question about finding a breeder

hi again-
i am looking around the web for different breeders and i am running into some barriers....just wondering how normal it is. i am looking for a specific type of cavalier with a certain level of caliber in its ancestors. i am also looking for a british dog or first generation british parents. i am also not looking to actually acquire my pup for 1-4 years, but i know that many reputable breeders can have a decent number of prospective buyers and i am interested in getting more info from the breeder so i can get my name on a "waiting list" if i find a breeder i like with dogs i like. i have contacted about 4 different breeders with an introduction to myself and my situation and asking for more information about their dogs and breeding programs. i have not heard back from any of them. its been over 3 weeks. obviously, 4 isn't a huge number of breeders but i thought it a bit wierd that no one would contact me back at all. has anyone else here run into similar issues or have any recommenations on what i could do better? any info or insight would be fantastic. thanks oodles!

Your experience isn't unusual. A lot of breeders, especially reputable breeders, are simply swamped with enquiries every day of the week. Keep persevering as you will find someone ready to discuss their breeding programmes. A good/better way to talk to breeders would be to get involved with your local club though -- and go to some local or regional cavalier events. If you get to know some of the breed club people you will get introductions to breeders. If you have such specific requirements, and very especially if you are interested in showing and perhaps someday breeding yourself (it sounds like that might be the basis of your interest in a dog of a certain calibre), you need to put in the time getting to know a range of people, finding a mentor etc.

You WILL need to put in the advance work at club level though (which should be a great experience if you love the breed and are interested in learning more and soaking up knoweldge from many involved breed folks! ). The fact that you are making enquiries so generally for a high calibre dog without any connections/introductions to any of these people will probably not be helping your case as they may be suspicious of whether you are trying to acquire dogs simply to breed. They are just being good caretakers of their dogs -- no reputable breeder will be willing to consider selling a show/breeding quality dog to someone they do not know with no history in the breed or another breed, especially not when this is a breed that requires such careful management due to some major and serious health issues that good breeders are working to reduce and hopefully some day, eliminate.

We do have a couple of show breeders on the board here who will hopefully see this post and can offer some guidance.

All dogs go back very quickly to British ancestors so this isn't necessarily significant or 'preferred' -- indeed at the moment, with research uncovering how widespread syringomyelia is, you are better to look very carefully at all lines and discuss the details of a breeder's programme. Leading syringomyelia researcher Dr Clare Rusbridge has noted:

A salient fact is that 93% of top stud dogs in the UK are closely related to 1 or more dogs with SM and the pedigrees of these dogs are similar to Champions worldwide.

Click to expand...

If you are unfamiliar with SM there's lots of information here:

http://sm.cavaliertalk.com/

I don't know if we are one of the breeders you contacted with no response, but if we are, I apologize. Things have been pretty hectic for us, especially my wife Kris. Or if we didn't have anything you are looking for, we may not have responded.

I saw a post you made a while ago about wanting a puppy out of a British dog or first generation British dog. We don't have any dams that fit that description, so I didn't respond. If you want to call Kris, she may be able to help you with breeders that fit that despcription; she knows a lot more about breeders and what dogs they have than I do.

I have to say, that's a pretty narrow criteria you have, so you may have to wait a bit. But it sounds like you have the time to wait.

thanks for the great replies....

bruce, no worries, i am pretty sure you are not one of the few i have contacted yet. if i remember correcyly, all the breeders i contacted did not mention having litters soon (on their sites which aren't necessarily always most up-to-date) and i believe you are expecting (or have had pups) around now (based on the 5 months in a breeders thread).

yup, and i know my criteria is fairly specific....so i am starting doing research early... heehee.

karlin, thanks for the suggestions. i am definitely planning to start looking at club events around my area this summer. i am looking for a dog that can be involved but i am not planning to breed him...too scary for me at this stage of my life. heehee.