annie 
We had just rehomed a 2yr old mixed breed dog (Flatcoat Retriever x Golden Retriever x Collie) called Raven 6 weeks before Button our Bernese sadly died, we had wanted her as a companion for Button so poor Raven having started to adjust to her new home suddenly lost her “big sister” who she had got on so well with.
Raven has a beautiful soul and is full of life, a dog who loves to play and wants to be loved. Whilst dealing with the loss of Button ourselves we also felt sad that Raven had lost her new playmate. As the vet said she was sent to us for a purpose and she helped us through the loss. Six months on I think she was the driving force to start looking into having another dog and this is the story of how it played out.
At some point we started discussing what type of dog we wanted:
Definitely down sizing from a Bernese we said ( as we’re getting on!)
- Female
- Match for Raven in energy and size
- Medium/large size
- Medium hair
- Medium Energy – active but good “off switch”
- Cuddle loving
- Able to live with cats and other animals
- Moderate length skull & snout – Mesocephalic or possibly long snout & narrow skull Dolichocephalic
What type of dog we didn’t want:
- Small
- Very long hair
- Male
- Any with extreme conformation or short nose, flat face – Brachycephalic
We started with rescue centres. We were wary because we had experience of a truly “messed up” collie we had once rescued and we also knew Raven was probably a one in a million. Having searched high and low on rescue sites there were many problems we found such as:
- Majority of dogs were males,
- Most dogs couldn’t be homed with cats or other dogs,
- Many were flat faced dogs dogs
- Many were small
- Collies had their own rescue centres and needed more time than we could dedicate
- A lot were imported from overseas which we personally didn’t agree with, feeling it better to work with the animals in situ rather than subject the dogs to the stress of travel
We looked on Gumtree (where we had found Raven for rehoming), Pets 4 homes etc but there wasn’t any suitable dog without “issues” with cats, other dogs, children or needing more time and experience than we could give.
So! We decided we would look for a puppy. First thing – what breed?? We decided on a working retriever because we thought if the breeder was working the dogs either in competitions or in the field their dogs must be sound and they wouldn’t be breeding with an animal that indicates through its health tests that it might not be able to work.
We Checked out (the Royal Kennel Club Website (RKC) and Breed Website) to see what health tests were advised : Hips, Elbows various Eyes, Ichthyosis (ICT).
We looked at the gundog magazine and online gundog sales, We looked at the kennel club website and contacted the breed club and found some breeders within the South West.
I phoned one 5 star licensed breeder who had some puppies for sale which were 4 months old. On asking why they were so old she said puppies hadn’t really been selling since Covid so she had quite a few left from other litters as well, older than these puppies. I asked if they had been habituated and socialised at all and she said they lived in the kennels – RED FLAG – these puppies had missed out on really important life stages of habituation and socialisation and could very well be nervous and very difficult to train. So that one was a no.
I then looked at another licensed breeder and saw that the sire she had used had over 120 litters. To my mind this was equivalent to popular sire syndrome whereby a sire is used so much within a breed there is a decrease in genetic diversity within the breed. Potentially this can increase the chances of inherited health problems – RED FLAG – the inherited diseases can be painful and debilitating for offspring.
I then put a question up looking for a breeder on Working Golden Retriever facebook page, this was most informative 6 popped up with recommendations from people who had puppies from them. I phoned 4, 2 I just had a “feeling” about and didn’t pursue them.
Another was maybe going to have a litter towards the end of 2025 so I kept her information to hand
Then I contacted the lovely lady who bred Ruby I asked her loads of questions and she gave me lots of information about her bitch and the sire she was going to use. The pups would be reared in the family home and interact as and when with her other dogs, children and other adults, She had a few dogs and had had a litter last year. She talked about what the Dam was like in the house how they all had really good “off switches” were excellent pet dogs as well as working dogs. She had met some of the progeny of the sire she was going to use and said they were loveable, loyal and really want to work for their owners and that they were all round nice genuine dogs. She said the sire adored his owner and dotes on him. She sent me photos of both dogs.
