Should I "shop around"

[beanieh]

I went to a dog show a couple of weeks ago, and I was watching the Boxers. I met a woman who had shown a dog earlier and was watching the rest of the classes. My mom (who was watching with me) had told her that I was interested in boxers, and she mentioned that she has a bitch expecting puppies about a week from now! This woman was so nice! She answered my questions about what was going on in the ring, and she showed me some photos of her dogs. She clearly had a great understanding and love for the breed, and we hit it off very well. She said I could call her in a couple of months (when the puppies are about 6 weeks old) and bring the family out to meet the babies. She won't let them go until 8 weeks or more, but we could visit them as much as we want after their immune systems are strong enough to deal with outsiders' germs

I've sent her a note indicating that we are definitely interested in a puppy. I still have some questions about health testing (it was just not something that came up at the time), but I just have a really great feeling about this breeder. So my question is, should I continue to try to contact other breeders in my area? I can't imagine shopping for a new family member the way you do for a car -- haggling, getting quotes, selecting features (have you got a flashy dark brindle bitch on the lot? ) etc. So my gut tells me to stick with someone I feel comfortable with. But my head tells me it might not be such a good idea to pick the very first breeder I meet. So I'm going to put my various talking body parts on hold and see what the boxerworld folks think. Help!

Eve

[LAYLAMOMMY24]

If they show their dogs and are answering question that is a great start. But find our what tests she does on her dogs. Alot of people might seem great but when you get down to it you need
1. a good healty dog
2. a person that is willing to give proof of the tests
3. answer all those questions.
4. You do have to be comforable with them.
The thing that kinda got me was that she didnt already have a waiting list. Alot of breeders I have talked to do. ALso it doesnt hurt to do some background searching on this breeder. I have talked to alot of breeders and alot of them seemed real nice at first but then in the end it didnt pan out with them. Good luck to you.

[Kathryn Saxon]

Many of the breeders I know stopped taking waiting lists, because most of the people have already gotten a pup elsewhere by the time the litter is born, or they have specific requests (fawn bitch only, flashy brindle male only) and the litter never seems to include what they were waiting for. So they've reverted to giving out their testing information and getting a feel for the person (recommending an adult rescue or a different breed occasionally, or recommending them to somebody else who has a litter now) and then telling them to check back in the Fall/Spring/Summer when they're planning a breeding.

The difference would be people who are coming to shows regularly/keeping in touch because they're truly interested in that specific line, or people who already have one of their dogs.

As many of the posters here have demonstrated, it can be very hard to find a quality boxer puppy -- breeders aren't hurting for good loving homes in which to place them.