I had one email asking how soon I could send them a lab puppy as she needed one for her children to play with!!!.  That went straight into the deleted bin. 
Also had a phone call from  a very keen lady, asked her lots of questions and she asked me a lot, then she said she would have to have a puppy on a two week trial as her husband may be allergic to it. 
Luckily all my puppies are in lovely homes and I get to see some of them and photos sent etc.

>Is anyone seriously saying that if someone asks them the prices of a dog then they dismiss them on them grounds alone?

No, nobody's saying that! If you read carefully you'll see that it's when people ask the price before they ask anything else that it gives the wrong impression about them! Of course people are going to want to know the price - but if they give the impression that's the most important criterion, then they'll get short shrift from a breeder who cares about the litter they've spent so many months planning and raising.

As for the price of the dog saying much about the quality of the dog - not true, I'm afraid! Puppy farmers often charge higher prices for their mass-produced rubbish than the breeders whose stock actually resembles the breed they're meant to be! ;)

Jeangenie  - just to point out that that even puppies bred by puppy farmers are living, breathing beings. To refer to them as >mass produced rubbish< is, imo, very thoughtless and unkind.

>To refer to them as >mass produced rubbish< is, imo, very thoughtless and unkind.

I doubt if the term bothers the dogs themselves. Are you saying they're not mass produced and generally of poor quality?

Perhaps the term wouldn't bother the dogs themselves but that's irrelevant.
I certainly wouldn't describe any small, defenceless puppy as rubbish. And I can't think of too many dog lovers who would.

The fact that it doesn't bother them is very relevant! My dogs aren't offended at being called 'wastes of space', so why should any others?

The sooner people realise the true 'quality' of puppy-farmed puppies, by facing the truth, the sooner those evil places will cease trading. The "Ahhh, poor thing, it's still very sweet" attitude is what keeps them in business. Speak the truth and shame the devil!

Why would you want to refer to your dogs as a waste of space ?
By the same token would you use the same words to describe a new born baby or a mentally impaired person ?  After all they couldn't be offended by it, could they ?

My husband just this minute called one of our dogs "A waste of space, a waste of money, a waste of food and a waste of air!" The dog wagged his tail and gave him a kiss! Yes, as dalmatians go, Piglet is all of those things - he's rubbish! But we love him dearly.

And yes, I used to sing "You're my favourite waste of time" to my baby son as a lullaby.

I think it would be the dog owners you would be upsetting here, not the dogs.  My dog is not a pure beed, but I still love him, and certainly wouldn't call him a waste of space, and indeed would slap anyone who called him that to my face! :)  (Except maybe the OH!)

You probably wouldn't get on with my friend whose terrier cross is named 'Ugly' - because as she says, he is!

Very weird, Jeangenie......

No, perfectly normal, and the rose-tinted specs were abandoned years ago, tyby! :D

.... perhaps you also need to abandon that sharp axe you use for splitting hairs....

Oh, it's still around somewhere - it hasn't been needed for ages! ;) People have become a lot more accurate in what they say. :D Though it did come as a surprise to hear someone on here defending puppy-farmers!
:)

:D :D

My lot get told all the time they had better behave otherwise they will be taken to the Blue Cross :D :D

They wag their tails and bums at that statement ;)

Lucy
xx

Yep, Alf is threatened with Battersea on a regular basis :p

Hi Blondiflops,

I can see where you're coming from as that was the seond question I asked when we bought out first puppy - Q1, did they have any bitches? Q2, how much?  (well, that became the order after determining what species they were :D )

Having successfully bought our first puppy and quite accidentally being drawn into the show world, we sourced further puppies over the years through meeting folks at shows etc and having come to develop a preference for what we liked.  After that we never knew the price of a pup until we were ready to leave the breeder's premises with it - honestly didn't even think to ask as irrespective of cost we knew exactly which matings we were interested in so price wasn't an issue when we were booking a puppy.

Having since bred a litter myself though, I was very much stricter and more suspicious of prospective new owners than anyone ever had been with us many years ago - more because over that time I'd learnt how much goes into raising, cairing for and totally adoring a healthy, happy, well adjusted litter.  Ironically, someone similar to my own initial approach to buying a puppy would not have got a look in - which as you quite rightly point out could mean losing a few wonderful homes. 

Sorry to ramble - but like I said, I can see both points and it's not a straightforward issue unfortunately.  Regards, Teri :) 

when I got Fagan I didnt think to ask the price, I assumed he would be between £500 - £600 which seemed to be the going price for pedigree dogs.  I had actually had a few telephone conversations with his breeder and was just leaving from my first visit when she asked if I wanted to know how much they were :D :D

I've emailed quite a few breeders/Toller owners in my search for a pup.
This is my first time buying a pedigree dog (first and only dog my parents got for me, from an accidental breeding) and I want to do it right. I haven't even asked a price yet! I'm waiting until I get on a definate waiting list for a breeder (it's all very hazy at the moment!).
But I have been saving for the past year, which has been difficult since I don't have a job! But I do get Educational Maintainance Allowance which is getting me there slowly. I know the average price is £600 and I've not reached it yet but I'm well on my way.

