[sylvan]

"Up to 10 million healthy animals are killed in U.S. pounds and shelters every year. The killing could easily be prevented by spaying and neutering.
Euthanasia is the single largest cause of death for dogs in the U.S. Each year 27 million of the animals are born. Five to ten million we classify as "surplus" and kill. That's about one million per month. These numbers do not include the millions of dead dogs whose bodies we scrape off the streets, or the hundreds of thousands of abandoned, severely neglected or abused ones who never make it to our shelters to be counted and killed. The five to ten million figure represents those we "must" kill because they are unwanted.
Most of these animals are young and healthy; in fact, it is estimated that a majority are less than one year of age. The problem is simple: we have too many dogs. Too many for the too few homes available. The solution we have opted for is to kill the extras. This solution has been considered acceptable by default, as though there were no other way to control the crisis. And we spend over $1 billion every year destroying "man's best friend."
Why is this happening in the United States today? The number one biggest contributor to the problem is the backyard breeder not the puppy mills.
This is a name that has become unpopular and no one wants to admit they are a backyard breeder. Many people do not even realize they are part of the problem. This is what I need to address in this post. The only way to stop the needless killing of dogs is to stop the needless breeding of them.
Every breed of dog recognized by the AKC has a written standard, a blueprint of what the dog should look like and act like. These standards were written so that all would know what a quality example of the breed is and strive to produce dogs that meet or exceed the standard in health, temperament and appearance. To be sure you are breeding dogs that meet these standards, your dogs must be judged by people who have a lifetime of experience among the breed."

To address some of the questions you posed
Questioning intentions is the first step anyone should make of themselves before beginning to breed...There are many things most people don't even consider and those of us with experience doing this feel an obligation to educate if we can. I am more than willing to help anyone interested in doing this WELL, since there is a dearth of reputable breeders out there and unfortunately a plethora of irresponsible, uninformed bybs with questionable motivation at best.
There is a very large difference between breeding your pet and treating your breeding dogs AS pets. A great deal of time, research and money is invested in the dogs used by a responsible breeder in a breeding program to attempt to eliminate the problems that are inherent in the breed and to try to produce a good example of the standard for the love of the breed itself.
Yes, we love them and they are our pets and that is what produces a well socialized dog. It is a question of the total package, not just getting one part of this equation correct.

"I've also seen on these breeder websites that retired breed dogs are up for adoption.....if they were such a part of their family, when their sole purpose in this "family" is served, why get rid of them? So much for the love of your "family". I guess once the dollar is done being earned-they are outta there!"

This comment is a common observation made by those who don't understand what kind of commitment is involved in doing this well. The costs involved far outweigh the income....so the question of them being 'outta there' when done earning is ridiculous. If a breeder kept all of their breeding dogs as pets perpetually, they could never improve the quality of what they were producing. Placing retirees as pets is done out of love, true love, which looks to the welfare of the dog first and our own emotional ties second.

I am not going to address the question of mixed breeds other than to say, there are plenty of those in rescue all the time, why would anyone deliberately add to that problem?