What's the diff between BYB and puppy mill?

[Scooter]

I thought they were the same thing....?

[wcladymacbeth]

A backyard breeder I think is any old Joe Schmoe who decides his lab and his neighbor's beagle would make adorable puppies so he breeds them. I think it's also used to describe any amateur breeder who doesn't know how to breed quality puppies or something.

A puppy mill is more of a business operation in which the breeders are there to breed as many puppies as possible. Usually they have a ton of dogs and the dogs live in horrible conditions.

Somebody correct me if I'm wrong but that's my understanding

[FoxyWench]

for the most part its size...

a byb will not have as many dogs as a mill...

the other difference is while some BYBs are only in it for the money...most are simply every day folks who think it would be "cool" for their kids to see the miracle of birth, or it would be "wonderfull" if they could have a little puppy just like their fluffy or fido...
or they feel that its only NATURAL to let their girl have a litter or two...
or "my dogs just so wonderfully everyone wants a puppy"

mills are strictly buisness, there is no other reason...the dogs are there to make money.
for the amish they see it as the dogs in the mill simply doing as ALL animals on the farm "earning their keep" (or at least thats what they say...)
for other mills its simply because they know that puppies will sell!

[Linds]

That's my understanding also.

A BYB can love their dogs till the cows come home and still be a back yard breeder. A puppy mill on the other hand is in it for money.

[Scooter]

Thanks

[bubbatd]

Agree !!

[elegy]

Originally Posted by wcladymacbeth

A puppy mill is more of a business operation in which the breeders are there to breed as many puppies as possible. Usually they have a ton of dogs and the dogs live in horrible conditions.

i'll disagree about the usually live in horrible conditions part- there are a lot of commercial breeders whose kennels always pass inspection without problem. they follow all the rules- square feet, cleanliness, vaccinations. and they are mills through and through. usda certified and inspected mills, but mills nonetheless.

or maybe the problem is that my definition of "horrible" simply differs from that of the us department of agriculture's.

i see a lot of people get fooled by this- puppy stores around here (right in the heart of amish puppy mill country) often insist and "certify" that their puppies are not from mills. they're from usda licensed breeders! yeah. same thing. just government condoned.

[KenyiGirl]

Yeah, a BYB may really love their dog, or they may just like dogs. They may be looking to make a little cash on the side, or they may just want a puppy out of their favorite dog.

A Puppy Mill is only in it for the money. "More puppies= more money" kind of thinking to the extreme.

[adojrts]

To me a mill is a place that generally has more than one breed, they often also supply pet stores.

A byb is someone who breeds (regardless of whether the dogs are reg'd or not), that doesn't prove their dogs and doesn't test for the known genetic issues within their breed. I think there are several different ways a person can be classified as a BYB.

[Laurelin]

BYBs to me are casual breeders. Maybe they just bred once, maybe more than that. But their dogs generally are pets that are bred to be pets. This is a vast group that to me is hard to generalize properly. They vary from really just bad to sort of borderline (they could be a reputable breeder pretty easily if they just did X or changed X) I don't know that I like the term BYB since it's so broad but that's what's generally used.

Mills to me are a commercial thing. Multiple breeds, lots of dogs, generally the dogs are kenneled and not house dogs (as opposed to bybs where the dogs are usually pets). Some have horrible conditions, but not all. But they all pretty much mass produce puppies with the only goal being selling more puppies. (whereas a byb might have many reasons to breed- not that they're all viable reasons)

I see mills as much worse than bybs.