Fifteen Questions to Help You Find The Best Maremma Sheepdog Breeder

So you've decided you need a Livestock Guardian Dog and that the Maremma Sheepdog is the best breed for your needs. You love the idea of rescuing dogs but feel that entrusting your valuable and beloved livestock to a dog with an unknown history is too risky. You've looked around on Craigslist and a few Facebook "Livestock Guardian Dogs For Sale" groups. Still, those seem even more dangerous than adopting a dog. After all, there are a lot of "big white" Livestock Guardian Dog breeds. How do you know if the dogs on these venues are indeed Maremmas, much less if they are healthy and have had the proper early socialization and training puppies need to mature into trustworthy LGDs? 

The best way to ensure you get the dog you need is to buy from a breeder of registered Maremmas. However, finding a breeder you can trust is another matter entirely.

And you have so many questions! Where do you find a Maremma Sheepdog breeder? How do you know if a breeder is reputable and trustworthy? What traits should you look for in a Maremma Sheepdog puppy? Is health testing necessary for Maremmas? How much does a Maremma Sheepdog cost? Where do you even start? Don't worry; we have the answers to all those questions and more!

You might first google "Maremma Sheepdog breeders near me" or "Maremma Sheepdog puppies for sale" or similar terms. Doing so is likely to turn up anything from the websites of breeders to links to social media pages and posts on Facebook Livestock Guardian Dog groups. Since Maremmas are not an AKC-recognized breed, you can't go to the AKC Marketplace like you can for some of the more common Livestock Guardian Dog breeds like Great Pyrenees or Anatolian Shepherds. 

The Maremma Sheepdog Club of America registers Maremmas in the United States. You could visit the MSCA website and check their breeder listing and ads. But are all breeders listed on the MSCA website reputable? Maybe. Or maybe not.

Make sure you read the disclaimer at the bottom of the MSCA Breeder Listing page:

"Disclaimers: The Maremma Sheepdog Club of America (MSCA) does not guarantee the services or dogs obtained from any breeder, nor does the MSCA assume any responsibility or liability regarding any agreements you may enter into with any breeder. The MSCA does not recommend, guarantee, rate, or endorse any breeder or their stock. Buyers should check all matters relating to registration, health, and quality before purchasing any dog. 

The MSCA does not guarantee or accept any responsibility or liability of any kind for the quality, health, or temperament of any dog purchased from breeders on this list, nor for the warranty, guarantee, integrity, honesty, reliability expressed or implied by any MSCA member included on this list.

The MSCA is not liable for individual breeders' adherence to the MSCA Code of Ethics. Any potential buyers must ask pertinent questions of the breeder to discern their responsibility as breeders, especially as it relates to OFA and/or PennHIP certifications and ratings."

So while the MSCA breeder listing might help you find breeders, it will not help you discern which breeders you can trust, even if they are Code of Ethics breeders. 

​Finding breeders is one thing. Discerning if a breeder is reputable, ethical, and breeding high-quality dogs is another matter. So how do you tell a reputable Maremma Sheepdog breeder from an unethical one? Begin by asking yourself the following questions:

1) Does the Maremma Sheepdog breeder focus on selling "affordable" dogs?
Here's where we answer the burning question, "How much does a Maremma Sheepdog cost?" The answer is it depends on what the buyer and the breeder value. There are breeders out there, even Code of Ethics breeders, who emphasize providing "affordable" dogs to people. They claim that farmers can't afford expensive dogs, and maybe in some cases, that's true, but in reality, what someone can or can't "afford" has more to do with what they value than how much they make. 

We all have things we spend money on that others think are frivolous. And in an age when a "Doodle" or your average lap dog is $3000-5000, I don't believe that high quality, well-socialized registered Maremma puppies out of proven working, health-tested parents that will grow up to be responsible for the very lives of the farmer's other animals aren't worth at least as much as these fancy pet dogs. 

I have no problem with doodles or lap dogs. I am highlighting the disparity in our thinking when such dogs are seen as more valuable than well-bred working dogs that will fulfill a crucial role. As breeders, let's aim higher. We are ethically responsible for raising the bar for the breed we claim to love. 

