• Breeder does not screen for diseases and offers no health guarantee. (What should Danes or Corgis be screened for for?)
• Kennel is dirty and untidy. (What should you expect?)
• Several litters are born each year. (Several is defined here as some one that ALWAYS has a puppy available)
• Breeder has no written health records of the litter. (required by the AKC)
• Puppies or kittens are taken from the mother before 6 weeks of age. (against both Great Dane and Pem. Corgi National breed club guide lines.)

• How long have you been breeding?
• What sort of disease screening do you do?
• Do you plan on improving this breed? How?
• What breed clubs do you belong to?
• What kind of contract or guarantee do you offer?
• Can I return my pet if he develops a genetic disease?
• How do you socialize the animals?
• May I contact others who bought from you?
• What kind of papers do you have on the dog I want? (what does this mean?)
• Has a veterinarian seen the litter? 
• Have the Puppies received any vaccinations?
• What are you doing to ensure your puppies do not end up in a shelter or rescue?
  

• Do you live in a house or apartment? (Some dogs are too active for small spaces.) If you have a house, does it have a fenced yard?
• Do you rent or own? (Some landlords do not allow pets.)
• Do you have children or other pets? How might they get along with a new dog?
• Do you know how much it costs to raise a puppy or kitten?
• Is this your first dog or cat? (If so, it doesn't mean you shouldn't get one! Some breeds, especially dog breeds, are just not suitable for first time owners.)
• Be prepared to leave a couple of references.
• Be prepared to fill out an application.
  

• buy a pet from a pet store
• through the news paper ads
•  at a flea market
•  OR in a grocery store parking lot. 

• DO adopt your next pet from your local shelter or breed rescue group
• Or if you decide to purchace from a breeder, make sure they are reputable.
• All reputable breeders provide detailed genealogical information dating
  back several generations, HEALTH INFORMATION AND TESTING
• will have the mother available for you to meet
  (who will appear clean, well cared for and happy)
•  should always provide health guarantee and may require that you spay or neuter your pet as
  a part of the purchase agreement.

• DO educate others. Tell your family, friends and neighbors about the plight
  of dogs bred indiscriminately and encourage them to buy from shelters
  and rescue groups and reputable breeders.
• DON'T FALL FOR THE NATIONAL RHETORIC! 
  
• ASK THE BREEDER HOW THEY ARE HELPING KEEP THEIR DOGS OUT OF RESCUE!
  
• DO spay and neuter your own pets and encourage others to do so.

• There is a high demand for purebred dogs, even though registration
  papers often obtained from disreputable breeders cannot be
  guaranteed by the American Kennel Club (AKC). Nationwide, however,
  statistics show that up to 25% of all dogs in shelters are indeed
  purebreds the result of negligent breeding and unwanted litters.
  
• The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is in charge of
  enforcing the federal Animal Welfare Act, which regulates commercial
  retail pet dealers who sell through brokers to pet stores. However,
  breeders who sell directly to the public are excluded from this regulation
  because their animal are sold to private individuals, not to brokers or
  into commerce and are not transported out of state for sale. This
  places hundreds of thousands of dogs in jeopardy every year.
  
•  IN most states there are no “lemon laws” that protect consumers who purchase a
  sick dog. Reputable breeders will always provide a guarantee, while
  animals acquired through puppy mill sources rarely take the dog back
  or provide a refund.
  
• There aren't enough USDA inspectors and law enforcement officials to
  enforce cruelty laws.
  
• Fines are often minor, at best, making it easy for people to stay in
  business.

Section 42.09 of the Texas Penal Code prohibits the intentional cruel
treatment of animals. Under current Texas Law, cruel treatment of
animals is forbidden. The following actions define cruel punishment:

1. Torturing an animal
2. Failing to provide food, care or shelter
3. Abandoning an animal
4. Transporting or confining an animal in a cruel manner
5. Killing, seriously injuring or poisoning an animal
6. Causing an animal to fight with another
7. Using a live animal as a lure in a dog race
8. Tripping a horse
9. Injuring an animal belonging to another person
10. Seriously overworking an animal.

House Bill 653 and Senate Bill 1724, commonly known as “Loco’s Law,”
went into effect September 1, 2001, making animal cruelty a felony and
punishable by a $10,000 fine and up to two years in jail. The law was
named for a puppy called Loco, whose eyes were intentionally gouged
out. Prior to Loco’s Law, animal cruelty was not considered a felony
under Texas law. Today, animal cruelty convictions are classified as
either a felony or misdemeanor.

Two types of laws protect animals from cruelty: Criminal laws and
civil laws. The laws are similar but differ in the penalties they
impose.

If prosecuted in a criminal case, a person may face penalties
including fines, jail or both. Those under the age of 18 are also
required to undergo counseling if convicted of animal cruelty. In
a civil case, a person convicted of animal cruelty may have to
pay damages to the animals owner and/or have their animals
taken away.

Compared to other states, Texas’ animal cruelty statutes are very
narrow in scope because they exclude certain types of animals—including
circus animals, wild animals and animals used in experiments—from
protection from animal cruelty laws.

Section 42.10 of the Texas Penal Code prohibits dog fighting, and also
deems offensive such activities as attending a dog fight as a spectator,
or participating in the earnings or operation of a dog fighting facility.

•   MANY OF THE SO CALLED "CLUBS" BELOW APPEAR TO BE NOTHING BUT FRONTS FOR UNETHICAL BREEDERS, FIGHTING DOG BREEDS, AND PET STORES TRYING TO LOOK LIKE LEGITIMATE BREEDERS.
•  NOTICE THAT MOST BREEDER LINKS DO NOT EVER SHOW PEDIGREE INFORMATION.  
• THEY DO NOT SHOW OFA INFORMATION OR OTHER HEALTH INFORMATION.  
• LOOK AT THEIR PAGES AND NOTICE THAT THEY MOSTLY ONLY CONTAIN PUPPIES AND NEVER ADULT PHOTO'S. 
• SOME OF THE CLUBS LISTED APPEAR TO BE LEGITIMATE, THOUGH ARE OFTEN CROSS REFERENCED THROUGH  SUSPICIOUS SIGHTS.
•  SOME OF THE SIGHTS CLAIM TO BE THE "FASTEST WAY TO SELL YOUR PUPPY" OTHERS ADVERTISE "LOST YOUR PAPERS? WE CAN HELP YOU!"