Bit of luck on my part too. I joined a message board and began speaking briefly with a lot of members of the trial/sheepdog community and put out feelers for potential available dogs/pups. I got a response from a few people, one being a breeder I had previously admired from afar thanks to her writing and research on the health of the breed. Found out she was expecting a litter from lines that I favored, and I reserved a female pup. It was all thanks to the internet!
I got a LOT of flack from some people about going with a breeder I'd never met, since I was inexperienced in the breed and had never worked a sheepdog before. The breeder was in North Carolina and I was in Arizona, but I trusted the community; everyone I had encountered wholeheartedly vouched for her, and for the lines behind her dogs. About 5 years later I have a super healthy, gorgeous, brilliant dog and I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat. Probably will, actually, if I wind up with another breeder dog.
I know a "perfect" breeder doesn't exist, but I was super happy with mine. The only thing is that Eve's litter was the only one she's bred in the last 5 years.
I got a LOT of flack from some people about going with a breeder I'd never met, since I was inexperienced in the breed and had never worked a sheepdog before. The breeder was in North Carolina and I was in Arizona, but I trusted the community; everyone I had encountered wholeheartedly vouched for her, and for the lines behind her dogs. About 5 years later I have a super healthy, gorgeous, brilliant dog and I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat. Probably will, actually, if I wind up with another breeder dog.
I know a "perfect" breeder doesn't exist, but I was super happy with mine. The only thing is that Eve's litter was the only one she's bred in the last 5 years.