In other words... What DOESN'T make on a BYB?
Throughout your life here on earth I'm sure you've came across people who are TOO literal. Well, according to those people, the term "BYB" is taken VERY literally. To be a BYB doesn't mean one breeds dogs in the back yard. More often than not, a breeder has their dogs mate in the back yard. I mean, you wouldn't want to breed in the front or side yard and catch an indecent exposure case.
A BYB isn't as simple as it once was. According to various sites and search engines, a backyard breeder was merely one who bred dogs or horses without registration papers. While doing so, they often inbred for no substantial gain towards the breed's standards. However, in today's world, to be reputable breeder, or in other words, not a BYB, a lot more than registration papers come into play.
A backyard breeder is a breeder who will breed any and every dog they have available. It doesn't matter if the dog lacks breed type or isn't physically or mentally healthy. The only thing they care about is if the dog can or cannot reproduce. This is how we end up with our shelter mutts. All dogs (not just Bull breeds) are considered to be a mutt if they do not have documented proof of lineage.
The picture below is a comparison to help you to determine the differences between all types of breeders. Backyard breeder, puppy mill breeder and commercial breeders are ALL in the same category. Puppy mill breeders and commercial breeders are just mass BYBs. A hobby breeder CAN fall into the category of a BYB. Just because somebody claims to be a hobby breeder doesn't mean they are breeding by ethics. However, hobby breeders TYPICALLY offer more to the breed than the others.
Commercial and puppy mill breeders puppies can be found in pet shops, super markets, shops who primarily sell many breeds of puppies etc. Reputable breeders and hobby breeders typically sell to friends, family, or recommended friend's of friends and friend's of family. If they DO sell outside of those people, they will conduct checks for living conditions, sometimes often require a valid ID, a lengthy contract, mandatory visits/updates, references etc. They hold their productions very near and dear to their hearts.
Have you followed all of these ethics? If not, do not breed your dogs until you do. Remember, the first start of being a backyard breeder is to breed dogs who are not papered. That's all it takes to slip into this category. Unregistered dogs are 8/10 times more likely to end up in a shelter than registered dogs. It doesn't matter how much you love your dogs, you don't love them all if you're willing to keep breeding undocumented dogs who will only add to the overpopulation of shelters.
That is all!
