Buying a pup online

Where in NJ are you?  I've seen Cocker/Poodle mixes listed on shelter websites around here.  Not as often as I used to, but I have seen them.  Here's a Petfinder list of CockaPoos I found when I typed in my zip code.  [linkhttp://search.petfinder.com/search/search.cgi]http://search.petfinder.com/search/search.cgi[/link]
 
Also, as much as I don't agree with purposely breeding mixes, there is a woman here in NJ that breeds Cocker/Poodle mixes.  Two teachers where I work bought pups from her.  I'm not exactly sure where she is, but I want to say she's on the NY side of Jersey someplace.  Both teachers have raved about the wonderful temperment their dogs have.  I met one when they took our classes (the other teacher lives further away from me), and have to agree.

ORIGINAL: rwbeagles

Have you got a name for the person? Kennel name? website? That's generally a lot of help when making a call on reputable....etc. Someone here might've heard of them or know someone who knows them..but couldn't tell you without a name.

 
Here's his website [linkhttp://www.apooh4u2.net/]http://www.apooh4u2.net/[/link]
 
I found him on the website nextdaypets.  He said he mostly ships, but 10% of people do come to pick-up their puppy so at least he lets people come to visit. 

ORIGINAL: micksmom

Where in NJ are you?  I've seen Cocker/Poodle mixes listed on shelter websites around here.  Not as often as I used to, but I have seen them.  Here's a Petfinder list of CockaPoos I found when I typed in my zip code.  [linkhttp://search.petfinder.com/search/search.cgi]http://search.petfinder.com/search/search.cgi[/link]

Also, as much as I don't agree with purposely breeding mixes, there is a woman here in NJ that breeds Cocker/Poodle mixes.  Two teachers where I work bought pups from her.  I'm not exactly sure where she is, but I want to say she's on the NY side of Jersey someplace.  Both teachers have raved about the wonderful temperment their dogs have.  I met one when they took our classes (the other teacher lives further away from me), and have to agree.

 
I'm in Northern, NJ.  I went to see on cockapoo breeder in Wayne, NJ and I wasn't happy.  They wouldn't let me see where they keep the mom & other liter mates, they just sat me in the kitchen & bought up the color dog out which I was interested in. They also had so many other mixed breeds that it just didn't feel right.
 
Do you have a link for this person with the cockapoos?

ORIGINAL: shakespeare

I dont know much, but if he is in Milwaukee let me know.  I can do some checking out if you give me specific things to look for and ask

 
He's in Iola, WI

I have heard absolutely nothing good about nextdaypets.
 
With all due respect, if your experience with the local breeder wasn't what you wanted, gosh, why on earth would you trust a total stranger many states away?  I realize that you are HERE asking, but boy, I'd be running fast from that idea.

I don't know. I wouldn't do it.
That's just MY opinion, though.

I just don't see HOW one can guarantee the health of a mixed breed pup. I mean, if you see the pups online, the look of the pups cannot even be guaranteed. A reputable breeder doesn't NEED to sell the dogs online. A reputable breeder has a waiting list of people to buy their dogs.
How much is he charging for his pups? I know even with purebred pups that the health and temperament of dogs cannot be 100% guaranteed, but one has a better chance of guaranteeing that than those of two different breeds.

ORIGINAL: glenmar

I have heard absolutely nothing good about nextdaypets.

With all due respect, if your experience with the local breeder wasn't what you wanted, gosh, why on earth would you trust a total stranger many states away?  I realize that you are HERE asking, but boy, I'd be running fast from that idea.

 
What did you hear about nextdaypets?  This breeder in WI said he has a lifetime genetic guarantee on the dogs, whereas most breeders I found only had a year.  The one in NJ I visited only had a 6 month guarantee. 
 
I'm just really confused, since I'm having no luck with local breeders & now with the internet being so popular, I thought it was more commonplace to do this.

Maybe I'm way off base, but why would you pay good money for a mutt, when you can get an equally adorable cockapoo at a shelter?

I simply would not trust someone to be an ethical breeder without seeing, in person, their facilities. People lie all the time, create false websites, steal other pictures off the internet and claim them as their own. My primary concern is the health and well being of all the dogs living with the breeder, and I want to see with my own eyes that they live in a way where all the dogs and puppies can be properly socialized to humans (not necissarily living in the home, though I would find that pererable), that there aren't too many for the breeder to adequately care for at one time, that the facilities and living spaces are clean and humane, and that the dogs get adequate exercise and grooming. I would want the breeder to grill me up one wall and down the other about my own ability to care for the pup. I like to see waiting lists, too, though sometimes you just luck out that a breeder has a litter on the ground and there's one or two that weren't already spoken for. And I don't trust anyone to really be able to show me these things over the phone or on line. I would want to see it for myself.

Because I could never live with myself if I found out later that I'd given money to someone who was harming dogs in any way.

My personal perspective is quite biased.  I work in rescue and fostering and I have absolutely no use for back yard breeders who earn a living off the fertility of the poor animals in their care.
 
nextdaypets is very well known for being a byb paradise.
 
A reputable breeder does NOT have to advertise anywhere.  I know that some will put ads on places like this to get the chance to EDUCATE buyers, but really good breeders have waiting lists before they breed.
 
How does one enforce a life time anything when they are not in the same area?  I'm betting that the pup would have to be returned to this guy and replaced with another.  Will you be able to send that baby back?  Knowing that it'll likely be euthed or put in the breeding program if you do so?  Not likely, not after you've come to love the pup.  I'd be willing to bet cold hard cash that THAT is the only option if your pup comes up with health issues....not that the breeder is going to pay the vet bills.

ORIGINAL: chewbecca

I don't know. I wouldn't do it.
That's just MY opinion, though.

I just don't see HOW one can guarantee the health of a mixed breed pup. I mean, if you see the pups online, the look of the pups cannot even be guaranteed. A reputable breeder doesn't NEED to sell the dogs online. A reputable breeder has a waiting list of people to buy their dogs.
How much is he charging for his pups? I know even with purebred pups that the health and temperament of dogs cannot be 100% guaranteed, but one has a better chance of guaranteeing that than those of two different breeds.

 
He's charging $750 plust $250 for shipping.  I understand that reputable breeders have waiting lists, but how would I find these reputable breeders w/o the internet?

I personally would not ever purchase any sort of animal through nextdaypets. 9 times out of 10, maybe even 99/100, any breeder advertising on that website is not going to be reputable, or at least not as responsible as other breeders you might find elsewhere.

ORIGINAL: tiffy

Maybe I'm way off base, but why would you pay good money for a mutt, when you can get an equally adorable cockapoo at a shelter?

 
I had a bad experience with buying from shelters.  The last dog I had a while ago was a lab mix.  He was extremely aggressive (had to walk him with a muzzle) and he developed seizures only a few days after I took him home.  No one at the shelter mentioned he had seizures or his aggression.  This time around I want a dog from a puppy so I can raise/train it from scratch.

Use the internet to find the breed club (I'm pretty sure there are some for cockapoos, as they are a pretty old and well-established mixed breed with at least some semblance of a breed standard), write an email to them and stress that you are looking for reputible breeders of cockapoos somewhere in your area. They can then recommend some people for you to get in touch with and meet with, then you talk to those folks and choose the one who you feel best about and who feels the best about you. Then you get on that person's waiting list for their next litter.

[linkhttp://www.cockapooclub.com/]http://www.cockapooclub.com/[/link]
They have a system of rating their breeders...you might have a look.