I’ve been looking into getting a husky puppy for a while and thought I found a good breeder (bestakcpups.com) but was reading reviews and every review pointed towards not going with them —most of the reviews were from 5 years ago as I did not see any recent ones.
I like that they had all of the health guarantees and what not... but did not like the $1500-$3000 for a puppy - plus the hidden $200 you don’t find out about until they send you the pdf doc to fill out for any puppy.. so at least $1700 + tax (not that I’m looking for a full akc registration, but that pdf also said they charge $4500 for a full registration puppy!!!!!!)

I live in/near Minneapolis, MN and was looking for a close breeder, but would definitely be open to any breeder in the US (could you explain to me the pros and cons of a distances breeder?).

— also, are the health guarantees something to get caught up on or are they not as important as I’m thinking?

EDIT: Is a health guarantee important/how long of a health guarantee should I look for? most only off a 1-2 year health guarantee if anything.

Your best bet would be to start a search with your local AKC breed club. Club Search
The AKC also has a great little set of instructions on how to find a breeder.  Find a breeder article   and also AKC breeder referral page
Also if you can go to some local AKC event you could meet people who would have recommendations for you. In my opinion most reputable breeders are going to cost you higher dollars, have waiting list, health guarantees and applications.

Hi Bootnaz!

Thanks for trying to find a responsible breeder. I do have to agree with you that the price for a puppy through their kennel seems to be a tad expensive. While I hate to put a price on a dog breed (especially one as awesome as a husky), I have to admit huskies are quite common in North America, almost an oversaturated market, and therefore are typically a cheaper breed to purchase than others.

I also don't like that they charge for every little thing. A different pick-up date = additional fees? Microchip is another fee? And what's with this I will give you a free toy if you find a kennel with a better guarantee thing? Are we price matching dogs here at bestbuy? Weird...

Go with your gut, if you feel like this place isn't a match for your values, keep searching. For a breed as popular as a husky, I'm 100% sure you can find one around your area. Keep google searching for husky kennels in your area. I live in Canada so not much help up here, sorry!

Good Luck!

Also if you use the search function on this site for breeder there are quite a few threads about searching for a reputable breeder out there already. They have some does and don't, opinions on what to look for and what to stay away from even some opinions on what is good but optional not necessarily needed.

I just saw your new links so I will have to test those out, however I also thought I would mention that I have tried going through the AKC and SHCA/etc to their referral pages and contacting members on there for information. I actually contacted every Minnesota, Iowa, and Wisconsin listed members on there and only had one response which resulted in a dead ended honestly -- the one who responded told me that they are no longer involved (And just have not been taken off the list yet), but that they forwarded my information to someone who I have not heard from.. So I have also been doing searches and looked at most breeders in Minnesota, but there do not seem to be too many popular/known ones here to my surprise.

EDIT: I also just double checked the AKC/SHCA referrals to make sure I did contact them -- and from the referrals my problem is just even trying to get a response for them to point me in the next direction.

EDIT 2: So I did just go through your links and I am grateful for the assistance -- and I will look over the AKC marketplace (don't think I checked there before which is in the tips page you sent), but I have actually already gone through the AKC page to find the SHCA and contacted people on there along with finding the local club of SHCTC (for the Twin Cities here in Minnesota) and have had no luck with getting ahold of people. As mentioned above, the one I got ahold of is not longer involved and sent my information on, but the director of the area never responded.

EDIT 3: I also must have missed your other post saying to search these threads for reputable breeders so I will try that as well. I tried doing that on Google and was only finding posts as recent as 2013 for some reason

It is not easy to find a reputable breeder. To breed reputably isn't to make money so good breeders often only breed when they have enough people wanting a puppy from them so that all pups are sold before the mating even takes place. Going to an actual event such as a race or a show and talking to people there maybe your best bet to nail some people down. In this day and ages also it's hard to know the best, most effective, way to contact someone. While most sites list email, some of these people run their business through facebook or other social media outlets and respond faster if you can find them there. Definitely read through the how to find a reputable breeder stuff before you go to social media though. A lot of people can direct you to a breeder but few will be good breeders. Most will be people in it for the money who just "love the breed" but don't actually love it enough to make sure they are breeding to better it and protect the integrity of it.

You do want those health guarantees. Needs to be at least 2 years. Anything over that is unnecessary and unlikely that the breeder will really stand behind. 2 years is when genetic health problems like hip dysplasia and cataracts start showing up. So by 2 you will know if there is a genetic problem which is what the guarantee is there to protect you from. You also need to make sure that they are testing their dogs through OFA and Cerf. Eyes and Hip testing ensure that the dogs they are breeding are physically sound and should be passing that soundness to their pups.

