Bernese Breeders Near Me: Regional Clubs & Breeder Referral by State

By the Riverside Berner Guide editorial team
Last updated November 7, 2026

If you typed “Bernese Mountain Dog breeders near me” into a search bar, the best local answer is your regional Bernese club. The Bernese Mountain Dog Club of America (BMDCA) lists 28 regional clubs, each covering a set of states or part of one. Its 2024 FAQ tells buyers to contact the BMDCA and these clubs for breeder information.

Below you’ll find every club, the area it covers and a link to its BMDCA listing page. We also explain how to reach a club, how the BMDCA’s Breed Ambassadors can help, and what the AKC’s breeder referral contact offers.

This guide is independent. We don’t sell puppies, keep a waitlist or take deposits, and we don’t name or rate breeders.

Why a club beats a “Bernese Mountain Dog breeders near me” search

A search engine shows you whoever bought an ad or built a slick website. That isn’t the same as whoever breeds healthy, well-tempered dogs. The Better Business Bureau’s 2025 puppy scam update found that more than half of the pet scams reported to its Scam Tracker started on a website people found through a search engine or social media.

The same report says scam sellers tend to promise shipping and dodge in-person visits or video calls. A real local contact is the opposite of that. The BMDCA’s buying tips say the best approach is a breeder you can visit in person.

A regional club is made up of Berner people in your part of the country. That’s what a “near me” search is really trying to find, and usually can’t.

Every BMDCA regional club and the area it covers

The table lists all 28 regional clubs in the order they appear on the BMDCA’s Regional Club Listings & Rescues page. The second column comes from the “States Covered” field on each club’s own listing page. We checked every listing on November 7, 2026, so confirm on the club’s page before you reach out.

Each club’s BMDCA listing page is linked in the table above.

The listing page also shows the national club itself, the BMDCA, at the top. It doesn’t list a covered area for the national club.

Reading the table

• Coverage overlaps. Pennsylvania appears on six club listings and New York on four. If your state shows up more than once, contact the club whose area sounds closest to you.
• Names can be narrower than the area. The Bernese Mountain Dog Club of Southeastern Wisconsin lists all of Wisconsin, plus Illinois and northern Indiana.
• Some states aren’t named. No listing names Delaware, Hawaii, Kentucky, Nevada or Oklahoma. If you live there, try the club for the nearest neighboring state, or a Breed Ambassador.

In the Midwest? Our Midwest guide sorts these clubs by state, and our Iowa guide covers the Heartland region in more detail.

How to contact a regional club

Click a club’s name in the table to open its BMDCA listing page. Each listing we checked shows the area it covers and a link to the club’s own website. Many also list club officers by role, and some name an officer whose role includes breeder referral.

Start on the club’s own website and look for a contact page or an events calendar. When you write, keep it short and specific so a busy volunteer can help you fast:

• Where you live and how far you’re willing to drive.
• Your household: kids, other pets, work hours and yard.
• That you want breeders who complete the BMDCA’s recommended health tests.
• Whether you’d also consider an adult dog.

Be patient with replies. The AKC notes that club referral contacts are volunteers who may not breed dogs themselves, and asks buyers to allow a few days for an answer. The same courtesy makes sense for regional clubs.

If a club holds events, go. The BMDCA’s FAQ suggests attending dog shows and events and talking with Berner owners there. You’ll meet adult dogs, hear honest stories and learn which names keep coming up.

BMDCA Breed Ambassadors

If no club covers your area, or you’d like to talk before writing to a club, try a Breed Ambassador. The BMDCA’s Find a Berner Puppy page describes them as experienced member breeders and owners who volunteer to talk with buyers, answer questions and help with the search for a breeder and puppy. Use the page’s “Find an Ambassador” link to reach the list.

Ambassadors have to meet set standards. The program’s service agreement says each must have been a BMDCA member in good standing for at least five years and have owned a Berner for at least five years. They must also keep their dogs’ health data current in Berner-Garde, follow the club’s Code of Conduct and be appointed by the club’s board.

Know what they can and can’t do. The agreement says they cover breed basics, costs, health clearances, pedigrees and how responsible breeders work.

If you ask for specific breeders, they refer you only to the BMDCA’s online breeder program and to member breeders within your travel range. The Find a Berner page also asks you to read the program’s disclaimer.

The AKC breeder referral contact

The American Kennel Club recommends starting a puppy search with the breed’s parent club. Its referral contact list names the Bernese Mountain Dog Club of America for Berners. The Berner entry gives website links, including one for regional clubs, rather than a named person.

If a link there doesn’t open, go straight to the BMDCA site and use the table above.

AKC’s breeder FAQ says each breed’s national club has a breeder referral contact, and some clubs also list regional or state contacts. It also says AKC Marketplace can be searched by breed and state, or by breed and zip code radius.

Keep one limit in mind. AKC says it doesn’t license, endorse or recommend breeders, so a Marketplace listing is a lead to check, not a recommendation.

What to do once you have breeder names

A referral starts your homework. It doesn’t finish it. Clubs, ambassadors and AKC point you toward people, and you still need to check each breeder yourself.

• Visit if you can. The BMDCA’s buying tips warn about sellers who won’t let you see their dogs and want to hand over the puppy somewhere else.
• Ask for health results. The BMDCA’s recommended tests for breeding dogs are hips, elbows, eyes, heart and degenerative myelopathy (DM), plus one of three optional tests. See which health clearances to ask for.
• Hold your deposit. The BMDCA tells buyers not to commit or pay a deposit before getting a written contract, a multi-generation pedigree and a detailed family health history. Our guide to deposits, contracts and waitlists explains what to look for.
• Look the seller up. The FTC suggests searching the seller’s name with words like “scam,” “review” or “complaint.” It also warns that money sent by gift card, payment app, crypto or wire transfer is hard to get back.
• See the puppy live. The BBB advises seeing pets in person before paying, setting up a video call, and running a reverse image search on ad photos.

Don’t let price do your vetting for you. The BMDCA’s 2024 FAQ gives a typical range of $3,000 to $5,000, and says careless sellers charge the same. Our page on what a Bernese puppy really costs breaks this down.

Open to an adult dog? The BMDCA’s rescue page says regional clubs handle many rescues, but dogs under two rarely come into the program. Read where to look for a rescue Berner before you apply.

Take our list of questions to ask a Bernese breeder to every call, and know the red flags to check before you send a deposit. For the full picture, see our main guide to finding a Bernese Mountain Dog for sale safely and our guide to finding a reputable breeder.