The push for "affordable" registered Maremmas primarily comes from lazy, irresponsible, and apathetic breeders. Breeding and properly starting quality working Maremma puppies takes a lot of money and a lot of hard work. The cost of puppy food alone, as well as food for the parents, is out of this world. Then there's health testing for the parents before you even breed them. There are vet bills, vaccines, external and internal parasite prevention, microchips, grooming expenses, and other supplies. It adds up so fast!

And caring for and raising puppies, while very rewarding, is a lot of work. Puppies and parents need to be fed and groomed. Pups must be dewormed, vaccinated, weighed, cleaned, and sometimes bottle-fed if the litter is large. The whelping box must be changed daily, which means lots of laundry. And once mom stops cleaning up the puppy poop, guess whose job it is?! Puppies must be socialized with livestock while keeping safe from hooves, beaks, extreme temperatures, and bad weather. They also need to be socialized with humans and encounter as many novel experiences as possible so that they mature into safe, stable, resilient dogs instead of feral creatures.

So how does a breeder produce "affordable" pups while doing all of the above? They don't. Instead, they cut corners and make compromises. Health testing? Too expensive! We'll skip that, and if the puppy ends up with Hip Dysplasia, we'll blame the owner. We weren't planning to give a health guarantee, anyway. 

Quality dog food? No, we'll buy one of those cheap, inferior brands instead. And make sure not to "overfeed" the pups or mom. A cozy whelping box with interchangeable pads that we'll need to change and wash daily? More work. How about a bare kiddie pool in a cold garage? No blanket is necessary. Just hose it out as needed. Never mind that the slick plastic is not only cold but could do lasting damage to the puppies' joints. Efficiency is what matters. 

Or whelp the puppies in the barn, no matter the time of year. Throw a little hay in a corner of the sheep or goat pen. Half the pups die of exposure or heat stroke or are stepped on by livestock, but that's an "acceptable" loss for breeders who prioritize "affordable" over other things. 

Toys, treats, and enrichment activities? More expensive and requires more work. We'll skip all that in the name of "not making pets out of the pups ."Yep, that sounds like a good excuse for neglect. 

Are we socializing puppies with livestock? That's too much work for the profit-driven, irresponsible breeder. It would be easier to keep them locked in the garage, patio, small kennel, or a stall in the barn. But minimal effort and work are what matters. We're just warehousing them until they are weaned and ready to go home. And ASAP!

And that is how you raise "affordable" pups! Granted, not every breeder of "affordable" puppies cuts every corner mentioned. But they all cut some of them and others not listed. They all make sacrifices to produce pups with minimal effort and expense. And the puppies, their future owners, and the livestock they are supposed to protect all too often pay the price. And the breed as a whole pays the price since these breeders perpetuate practices that aren't in the breed's best interest.

If "affordable pups" matters most to you, you shouldn't have too much trouble finding that. But if high-quality, well-bred, correctly socialized, and healthy pups are what you're looking for, then read on to learn to read between the lines and pick the right breeder. 

2) Does the Maremma Sheepdog breeder have a Breeding Program, or do they breed dogs? And if they do have a Breeding Program, is their program in line with your needs and values?
There is a very distinct and essential difference between "breeding dogs" and having a breeding program. Someone who "breeds dogs" is usually in it strictly for the money and is not committed to doing everything they can to best serve their dogs, clients, or breed. A "Breeding Program" is carefully thought out with specific goals and carried out intentionally to achieve those goals. These goals may or may not align with what you are looking for but understanding the difference and learning about the breeder's "program" as a whole, instead of just about their available puppies, will help you decide if they are the breeder for you. Not every breeder is suitable for every potential puppy owner. Understanding the breeder's goals and values and how they align with yours is the most critical step in choosing a breeder.

3) Does the Maremma Sheepdog breeder have any expertise, training, and experience in their field? 
How long has the breeder been breeding Maremmas? Have they bred any other breeds? Has the breeder taken any professional courses like dog training, behavior, or puppy socialization courses? Have they worked in dog-related professions, such as dog grooming or veterinary medicine? Do they run a working farm or ranch raising one or more livestock species or only have a few pet animals? Or do they even have any livestock at all? (A breeder with no livestock should not be breeding working LGDs. Puppies have critical socialization windows in the first weeks and must be exposed to livestock before this window closes.) Everyone has to start somewhere, but the more experience a breeder has as a dog breeder, livestock producer, or in another capacity working with an