If you want a great Tibetan Mastiff; go to a small hobby breeder who does not care about showing. Avoid breeders who just bought a male and female and as soon as they turned two; bred them. Be particularly cautious of breeders who breed the same pair year after year. A person who has only owned Tibetan Mastiffs for two years before breeding them is obviously only in it for the money in my opinion. I AM OF THE OPINION THAT THESE SELF PROCLAIMED and SO CALLED "ELITE" BREEDERS HAVE CREATED THEIR "DILEMNA" WITHIN THE TIBETAN MASTIFF BREED. Here are a article explaining the Tibetan Mastiff fad. SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE BOUGHT TWO TIBETAN MASTIFFS, BRED THEM WITHOUT ANY TESTING THINKING THEY WERE GOING TO MAKE A TON OF MONEY. NOT SO. THE "ELITIST" AND PEOPLE BREEDIING FOR MONEY HAVE CAUSED A ABUNDANCE OF TIBETAN MASTIFFS IN THE MARKET. THEY WILL ATTACK ANYBODY. PETITION AKC TO REQUIRE DNA PROFILES TO BE PUT ON FILE BEFORE BREEDINGS OCCUR OR DENY REGS - SIGN HERE BEWARE OF SO CALLED "ELITE" BREEDER SITES. These opinions are based on my experiences with most AKC show breeders. I read it has been said that some of the most unpleasant humans on the face of the earth have been drawn to the breed to protect their own aggressive and hostile reputations and project them onto their exotic charges. This seems to be a very true and sad assessment with the Tibetan Mastiff. We had never owned an AKC registered dog prior to getting our first TM and just by doing what we thought was an act of kindness to a family in need we got sucked into a group of people whom we wish we never met. There are some very long time breeders out there and "corporate puppy mills" that use people for there own advantage and they do not seem to care about the people they hurt in the process. Here is what I have learned:
Stay away from breeders who are constantly bragging about "championships"
Avoid breeders who breed multiple breeds.
Avoid contracts where you owe puppies back in the future or require showing.
I was mislead into believing all these things were a sign of quality.
Avoid highly inbred lines. This is called C.O.I. (co-incidence of inbreeding) Just search the subject and you can find many articles of explanation.
There are certain kennel names I will not use in my breedings for my own reasons. I don't want to breed things that can be avoided.
Avoid breeders who breed more than one breed and do not incorporate "all" their dogs into their house as family members.
Make sure that both parents have passed their hip, elbow and thyroid testing. Here are a few articles that best describe the obsession of wanting to win so badly does to people. Dog poisoned at Colorado Dog Show and Dog Poisoned at famed Dog Show. Exactly why I want no part of AKC or people like this.
QUESTIONS TO ASK HOW MANY LITTERS AND HOW MANY BREEDS ARE THEY PRODUCING? TIBETAN MASTIFFS REQUIRE A LOT OF SOCIALIZATION. SOCIALIZATION BEFORE AND AFTER YOU GET THEM IS PROBABLY THE MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR IN PRODUCING A GOOD, STABLE, AND CONFIDENT PUP. DOING WHAT YOU LOVE AND DOING WHAT YOU "HAVE TO DO" REALLY MAKES A DIFFERENCE. BREEDING FOR A LIVING AND BREEDING FOR THE "LOVE OF THE BREED" ARE TWO DIFFERENT THINGS. I am not in the "business" of breeding dogs and hope that these suggestions might be able to save somebody else what we went through. Prior to owning our first Tibetan Mastiff we only had rescue dogs. We never had an AKC registered dog. The AKC has not proven to me that they care about the dogs. They have also demonstrated to me that they do determine ownership, contrary to what they say. This should be of great concern to anybody with an AKC registered dog. Your rights as an owner seem to be debatable with the AKC. With so much money riding on show dogs; it is never good. Actually, I find many of these show breeders to be dysfunctional and