How To Find A Reputable Breeder

I'm on the fence with the health guarantee. I believe that if you are able to get a pup through a genuine reputable breeder, they will warranty that pup against genetic defects regardless of age. Most "breeders" out there offer a one year guarantee, and that is worthless, in my opinion. Most genetic defects, as Jenn mentions, won't show up til 2 years of age and older. To me, a two year guarantee isn't much better, let's say your pup hits age 2, guarantee expires, and at 2 years 3 months or whatever, you discover it has cataracts or HD. You are on your own then. There are also a lot of stipulations to the guarantees that must be lived up to on your end that may or may not be that easy for you, like yearly check ups for example with a battery of tests having to be done. If the defect results in death, a (I know I'll spell this wrong) necropsy must be performed, I think at your cost, to certify it was indeed a genetic defect that took its life. And then what? You get your money back, or a new puppy? Really? Myself, i don't think that would make me feel better. The breeder I got my two from has what she calls, a "life span" guarantee (8 years) against genetic defects, and was the ONLY breeder I have found that includes epilepsy in that guarantee, which was VERY important to me as I lost my last huskies to epileptic seizures. As I found out just this weekend, she has had to honor that guarantee a few times (she's been breeding for 25 years though) and while it all sounds good, and offers some peace of mind, I personally, would find it difficult to have the dog I've loved for 8 years, cut open. I'd much rather say goodbye to my pup the way I have my others, intact. So, to me, the very best thing you can do, is find as reputable breeder as you can, as close by as you can, and feel assured that you are getting a quality pup, with years of a program breeding practice behind him/her, and would more than likely have a breeder who will stand behind that pup up to a reasonable amount of time afterwards. The threads in here offer some great names with years and years of reputation behind them that would fit your criteria. If you find someone not on any list, run their name by us here and get opinions, in the past just a bunch of different members opinions and experiences have resulted in an educated yay or nay towards a breeder. It's nice to have that!

Ok, price...the breeder you referred to is a bit high (my two were $1250 each) I'd also mention that the "hidden " $200 charge was possibly the deposit? If so, that normally is part of the purchase price and not in addition to it. I put down $200 on each of mine, and when it came down to picking them up, paid the balance of $1050. If you are not breeding and/or showing, you will never need full registration.

Artic_Wind wrote:

Ok, price...the breeder you referred to is a bit high (my two were $1250 each) I'd also mention that the "hidden " $200 charge was possibly the deposit? If so, that normally is part of the purchase price and not in addition to it. I put down $200 on each of mine, and when it came down to picking them up, paid the balance of $1050. If you are not breeding and/or showing, you will never need full registration.

I am positive. After filling out the application and being accepted by the breeder, they sent me a pdf that is not on the website anywhere. There is a $400 deposit fee (plus $16 for using paypal or a credit card) and then there is the $200 fee that they said is for microchipping, AKC registering, and microchip resitration.  I have it in an email somewhere, I will post it when I find the information.

Here is the email response I got when asking about the pricing on the pdf they sent.

Quote :

Balance due is

$1500 for Angels We Have Heard On High
$200 for Puppy Protection Packet (See details below)
$124.95 MN Sales Tax
$16 Credit Card Fees

Total $1840.95 minus the $416 once that is paid leaves $1424.95 due..
For final payment our preferred method is Cash
(Please bring exact change, as we do not carry any change)

However, if you prefer we also accept

Credit Card (add 4%)  Please use the attached cc authorization form for final payment

We DO NOT accept checks, cashier’s checks of any kind.

The Puppy Protection Packet– Is required as it is for the protection of your puppy

This post is just information for anyone looking into going with the bestakcpups.com breeder and a summary of our conversation that we had today... at first they seemed great but the more I look into them the more they avoid my questions and were rude.

When asking why there prices vary so much, they said Bestakcpups:

Quote :

Pups vary in pricing due to overall temperament, conformation, bloodlines, markings, eye color etc..

I think I read somewhere that reputable breeders do not charge based off of the appearance of the dog and entirely on the health/quality of the dog..?
__________________
I also asked them if I would be able to meet them, the dogs, and see the area and how the puppies are raised/etc..

Quote :

Hello, I was just wondering if you had 2-3 client references from the past year that I would be able to get ahold of to ask a few questions if possible.
I was also interested in seeing if it would be possible to come out and visit to meet you/your family and the dogs.Thanks,

After deflecting my question a few times and telling me I had to put a deposit down and then could schedule to meet them when the puppy was 8 weeks old to pick up the puppy, their answer to that question finally came back as:

Quote :

I get over a hundred people a month requesting the same and I could spend all my time showing people but simply don’t have the time

and this is after I filled out and sent in their application AND was approved by them. The next thing on their list for me to do was put a deposit down so I already was going through the process (and stopped after they told me I could not visit).

Just by looking at their website, while it's great that they actually do OFA/CHIC testing on (some of) their dogs none of them look like they conform to the breed standard.

Charging different prices for color / appearance is typically a red flag. You WILL get different prices for pet vs show (or limited vs full rights).

Not ever breeder is going to allow strangers to come into their home especially if they have puppies on the ground mostly due to safety of their dogs. However, they should be HAPPY to tell you all about their puppy raising process, show you photos, or videos, etc. And yes, some will allow you to visit if it is a feasible option for them but that's not always a red flag. If they are active with their dogs you should have no problems being able to meet up with them at a local show or event they attend.

They ALSO have FIVE litters all within 2 months of each other. This is a HUGE red flag. Most breeders will only breed 1-2 litters a year and they ONLY typically breed when they are looking to add something to their lines/breeding program.

While I do give them some points for having a lot of information on their website and actually health testing some of their dogs, this is a BYB if I ever saw one.


You want to find a breeder who is DOING something with their dogs whether that is showing, racing, performance sports, etc. as well as fully health testing their dogs for eye and hip issues. Getting to know a breeder BEFORE you get a puppy from one is really the best way to go. Go to some local conformation shows or other performance events in your area. Meet some breeders, typically breeders know each other and will recommend others if they have no puppies available.

As others have said, we do have some resources for finding a good breeder.

There is also a local Siberian breed club in Minnesota, look into it and see what may be near you. http://www.shctc.org/