Discussions

All I want is a small dog to welcome into my home. How am I supposed to afford looking after the poor thing when they all cost over $1000 at the least! I understand a lot goes into breeding, but seriously! 2k for a puppy?

Adopt, not buy.

A lot of these dogs too are just made up breeds. Breeding two dogs together and then calling them a cockapoo doesn’t make it pure bred. It’s still technically a mutt. Not sure where all these made up designer breeds came from, but yes very expensive.  
 
Best bet is a rescue. Winnipeg has rescues specifically for small dogs.

Why are engagement rings so expensive?  
 
And mutts.  
 
I agree with you. However, if you can’t afford the dog though, you probably can’t afford the vet bills, or vet emergencies.

For a dog that costs that much you should be getting a CKC registered pure bread with a healthy lineage. If it is a mix of any kind or is not CKC registered than I would not pay that much.  
You also have to factor in costs such as initial vaccinations and neuter or spay fees that have already been paid by the breeder. This will be built into the cost of the dog. If these things have not been done before the sale then again, so not pay that much.  
When we got our dog we seriously considered adopting but small breeds are harder to come by. So if you are not set on a particular breed, this may be a good option for you.  
 
Edited by Jellybean, 2020-09-10 18:07:25

The simple answer is these dogs are that expensive because people will pay those prices. If nobody bought dogs from backyard breeders (and yes, no matter how much you love your dogs or only breed when you have people who want to buy puppies - you are a back yard breeder unless you are researching pedigrees and breeding Registered dogs), they would stop selling puppies. In some places in the US, shelters are full of small dogs that nobody wants.

I would normally agree with you, but there's also this thing where crossing breeds sometimes gets you new breeds.  
 
Case in point: the Australian Labradoodle. They are fighting to get recognition as a distinct breed.

I own an “Aussiedor” Australian shepherd lab mix. He was free from a farmer. My cousin bought one from washington. Almost $2000  
Labradoodle is also a mutt.  
 
Just because they’re trying to get recognition doesn’t mean they aren’t still currently a mutt.

you are willing to spend any amount to purchase an animal when there are so many in the community already that need homes then don't complain about the price. Some just want a pet to provide love and a home for while others see it as a form of status to have a pet with a pedigree. Breeders can smell the latter from a mile away...hence the price.

For all saying adoption remember it’s not always an option. We were denied when we tried to adopt.  
 
We ended up buying our 2 dogs. $50 for a small breed mutt - best dog ever. We then paid $800 for a purebred shitzu.  
 
Yes they are ridiculous prices. Keep looking around. The lady who we got our shitzu from breeds every year I believe.

I have scowered every rescue I can find in a reasonable distance for a year.

To find small breeds via adoption.  
 
It must have something to do with small breeds not being abandoned as much unless they have behavioral issues. Even in the southern US, where they have so many feral dogs roaming, the size is generally larger.  
 
We watched for over a year for smaller breeds to come up in our local shelters and very rarely did they come up - but large breeds were everywhere.  
 
Funny thing is, though we live in Vancouver, we finally decided on a puppy that had been rescued from Manitoba - a husky Sheppard cross. She is on the smaller side of those breeds, but still larger than we hoped for. The group that we adopted from brings about a dozen litters of pups from Manitoba to BC every year because they are so prevalent. So sad....

We bought our dog from a "back yard breeder" he was $1,000. He's an awesome dog. Has the temperament, specific breed we were after.  
We took him to the vets spent almost $2000 on all his vet care over the first year  
Shots, neuter, tattoo, microchip, blood work, tic and flea prevention.  
 
People complain and say adopt don't shop. It's rare you find purebred dogs at the pound or the human society. You find mutts that people who have no business buying dogs buy for cheap when they're puppies and cute. Then they don't get them fixed, don't take them to the vets they get pregnant spit out a littler and then get dumped at the human society or on some country road somewhere.  
Maybe increasing the price of dogs will deter people buying them on a whim because they're cheap and cute then when they pee all over the floor our chew your favorite pair of shoes you get rid of them because you only paid $100 for it in the first place.  
 
If you're complaining about how expensive a dog is to buy you shouldn't be considering a dog at all because the initial cost to purchase the dog is only a fraction of what they will cost to look after them (properly) over their lifetime.

Thank you so much for saying this! You are so correct! If you want a particular dog you need to be prepared to pay for it! Perhaps if all pets came with a decent price tag there would not be some many homeless and unwanted pets. If someone wants a small breed or any breed dog it is worth saving your money and paying the price for a dog that was bred by caring dog owners. It drives me crazy that people want "cheap" pets. These are the ones that end up having sub-par vet care, don't get spayed or neutered, and create litters of unwanted puppies. Do your homework and prepare to pay for the right pet. Tip: If a breeder won't let you come in person to see the puppies, where they live or meet either of the parents, then you are probably dealing with a puppy mill.