quite scary. They actually have "their" people contact you to "keep track of you and your dogs". I get erroneous emails from these scary people. They will literally "make stuff up" about you and your dogs in order to keep their "dog businesses" going and keep prices up. It is very scary to be involved in any way with these people. Ask to see the dog's registration papers. Who owns the dog? Do they have a job? Is selling dogs what they do for a living? For your own peace of mind I believe you want to be sure the person in possession of a dog; is the person who is on their registration certificate. Personally, I would prefer to know that the owner of a dog is taking care of the dog themselves. I think that shows that they care about their dogs and if it isn't the owner; you want to be sure the dog is not stolen or some other "pyramid" scheme is not going on with the dog. My experiences with people who are breeding for a living have not been good. I feel that not only do the dogs suffer; so does the person who deals with such people. I have found that when a mortgage payment or living depends on a puppy sale; it never is good. People will do unethical things that people who are doing it as a hobby and love for the breed would not do. There is no guarantee that the pedigree you receive from AKC is accurate. Some breeders do their own artificial inseminations so they can just find a dog they want and get it's semen, artificially inseminate their dog, and register the dog using one of their puppy registration papers. Believe it or not? AKC does not require any kind of DNA testing or owner signature for permission to register dogs. Based on what I have seen, your AKC certificate is a WORTHLESS PIECE OF PAPER!. Some very unethical breeders I have met know all the ins and outs. BE WARY OF BREEDERS BREEDING ONE YEAR OLD UNTESTED DOGS! IT IS HIGHLY UNETHICAL and could be a sign of a puppy mill!
What is the purpose of breeding several breeds and multiple litters? WHY HAVE 25+ DOGS? HOW CAN ONE PROPERLY CARE FOR AND SOCIALIZE 25+ DOGS.
AND CERTAINLY DO NOT PAY $2500.00 - $6000.00 FOR A PUPPY BEFORE YOU RESEARCH THE PEDIGREES! SOME PEOPLE WILL POST A LOWER PRICE AND THEN ASK FOR MORE. BE VERY CAREFUL. AKC REGISTERS UN-REGISTERED DOGS!
Some people have cautioned friends of mine not to reveal what you know about certain health issues because there is so much "money riding on the dogs" (i.e. AKC showing) Here are a few quotes taken from a person who has a lot of information about Tibetan Mastiffs. They asked people to share: Quote: "So why would I even have any concern about the introduction of crossbred Chinese dogs into the Tibetan Mastiff gene pool? Simple answer: Deception. I really despise deception. And inaccuracy. I despise that, too. Breeders who crossbreed authentic Tibetan dogs with standardized breeds such as Neapolitan Mastiff, Spanish Mastiff, Chow, Newfoundland, Shar Pei – and then sell the descendants as “Tibetan Mastiffs – are deceiving their buyers. They are lying. And the other thing they are doing is corrupting the pedigree histories of all future descendants of these dogs. Everyone knows that plenty of that has gone on *within* the TM gene pool: Breeders putting the wrong names onto the registrations of pups they produce, either inadvertently because they have multiple litters on the ground at the same time and do not practice good kennel management. Or intentionally because pups registered as by “Champion XXX” (who is sterile) are likely to sell better than pups by his brother who is the actual sire. " and " I'm afraid that most registries are too greedy to look carefully at the validity of the pedigrees being submitted to them. Each one they reject = a financial loss to them...." Unquote. WHAT IS A SNOW LION TIBETAN MASTIFF? BASICALLY IT IS A COLOR AND NOTHING MORE. KESANG CAMPS STRAY GENIE IS PICTURED BELOW. SHE IS NOT A SNOW LION.

