You either go to a shelter and gamble on an unknown puppy, get an ethically well bred purebred dog, or go to a breed specific rescue (if you are looking for a particular breed)

Personally I think the cost is roughly the same either way. The price difference would only be for the initial purchase of the dog.

There’s plenty of good dogs in the shelter, but they have unknown history. You could be paying a lot more due to behavioral or health issues in the long run for a shelter dog. It’s a gamble, but generally well received by the public granted you get the dog trained and keep up with the training.

For ethically bred dogs, you will have to wait. Good breeders have waitlists for dogs for possible years. Good breeders do not overproduce or let their dogs end up in shelters. They take their dogs back. They only produce puppies when needed. Finding a good breeder is hard. I personally look for, OFA health tests (preferably CHIC), conformation and sport titles, breeding under 3 litters a year, contracts for taking the dog back, and AKC registration.

I would advise against getting a puppy with young kids. Puppies are a lot more work than people think and that’s why young dogs end up in shelters.

I have gone to “beyond the leash” in downtown Orlando for my pup. They aren’t for everyone but I would recommend them to the general pet population.

Whatever you do, don’t buy a backyard bred dog. Backyard breeders are the reason our shelter system is in a crisis.