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Originally Posted by bjh  Mary, you are right that there are show breeders that do take advantage of newbies but I know many are honest in telling them that there are risks and no guarantee. Many people are willing to take the risk. If anyone is serious about getting into showing then they would be better off attending several shows, getting to know different breeders and do lots of research. Some show breeders have very strict contracts and some are not as strict. I think it is much better to buy a show puppy that is at least 6 months old so you have a much better idea of what you are getting but if you are not knowledgeable about yorkies you could still be sold a unfinishable dog or one that could only be finished with a professional handler. There is a lot of hard work and money that goes into finishing a yorkie, no matter how good it is. |
Reputable breeder/exhibitors will only sell show dogs not potential show dogs. It's not as easy as just attending shows. It takes a lot of effort on the part of the newbie in the beginning. I agree reputable breeder/exhibitors will not sell to just anyone. A newbie has to prove themselves, show their heart is in the right place, that they're in it to improve the breed not just to make a fast buck and go into the selling game. Turn around and call themselves show breeders to sell their dogs on somebody else's blood, sweat and tears. Those are the type of breeders that take advantage of newbies. But, as I said before if you're reputable, you don't operate that way.
I understand that newbies begin without doing their homework, they're in a hurry, want everything now.....So, they turn to the first person that will sell them a dog on open registration. Telling the newbie it's a show dog. I know that when newbies come to me for advice, I don't mince any words, I lay it on the line on how hard the road is. Some either believe me, others turn around and look for that person that has maybe obtained good pedigreed dogs via the backdoor, or maybe Championed one dog and sell a dog to them on open.
I know how tuff contracts can be, I have 2 extremely tuff ones; one for show and another for pet.
I will tell any newbie, the same thing that was told to me when I first started. Don't show, don't breed until your mentor says your ready. If by some chance you happen to get a good dog to show, send it to a handler. Because as a newbie you can ruin that dog.
I have a very good friend that was taken to the cleaners. She went to someone that said they were a show breeder. This person readily sold her 3 show dogs. None of them were show quality, the breeder wouldn't take them back. A well known reputable exhibitor/breeder (who has become her mentor) came into her home, without knowing where the dogs came from told her to rehome all of them. So, to the tune of $14,000 she took a big loss. Petted the dogs out and had to start over again.
I can offer this advice, because I've been there, it was tough. But, I will say it's tougher to enter the show world if you don't take the right steps. Reputable breeder/exhibitors will find it harder to trust you and you'll have a very difficult time getting a good dog. Especially if you've gone the backdoor to get a pedigreed dog.
Yes, it's expensive to finish a dog, more difficult and expensive if you don't know what you're doing. You could drag the dog around for a couple of years and maybe get 2 points on it. Even if you obtain a handler, you'd better know what you're looking for, which are the best and can finish them the fastest. And what if that dog isn't a good dog, a good handler can finish a dead cat. So, I'll say again, you'd better do your homework up front and know what you're doing. Or you'll turn around and breed that dog because you Championed it.