AKC SHOW WORLD A SCAM? I THINK SO. FOLLOW THE MONEY! I QUESTION MANY OF THE PEDIGREES AND I BET MOST OF THEM ARE NOT ACCURATE AT ALL. I WONDER WHAT DNA TESTING WOULD REVEAL. PERHAPS THAT IS WHY THEY DO NOT REQUIRE DNA ON ALL PARENTS OF LITTERS. IT WOULD TAKE A BIG CHUNK OF MONEY OUT OF THEIR POCKETS.

MAKING THEIR OWN MAJORS i.e. "KENNEL WINS" - "DEEP POCKETS" AND THE SHOW WORLD - THE SHOW WORLD ILLUSION. I'm thinking Westminster is just about the money? When a breeder brings enough of their own dogs to a show where they know there is no competition to make their own major and get a championship for their dog. SCAM! DON'T BELIEVE THEIR MARKETING TOOLS! FOLLOW THE AKC MONEY TRAIL. GETTING THE DOGS IN FRONT OF JUDGES ALL OVER THE COUNTRY - "CAMPAIGNERS" (GREAT ARTICLE EXPLAINS ALL ABOUT "FOLLOWING THE SHOW WORLD MONEY TRAIL!) This is when a dog goes for months on end to shows all over the country. Doesn't matter if there is any competition because the purpose is for judges all over the country to "get an eye" on the dog and it's "well connected" handler. That way, when Eukanuba or Westminster comes up; the judges will recognize the handler and most likely that dog will win. It's all about following the money! ARE YOU GETTING A BETTER DOG? BASED ON MY EXPERIENCES THE ANSWER IT NO! Quote from article referenced above: Quote: "We asked Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States: "If I'm looking to buy a dog and I see it has been AC-inspected, AKC-registered, does that mean I'm getting a good dog?" "Absolutely not. It really is just a piece of paper without any value for dog welfare," Pacelle told us." UNQUOTE BEWARE OF AKC BREEDERS/JUDGES - CORPORATE PUPPY MILLS? PEDIGREE FRAUD – AKC STUD BOOK? and the list goes on and on. I LIKE OTHERS BELIEVE THAT AKC "CHAMPIONSHIPS" MEAN NOTHING. WITH THE RIGHT HANDLER AND ENOUGH MONEY ANY DOG CAN WIN. BE SUSPICIOUS OF THOSE WHO DO NOT SHOW THEIR OWN DOGS. THEY PROBABLY WOULD NOT WIN WITHOUT A POLITICALLY CONNECTED HANDLER. I WAS TOLD BY A HANDLER THAT AKC CAME UP WITH A GRAND CHAMPIONSHIP CATEGORY BASICALLY TO KEEP THE MONEY FLOWING AND IF YOU ARE SHOWING YOUR OWN CHAMPION AGAINST A "HANDLER'S DOG" YOU MOST LIKELY WILL NOT WIN. IT'S ALL ABOUT THE MONEY AND NOT THE DOG BASED ON WHAT I HAVE BEEN TOLD AND EXPERIENCED. \With so much "politics" in showing I cannot really think why anybody would want to enter their dog in a dog show? Based on what I have seen and experienced with all show people it is only about the owner's ego and the money they think it will bring them in the end; not the dog. Seriously, think about what a huge waste of time it is and the fact that Tibetan Mastiffs would much rather be a home, sitting on the couch or in the yard guarding their territory! Why make them do such frivolous activities that they do not even enjoy? CHAMPIONSHIPSHIPS AND POLITICS.

SOME THOUGHTS ABOUT DOG SHOWS I am not an expert nor do I claim to be. I have had to learn from experience because it seems that many of the long time breeders do not want to "mentor" new people; they only want to take advantage of them. When you are on to their game and see the lies; they will trash you immediately to cover up for themselves. Like I said; I do not trust most of them here in the U.S. Only a few. I think UKC is a much fairer venue. AKC show people will "poo poo" the idea. Perhaps it is because they have to actually show their own dogs. Wow, what a novel idea! My experience with the AKC has been horrible and most of the time I have been confronted by very snooty and condescending people.

Best in Show………….……$450

Reserve Best In Show.........$270

Best In Show National…….$470

Best in Specialty…………..$250

Group I.……...………………$95

Group II……....………………$90

Group III………....……………$80

Group IV………...……………$75