I'm dreading the time I have to make phone calls though :( :( I have severe social anxiety so talking is not my strong point. I'm so worried that after years of waiting I'll spoil my best chance of getting a pup by a phone call that goes wrong :( and then if I meet the breeder they might be put off by me appearing "rude" by the way I avoid eye contact and don't talk much. I'm so incredibly worried :(

I'm good at writing emails though, so perhaps if I can explain this to them before calling/meeting they would be more understanding.

Just remeber that thew breeder will be a dog lover who has spent time and love on their pups so wants the very best for them.  If you then imagine yoruself in that postion you should find breeders easy to talk to, after all tehy are just like you :D

I'm exactly the same, Bekki.  Actually, this is my first post ever on this forum, after lurking for months.  *waves at the other CD-users* 
I too dread phone calls and prefer sending mails - and when I actually made that phone call, I got in touch with a breeder who didn't even seem interested in hearing what I had to say.  :(   I thought breeders enjoyed talking about dogs...  *sigh*
What makes it worse is that the breed I'm interested in is rare up here, so breeders aren't exactly a dime a dozen. 

Send a message if you want to talk.

>>when I got Fagan I didnt think to ask the price

:D I didn't ask the price of my second pup until 3 days before we were due to collect him (this was after speaking to the breeder for over a year beforehand :D ) For my first, I asked the amount right at the end of the coversation after we had arranged to visit them :)

>I didn't ask the price of my second pup until 3 days before we were due to collect him (this was after speaking to the breeder for over a year beforehand<

Ice cosmos,what would you have done if the breeder's price was 500 quid or more,more than you had bargained for,wouldnt this have been a huge wate of a year? I thinking waiting 12mths. before asking the price is a tad much ;)

:D I just never thought to ask. I knew how much the breeder of our breeders bitch charged for her pups along with how much the average price was and I guess I just knew my breeder would be around this amount. I trusted her and her reasons for doing the mating (to keep a pup to show). I knew she wouldn't charge much more than the average so saying 500+ is slightly unrealistic (as no pups in the breed go for this much more than the average).

What you have to realise is to *some people* like myself the price of a puppy or a dog for that matter is not and never been an issue, its how the puppies or dogs have been reared, where they have been reared, the care and attention they have recieved and if all health tests for the breed have been carried out, quite frankly I feel "If you have got to ask you can`t afford" the price of a puppy has never been an issue for me, and its certainly not one of the first questions I ask, I ask about all the other relevent things that I feel are of more importance first, then go and meet the Dam and litter then ask all the questions regarding the price face to face with the breeders.

Asking the price of a puppy over the phone or within an email, well to be honest I just think its rude.

Well obviously you are entitled to your opinion, but I for one certainly don't agree with the last statement, of it being rude to ask about money on the phone/in an email.

I can understand both sides of the argument, as in no breeder would like for the money bit to be the first thing someone asks, but I don't think it is rude to ask, and I think I would feel absolutely gutted if we had gone through all of the palava we have gone through with our breeder, only to turn up on the day we pick the pup up, and the breeder ask for £200 more than what we had 'guessed' at!!! As others have said, would you go and buy a new house or car with out knowing how much it is?

You cannot compare buying a puppy to buying a house or a car, ones bricks and mortar the other is a mechanical device that gets you from A to B.

A dog/puppy is a living breathing animal that has feelings, you cannot compare a dog to a house or a car :)

They are all three something that can vary greatly in price, that will hopefully still be with you in a good few years time, and will be a big part of who you are. I think from a money point of view it is very easy to compare them.

Anyway, as I said you have the right to have your own opinions, I suppose this is the good thing about a forum, you get others views on things :D

Yes thats what makes a good forum :)

For the record I had never laid eyes on the inside of my house when my Hubby brought it for us, quite honestly Im glad that I did`nt   It was a right state, it was minus its roof amongst other things :D

I take it you have been busy doin it all up then!! :D

Yes, but one that you still have to know if you can afford.  You need to know how long you might need to save up for it.  I think it's ridiculous to be offended at someone asking the price - or even a ballpark.  People need to know what to expect.  I think it's also ridiculous to say you can't compare a puppy to a house or car.  You wouldn't INVEST in something without knowing the cost ahead of time - so to invest emotionally in a puppy to then realise you can't afford it is ludicrous to expect.

I agree that the WAY people approach the question can be very off-putting and can tell a lot about where there priorities are, but to outright state that to ask a price at all is just absolutely ridiculous.  You don't buy ANYTHING without knowing first if you can afford it.  I could afford whatever the cost was for my dogs - but I needed to know how long I needed to save so I could actually have one.

