Above all do not purchase a pup from a commercial breeder or from one of their retailers. These breeders raise puppies in "mills" or farms, where the adults are minimally maintained (often under vile conditions) and kept in cages throughout their lives. The bitches are bred at every cycle. Many are never vaccinated. The pups never get the all- important early socialization from dam and litter mates -- they are taken away too young so they can be shipped cross-country and placed in pet shop windows or commercial kennels at their most appealing age. Many of these have problems (physical, temperamental or both) that will show up only later in life. Most will bear only a passing resemblance to the best representatives of the breed. Even if you luck out and get a puppy mill pup that is healthy and adjusts well, you will have contributed to the cycle of abuse that condemns their parents to a life of suffering.