Free tool for breeders
A good contract isn't about lawyers — it's about both sides remembering the same agreement two years later, and about your puppy having a way home if life changes. Here's what experienced breeders put in writing, in plain language.
Educational checklist — have your final contract reviewed by a lawyer in your state.
The checklist
Use this to build a new contract or audit the one you have. If a clause below isn't in your current agreement, that's the gap a hard conversation will someday fall through.
Full legal names and contact details for both sides, plus the puppy identified specifically: breed, sex, color, DOB, microchip or litter ID, and the sire and dam. “The black male” is not an identification when there are three black males.
Total price, deposit amount, when the balance is due, and — the part everyone forgets to write down — exactly when a deposit is refundable, transferable to another litter, or forfeited. This clause prevents 90% of breeder-buyer disputes.
What you guarantee (congenital/hereditary conditions), for how long, and what the remedy is — replacement puppy, partial refund, or vet-bill contribution up to the purchase price. Be specific about what's excluded: parasites, hypoglycemia in toy breeds, injuries after go-home.
The buyer takes the puppy to their own vet within a set window (72 hours is common) and can return the puppy for a full refund if a significant issue is found. This protects both of you — and proves good faith to nervous buyers.
Limited or full registration, spelled out. If it's a pet home: the spay/neuter expectation, the age window, and what proof you want. If breeding rights are sold, say so explicitly and at what terms.
If the buyer can't keep the dog — at any age, for any reason — the dog comes back to you or is rehomed only with your written approval. For most preservation breeders this is the single non-negotiable clause in the whole document.
The basics you expect: vet care, food quality, containment (no chaining, no free-roaming), training expectations, and whether you require they contact you before rehoming, selling, or surrendering. Keep it enforceable — three real commitments beat ten aspirational ones.
What goes home with the puppy: vaccination and deworming records, microchip paperwork, registration application, food sample, and what ongoing support you're promising. If you promise “lifetime support,” define what that means to you.
If this is a guardian home or co-own, the standard contract isn't enough — spell out who pays for what, show/breeding obligations, when full ownership transfers, and what happens if the arrangement breaks down. Never leave this to a text-message agreement.
Both parties, dated, with the state whose laws govern the agreement. An unsigned contract is a wish list. E-signature is legally recognized across the U.S. and means you're never chasing paper the week puppies go home.
From paper chase to signed
Go-home week means eight families, eight contracts, eight deposits — and you in the whelping box. On Expert Breeder's Builder plan, contracts go out for e-signature tied to the right family and the right puppy, beside the invoices and the waitlist you already keep. Nothing gets signed at a tailgate on a clipboard.
E-sign from any device
Tied to the family's record
Invoices and payment links beside it
Free plan handles everything before the contract
Building your application first? Start with the free puppy application template.
Contract questions
Applications, waitlist, dogs, and litters cost nothing. When you're ready for e-sign contracts, Builder is $15 a month.
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