I think the first piece of being a reputable breeder is care of the dogs. If any of their dogs are living like prisoners and/or breeding machines, heck no they aren't responsible! I agree, that is why it irritates me to no end when people "order a puppy". Unless you personally know and trust some one who knows the breeder and has visited the breeder's home, they have no idea what this breeder is about, besides the pretty picture a website can portray. If these people don't care for their dogs enough to treat them like a loved companion and welcome them into their home, they truly are not breeding to better anything but their wallet.

Besides that, it really is important that the breeder is ensuring that the puppies are of the best quality possible. Health tests, showing, and working in the dogs particular sport, is soooo important. But, even if the breeder has titles on some of their dogs, if they aren't providing a great life for all of their dogs and providing a great start for their puppies, titles don't even matter... they're as bad as any BYB. One of my biggest pet peeves is people who just pay to use a champion stud for their totally un-proven bitch. Both parents should be titled. I had a really hard time finding any reputable Cardigan breeders, hence why we were going to drive to Washington from California! I didn't have a problem with that, but it would be nice to have a nice community of local breeders. I only had the chance to speak to 2 reputable Cardi breeder in all of CA! There are more, of course, but most are inactive/not breeding.