I have done a little research on Siberian Huskies. I found a dog that is not certified by the breeder but the dog is a purebred. He is a 1 year old and they are wanting $300 for him. My first question is, will it be okay that the dog is only 1 year old? I want him to know that I am his owner and to listen to me. I met the dog earlier today and I walked it and it liked to be petted and rubbed. It was a very loving dog. However a concern my parents brought up that I didn't notice was that they said you could feel the dogs backbone and ribs which I couldn't feel or see myself (I will post a pic of him) and the woman said he's going through a stage where he doesn't eat sometimes. The dog was full of energy and the dog seemed very healthy. The breeder said they haven't been to the vet for a while since he was done with all of his shots and he is good on rabies shots until September., they also give it worm prevention treatments monthly but the dog has not been tested for heart worms nor is it being prevented. I am needing to let the breeder know by tomorrow if I want the dog since they have a few others interested. What do you all think about the dog, is it suppose to be skinny (I personally don't think it is skinny) and be able to feel its backbone and should this be a concern for me?
Thanks everyone!

I forgot to point out that I was wanting to know if it is better to buy a 1 year old or a newborn puppy?

Some things to ask-

1) why does the breeder have a 1 year old available, was he never sold, was he returned and if so why.
2) ask them to get a vet to do a basic wellness exam before you decide to buy, and request ALL vet records for the dog! Don't just take the word of someone the vaccs have been done.
3) what kind of family history does the dog have, any problems with eyes, hips, seizures, thyroid, etc.
4) ask to meet the parent dogs, you should get to see temperament of the line

Ultimately I would be leery of any breeder breeding non-registered dogs, this to me also means non-health tested lines. Which means you really don't know what you could be getting, and what if anything the breeder will do to stand behind their lines.

The owner said that the dog was just one they had kept but they have 3 other males and 1 female and wanted to get rid of one since they don't use him for breeding since he's related to the female they use. The owner had all the paper work from the vet about the vaccinations and rabies shots and everything was in order. They just haven't took it to the vet recently and I will ask if they could take it and give it a check up or even try to bargain with them saying I will pay for the check up if everything is fine. The owner said I can get the dog registered through CKC and she said she would provide anything needed by the parent dogs that would be needed. I know nothing about registering them, how hard is it? Also how does the dog look as far as weight and body?
Thanks Huskymom09!

Welcome, im on my phone so I will be short till im on ky computer tomorrow. Do you have any other pics of the dog? It looks to have a wooly coat and are there dark spots in the coat? Do you have the breeders website info you could share? If they only have one female and 4 males that does not sound like a breeder, it sounds like a backyard breeder that does not do proper testing and is just trying to make some money... please take a look at our stickies on finding a breeder, that will give you lots of info.
As for the age, 1 is young and a bond can be formed, I recused a 5yo girl and she bonded with me right away, I think puppies are over rated. Is there a reason you have not looked at adopting a husky from a rescue or shelter?

That is the only picture that I have. She has puppies (2 females and 1 male $450 each) that she is selling from the male and female that they use for breeding. I don't think they are a large breeder and they are not certified, I found them on craigslist. I looked for breeders in my area but there website were outdated saying "(insert dog name) just had puppies on Dec. 19th, 2012", and the prices they had were around $950 to $1500. The coat on this dog is very thick and it was shedding his fur. The fur isn't spotted it have the front that is really clear and then goes grey on the back with a stripe next to the neck and they it goes to grey and gets darker as it gets to the back all the way to the tail. The underside is white. I checked the animal shelters and humane societies in this area and I did not see anything. I checked a husky rescue site but none were on there. I'm not really interested in completely training a little puppy and I really don't want to pay $950 go $1500 on a husky. I will check out that sticky and see if I can find something else at a reasonable price for me.
Thanks Jennifer!

Im sorry, but i would avoid this "breeder". I would never use craiglist to find a dog. There is not one good breeder that will be on craigslist. I would keep trying to find a better breeder. There are a lot of threads here that talk about BYB and how and where to find a good one.

I totally agree with Eric. Just because the pups are advertised as cheaper doesn't mean they come without issues. BYB most often do not health test their dogs, so you could be saving money by getting a dog for cheaper, when in fact you'll end up spending thousands and thousands more later on when you discover it has inherent genetic issues that didn't show up until later in life. Just because the dog "looks" healthy now doesn't mean that debilitating diseases won't show up later on that will be crippling for the dog and expensive and heartbreaking for you.

Reputable breeders sometimes charge more for their dogs because they are very concerned about who they sell their pups to. They want to make sure they go to good homes and often require that you keep them informed about the pup throughout its life. If you can't afford the initial price of the dog, who's to say you will be able to afford the vet bills, cost of food, toys, training, etc. that go along with owning a dog? If you don't do this cost analysis up front, you will be setting yourself up for failure.

From the looks of the photo it looks like this dog was poorly bred. When comparing against the Siberian Husky breed standard I see lots of faults from the get-go. A reputable breeder would never breed two dogs together that would create faults like this. Of course, that doesn't make the dog any less of a great companion, but it does send up red flags that tell me this dog could have lots of underlying health issues that you won't see until later.

First of all, let me say that I absolutely agree with the other posters regarding back yard breeders and potential health issues down the road.

As for adopting a year old dog - with that I have some experience.  We adopted Ami from a local shelter and the vet estimated his age at 12-14 months.  The intention was for Mr. Dog to be exclusively outdoors.  (Read dog rules Nos. 1 and 2: http://www.alfirin.net/cdl/rules.html)  He was kept tethered outside during the day (7-8 AM until midnight) with 3-3.5 mile walk in the AM and 2-3 mile walk in PM.  He had play time on his dog trolley with tennis ball, soccer ball and various tuggies 2-3 times in between as well as a romp off leash in a large outbuilding where he could zoom around before being crated for the night.  Despite these limitations, this dog is as bonded as bonded could be - husband says we should have named him Konrad (for Konrad Lorenz and his work on imprinting) or Hachi - the Akita in the movie.  And he loves everybody!!!

Also - the picture of your prospective dog.  Looks very much like mine (except color) and I am convinced Ami carries the woolly gene (though as he's losing the upstate New York winter coat, he's looking more like a real Siberian).  It is my only disappointment with the dog.  While he is still a beautiful dog, it is not correct and the coat is a major hassle.  Needs way more grooming than a correct Siberian.  But, this dog is a total love - full of life and joy...and shenanigans  I do have to say though, that not knowing his genetic history or that of the parents, and given his woolly coat, I always have this background anxiety that some major health issues will crop up.

Have you searched petfinder for rescues within a 100 miles of you?  Of course, you'd still have the questionable health history but you would not be financially supporting poor breeding practices.

Thanks for everyone who replied. I think I have made my decision.