discount is an older puppy the breeder has not placed yet. Even then, expect the discount to be modest, because a Labrador is still a Labrador puppy until around six months.

On adverts. Treat every advert as an advert. A likeable, trustworthy-sounding seller is not evidence of anything, because being likeable is a skill. Trust what you see with your own eyes at the kennel instead.

Lucy's Law came into force in England on 6 April 2020. It bans the commercial third-party sale of puppies and kittens under six months old. In practice that means you buy direct from the breeder who bred the litter, or you adopt from a rescue centre. A pet shop or a dealer cannot legally sell you a puppy.

Licensed breeders must show puppies with their mothers, in their place of birth. The thing most people think of as good practice is written into the law.

Puppies should never be sold under eight weeks old. Selling commercially without a licence carries an unlimited fine or up to six months in prison.

The honest limitation is enforcement. Nobody is going from kennel to kennel checking that puppies are being shown with their mothers. Plenty of sales still happen without those checks, particularly when a birthday or Christmas is driving the timing. The law gives you a clear standard to hold a seller to. Whether it protects you depends on you insisting on the proper procedure and checks.

What is a puppy farm? A breeding operation that produces puppies at volume, with welfare secondary to sales. The clearest sign is a lot of puppies available at once, often several different breeds, with the mothers kept out of sight.

What questions should I ask a dog breeder? Ask to see the puppy with its mother where they were born, and ask for the health certificates for both parents. Ask whether the puppy is Kennel Club registered, and whether they take dogs back. Look the breed's known conditions up first so you can ask about them by name.

Is it illegal to sell a puppy without its mother present? In England, licensed breeders must show puppies with their mothers in their place of birth, and third-party sales of puppies under six months are banned under Lucy's Law. Puppies should never be sold under eight weeks old.

Can I trust an online advert for a puppy? Treat it as an advert. Plenty of good breeders advertise online, including through the Kennel Club. The advert is not the evidence, but the visit is. Ask whether you can see the puppy with its mother, and take the answer as your first real piece of information.

Is a cheap puppy always a bad sign? No. The ordinary reason for a lower price is a puppy the breeder has not placed yet and who is getting older. Expect the discount to be small, and expect all the same paperwork.

How do I know if a puppy has been imported illegally? Check the age against the rules. A legally imported puppy is at least fifteen weeks old. Rabies vaccination cannot happen before twelve weeks, and there is a twenty-one day wait after it.

Finding the right breeder is the middle step. The breed decision comes before it, and the preparation comes straight after.

Read our guide to the best dog breeds for first-time owners, work through the new puppy checklist, or see how to look after a puppy in its first year. There is more in our New pet & life changes guides.

Sources: Lucy's Law is The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2019, in force from 6 April 2020.