I'm sorry, but you scoured every rescue. What about Funds Fur Furry Friend or the Brando Humane Society?? Lots of dogs there. Funds have a few dogs, mostly adult and already house and social trained. We fostered the dog Mercedes who has now been adopted and moving on to the next phase in her life. It is such a rewarding experience to watch these dogs go on to there happy place. Humane Society has lots of puppies who would love to have a new home to live in rather than the kennel.  
I beg you to check those out first.  
 
https://www.fundsfurfriends.com/adoptable-dogs.html  
 
https://www.brandonhumanesociety.ca/

We are looking for a small dog...Do you know the name of this rescue?

We were denied by local rescues. They didn’t even come look at our house, call our references or anything. The dog we wanted to adopt ended up being returned because he needed a home without other pets which is what we had to start with.  
 
The whole process left a bad taste in my mouth. We are very good fur parents- our dogs are regularly vetted, fixed, attend daycare, get groomed regularly and we attended puppy classes. We also donated a lot through our business to local rescues.  
 
Anyway a little off topic sorry.  
 
OP just keep looking. Eventually one more in your price range will come along but I very much agree dogs are not cheap so your chances of finding one is slim.

I breed dogs, they are not registered but are true to breed. I guess I would be a “backyard breeder” but I think that is A little disrespectful to what I do. My dogs are housepets first: they live in my home, they are well taken care of, have proper veterinary care, good food. They have a huge yard to protect them from traffic, predators, etc.  
 
I sell puppies. Been doing it for 13 years. I enjoy it and I love seeing people falling in love with their new pet. Yes, my pups go for around $1000. It’s a lot of work raising them. I have a small-medium breed and they aren’t born out under the woodshed. A litter of pups in the home take a lot of work and it isn’t all pretty. The puppies get vet care before going to new homes. My vet told me “charge lots: if you give a pup away you might as well take it out in the driveway and run over it yourself: free Dogs don’t get looked after very well”.  
 
I have a good reputation with my dogs and I rarely advertise anymore as the grapevine sells most of them before they are born.

The price of dogs has gotten ridiculous, I firmly believe that dog breeders and vets have put these prices high and it’s fools that pay. I for one would not, ive lost 2 dogs to shots, and these vets push them as well as other shots. It’s not good for the dogs and not necessary , only shots that are needed is puppy shots. And I was told that from the breeder! I have two registered small dogs, papered and microchipped and I paid 650.00 for each one. My friend almost lost her small dog from shots and required surgery to remove a big mast , the 3000.00 vet bill was eventually covered by the company that makes these shots and admitted that it in fact was the cause! My daughter had to put her Boston down as a result of flee and tick shots as he lost use of his back legs , and yet it appears that your not a good candidate to adopt from a rescue if you don’t take your pet for shots , as my daughter found out when they tried to get one! Go figure! Not a wonder there are so many dogs looking for homes.

The logical answer to your question is simple - dogs are a life time commitment whereas an engagement ring is good for maybe 5 years on a good day. -LOL On a serious note - keep looking you will find what you want eventually - just make sure you do not get caught up in those puppy scams. I raised small dogs for 35 years and over the years I have lost dogs and puppies to vaccinations - this simply goes with the territory. I kept records of each time one of my dogs or one of the puppies I sold had a bad reaction to a vaccine - each time the reaction was due to a vaccine sold under the trade name of G*******. Even though I no longer breed dogs, I have re-home several small house dogs for my friends who have either died, moved into a nursing home or due to health reasons were unable to care for their little friend. Keep looking as small dogs owned by seniors are re-homed quite often for various reasons and all the senior wants is a good home for their beloved. As far as Rescues go they need to re-evaluate their adoption criteria because a lot of good forever homes are being denied adoption for the most stupid petty B.S. - As far as the Vets go - more dogs would receive Vet care if the Vets would put the health and welfare of the pet first and their concern for money and wealth second.

 
 
Edited by Skifam4, 2020-09-13 10:39:27

I am sorry for the unfortunate loss of your pets. However I think that your statement that those who pay for regular shots for their pets are fools is unfair . The risk of allergic reaction to a vaccine is far lower than the risk of disease and illnesses that the pet may contract or pass on to others.

smaller dogs are in higher demand. And if it’s a purebred then it adds onto the price tag.