in addition to the price, or even independent of the price, there are some other reasons for buying from backyard breeders or breeders who aren't strict on health tests. A high price certainly does not guarantee a "reputable breeder" in the sense of strict health testing and careful breeding. There are lots of disreputable breeders charging top dollar, and people willing to pay, thinking that paying such a price is what will guarantee a quality dog. Lots of people think that they are buying from a reputable source, just out of being innocently naive.
Speaking from my experience, the learning curve about how to buy a cavalier is steep and it's a lot to absorb. Before getting a cavalier, i had gotten my dogs from the pound or similar sources, and just chose a dog because i liked the dog, simply, and not even thinking about health issues.
It was really more than i could grasp when, during my search for a cavalier, someone counseled me on how to buy a dog from a reputable breeder and said it might take a year or two. I desperately wanted to share my life with a dog and I really could not compute that part, the part about not having a dog to come home to and go places with for some indefinite amount of time with no guarantees.
intellectually i could understand the importance of health testing, but even though i had an initial knowledge about that, it was superficial. I didnt' really grasp what it meant to do this for the good of the breed for some time after being introduced to the idea and imagining that i understood it.
In the beginning i knew nothing about distinctions between brokers, byb and reputable breeders, although i did know about puppy mills, having seen a TV documentary about them years before, so was permanently turned off to buying a dog from a pet store. But other than that, i thought the obvious thing was to look on the web and find someone to buy a dog from. It was just a fluke that i ended up learning more than that, learning about what it meant to buy from a reputable breeder, before i got a dog, i could've easily not encountered the person who educated me about that, i mean, i'm sure there are plenty of people who have the kind of frame of mind i had before meeting that person, and who buy dogs innocently because they think it would be wonderful to have a dog and don't know about what to be cautious about.
The broker i got Zack from sold dogs for one breeder in another state, she was a stay at home mom with three little kids, a big spacious yard, lots of happy dogs of all ages running around, the back door open, dogs running in and out of the house, a warm friendly environment, good supervision of dogs and kids, well socialized puppies learning about house training, nice sincere woman, her home always open for visits. For someone so new to the cavalier issues, it wasn't that easy to grasp the problem.
i know there are a lot of people who are willing to spend a lot and believe a high price will guarantee a quality dog. Just today, i had to have the ISP cable guy come because of internet problems. He liked Zack, was petting him, i asked him if he had a dog, he said yes, a Pomeranian that weighs 6 pounds. He said it was an expensive dog. He volunteered that it cost $2300. I asked if that breed had any health issues. He said no. I dont' know if they do. But i suspect that he didn't look into it because he answered vaguely, as if it were an odd question i was asking.
I've heard so many stories from people who bought cavaliers, thinking their breeder was reputable only to find out later that the high standards were not met, and lots of these people paid a lot for their puppies. There is just so much to learn and then, even after learning various facts, it's still a lot to grasp, and speaking for myself, for someone who came from a nonpurebred culture, who actually preferred mutts for their uniqueness, and other presumed or imagined qualities, much of it was really beyond my comprehension due to the foreigness from my preexisting experiences and mind set.
Even still, there's a lot i don't understand about breeding and the good of the breed and what is best for the health of the dogs in terms of breeding. There are some kinks in my understanding that need straightening out.