I obtained the pedigree names and looked them up on the RKC website and went back into the pedigree history of each one looking at health test results ( some of the hip scores were letters so I asked her what they meant and she gave me the breakdown:
A – (0-6)
B – (7-16)
C – (17-36)
D – (37-60)
E – (>60)
I had looked up the breed average for hips( 16) to ensure they were below it and would only be interested in 0/0 elbows.
Dam Elbow 0/0 Hips 5/6 PLA 0
Sire Elbow 0/0 Hips 1/1 PLA 0
They had both had the other eye and ICT tests which were all clear.
I looked at the kennel names and looked up what they had been doing in competitions etc and it seemed 
that they were serious working dog people prioritising health and temperament. Whilst producing fit healthy dogs suitable for both working and pet life. In short just what we were looking for. This was back in Feb 2025.
In March 2025 the breeder contacted me to say her dog was in pup and would be due 1st May going to their new homes 26th June!
We were having building work done so we had to make sure it was all going to be done by beginning of June ( which is was – thank you builders!) so there would be no disturbance as she settled in.!
We asked if we could meet her and the dogs sometime and settled on middle of April as long as the Dam was OK with that. So up we went to Cheshire and met a lovely lady very knowledgeable, kind and caring with beautifully cared for dogs who adored her. Their home was a clean and tidy place and she showed us where the pups would be born. This was away from the busyness of the house until they were ready to interact with access to the outside as they grew. The Dam was friendly and enjoyed cuddles as did the other dogs!
It didn’t take us long to confirm we would very much like one of her puppies. We had only gone about 10 miles down the road! A ten hour round trip which was very much worth it.
On 1st May I got a text saying the pups had arrive that morning and mum was amazing.
We had lots of photos as they grew and went up again to meet the pups beginning of June when they were 5 weeks, we were lucky enough to choose which one we would like but it was too hard!!! With some prompting and discussion we decided on Miss Yellow – she has a calm energy about her ( she has proved to be a sloth in disguise!). She was also the biggest of the three girls! – we were supposed to be downsizing! I don’t think she’ll be anything like as big as a Bernese though so we have downsized but perhaps not as much as we had intended!!!
On 26th June 2025 …… after 1 year and 1 month of Raven being an only dog we left her with a friend and went to pick up her new sister Ruby, who of course being part sloth slept all the way back down!
We came home not just with Ruby but equipped with a puppy starter pack of food, insurance, a contract, a blanket that had been in with the pups and mum so smelt of home, vaccination certificate, microchip details, KC registration papers and the assurance that the breeder was always there should we need any help.
We had ummed and aahed how to introduce Raven and Ruby and had decided on a neutral place so went to pick up Raven from my friends house and let them meet in the back garden there (where no other dogs go) and then took them both home, they have got on like a house on fire ever since……..
What have we learnt from this journey – it is difficult to find a responsible breeder – it takes time and research and there isn’t any one umbrella they come under.
Being licensed, being RKC registered, being a show breeder – it doesn’t always mean responsible breeding.
Advertising on facebook, gumtree etc doesn’t always mean irresponsible breeding!
It is up to us, the puppy buyers, to research and only buy from someone who prioritises health, 
temperament & conformation no matter what they pertain to be. Make sure you know what health tests your puppy’s parents should have had and what the results mean,
So here’s our tips for finding a responsibly bred puppy!
Research, Research, Research!
Take your time don’t rush it’s important to get it right, this little pup could well be with you for the next 12 – 15 years!
- Choose the breed of dog that suits your lifestyle not just because of how it looks
- Check which hereditary health tests are required for that breed and ensure the breeder has done them
- Find a breeder who prioritises Hereditary Health, Temperament & Conformation
- Ask for recommendations from people who may have had a puppy from them previously.
- Meet the dogs, their breeders and check the premises before committing
If a breeder can’t or won’t give you the information, I know it’s hard, but just walk away – the easiest thing is to try and get all the information together before you go to see the puppy that way it is easier to walk away before you go visit, without those puppy dog eyes following you……
Ruby will be joining the team at www.pawsagainst.co.uk as joint VPP (Vice President Pup) (trainee) with Raven and will continue the campaigning her predecessor Button the Bernese started. You can follow her on facebook @pawsagainst.co.uk and @whatsinmygenes and on twitter @BrixhamDolphins there is also an Instagram page BerneseButton #dontbreedblind #fit2breed
