12/08/2025
I'd like to address something I've seen that's becoming pretty common:
"I just want a pet. I don't want a show dog."
It's fine to just want a pet. But if you're looking for a specific breed, you want that breed *for a reason*. Which means that you want a dog that fits the breed standard in all ways - structure, temperament, instinct/drive, and type.
I don't know when "I'm okay with a pet" became synonymous with "I'm fine with a completely out of standard dog."
There's not a nice, gentle way to say this: if you don't care whether your dog looks "like a show dog", then go through rescue. Truly. There are plenty of perfectly good pet dogs that may fit all of the qualities you're looking for, and those dogs need homes, too.
But don't settle for a poorly bred dog from a sketchy breeder just because you "don't want a show dog", for two reasons:
- Unethical breeders shouldn't exist.
- Unethical breeders exist because people who "don't want a show dog" give them money and keep them in business.
I guarantee you that you won't be able to tell why the puppy an ethical breeder washed as a pet IS a pet. A reputable ethical breeder who is breeding to the standard tends to produce *consistency*. Which means that their choices are based on subtle nuances and differences that the average lay person just can't see. A breath of a length of forearm. A slight shift of layback. The tiniest touch of better overall balance. If I put one of my pet puppies and one of my pick puppies side by side, only breeders who know the standard can tell the difference.
Part of having a specific breed is loving and accepting the heritage and the history of that breed. It's why they look and act the way they do. If you don't like a specific part of their aesthetic, I am willing to bet there's another breed that will fit your bill - with over 200 breeds in the AKC and something like 500 worldwide recognized by FCI, there's a leash for every hand.
If you want a dog of a specific breed for a specific reason, you deserve for that dog to be well bred. More importantly, *that dog deserves to be well bred*. For their mental and physical health and longevity, they deserve to be bred well and thoughtfully and with care, to the written standard for that breed.
TL;DR - "I don't want a show dog" doesn't mean you should be willing to support an unethical breeder.
-CREDIT TO JENNIFER BUCKMASTER, ORIGINAL POSTER
