Before you answer that ad for "Westie puppies for sale" or "dogs for sale", learn the correct answers for your breed so you can ask the following questions of a breeder:

• What size (height and weight) is correct for this dog breed?
• Does this dog breed need to be brushed or combed more often than once a week?
• Does this dog breed require professional help in clipping or grooming?
• How much ground needs to be covered in daily exercise? Is a one-mile walk a lot or not very much for this dog breed?
• Is the dog breed you have selected one of the dog breeds that are subject to any genetic diseases? Have the appropriate tests been performed to avoid those diseases?
• What are the common reasons given for given up a Westie to rescue?

You might also contact National Westie Rescue. Every year, for a variety of reasons, Westies in this country find themselves in need of new homes. Sometimes they are lost, abandoned, or turned in to shelters. Sometimes owners must give up their dogs because of medical problems, moving into retirement homes, new baby, divorce, allergies, new house, nipping at the children, etc. And sometimes they are rescued from commercial breeding facilities, commonly referred to as "puppy mills".

If a breeder has more than one or two breeds, it is obvious their motive is profit and not a love for the breed.

Good breeders accept responsibility for the dogs they produce and will take them back at any stage of their life and make an effort to find a new suitable home for them. Irresponsible breeders fail to live up to their end of the bargain, don't care what happens to their puppies once they are sold, and will normally sell a puppy to anyone who has the money to pay for the puppy...little or no questions asked.

A good source of information is AKC Breed Rescue Groups where you will find info related to rescue as well as AKC Online Breeder Classifieds where you will find contact information of Westie breeders.