Wendy

Natalie, I don't mean to sound rude, but have you read everybody's posts in this thread? If you have, which bit of "Don't start by asking the price" are you having difficulty with? By all means ask later on in the conversation - nobody's suggested it should never be mentioned at all! ;) :)

JG,

I wasn't disagreeing with that part, this is a post I wrote earlier:

>Blondiflops, I think what I took out of what others have said about the price, is that if someone rings and says "how much are they" first before anything else, then they see this as the 'potential' owner being more bothered about how much the pup will cost, than parents health certificates, pedigrees, or even if there are any puppies available!

What I was disagreeing with was the (something along these lines) 'if you have to ask how much the pup is, you can't afford it', but the person who said this and I have talked about it, and we have both said people are entitled to their own opnions, and it has been left at that.

I don't know if you have got me mixed up with someone else, but certainly I can't see how you have come up with your last comment.

Nat :D

Sorry Natalie, your comment "I think I would feel absolutely gutted if we had gone through all of the palava we have gone through with our breeder, only to turn up on the day we pick the pup up, and the breeder ask for £200 more than what we had 'guessed' at!!!" suggested to me that you thought people were advising never to ask the price at all. My mistake! :)

JG,

That comment was in reply to the statement of 'if you have to ask, you can't afford'.

JG if I have upset you, I am sorry, but I am getting the feeling you are trying to cause an argument here, even that snipet of a post I had written before, that you have just chosen to pick up on, explained on it, that I could see both sides of the argument.

I hope you have just taken a post of mine the wrong way or something, because I don't know what I have done for you to be like this? Or that I have taken your post's the wrong way, but you do seem intent on trying to make it sound like I was saying asking the price SHOULD be the first thing. I have made it quite clear I don't agree with this, and have even given a brief example of what my first email was to my breeder. If I thought the price should be the first thing you ask, wouldn't I have done just that on my first email?

As I said I hope this is just a mix up, but if it isn't I would rather you came out and said what your problem is with me.

Nat :D

Natalie, I just said I'd misunderstood what you meant - that it was my mistake - it just sounded to me as though you thought breeders were suggesting that price should never be asked at all. Obviously I misinterpreted (though I'm still not sure why you'd 'guess' at a price and not ask! ;))! :o I have no problem with you at all! :)

OK, well I got it wrong as well then :D

Sorry, just lately I feel like people have been trying to get me into arguments, that I really don't want, just wanted to put an end to it before it got any further :D

Sorry agan :)

Nat

No problem! :)

I will clear up the matter of "If you got to ask you can`t afford" it was ment as a light hearted joke, however it is a rule I happen to live by.  Wether its in regards to a car, house, or puppy.

In the past whenever I have enquired about puppies or dogs for sale, I never ask the price first, I ask about how the puppies have been reared, where they have been reared (I think this is as equally important) and if all health tests have been done which is very important within Bullmastiffs and Cane Corso`s.  I then ask when there is a suitable time and day for the breeder so I can go and meet the Dam and litter.  I then talk face to face with the breeders about the cost of a puppy I prefer to do that face to face, I feel its rude (I know others may not think like me) to ask that as a first question over the phone or within an email.  I always prefer to talk about the money side of things face to face, that way it I feel it saves any embarrasment on both sides.  Also in most cases it allows you to strike up a conversation with the breeders where they feel they are in a position to get to know you better as they can take you at face value when the price is mentioned.  :)

It's OK MollMoo, as we said yesterday each and everyone of us are entitled to our own opinions, and that hearing others views is what makes for a good forum :D

I have had an email a few months ago from a family looking for a puppy, sent me a long email about there family, dogs they had had , pics of the dogs , children , house, garden etc, just the sort of things you that make you think your pup is going to have an excellent home, genuine people, and yes they definately wanted one and would wait..... when i mailed them to tell them the puppy had arrived they mailed me and said.... they had bought one!! and i found out a few weeks later from talking to people at shows that they had got  exactly the same email from these people saying they wanted one of there puppies and would wait!!! AAAGHHHH!!!

I got a call from someone looking to buy a dog, I dont and never have sold a dog. They didnt speak very good english and insisted that I should sell them a dog. Some how I got the distinct impression that they wanted it to eat. I have no idea what happened but it was one of the wierdest conversations that I have ever had.

Hmm,

The person who sold me my first Bedlie must have thought I was an utter nutter :)  I asked all the questions about health, pedigree, upbringing etc and we discussed everything from showing to training and temperament but I didn't ask the price :D  It was only as I wrote the cheque (they didn't want cash!!) and realised I didn't know what to fill in the box that I thought of it :D :D :D  

Dogs may be a breathing, living things, but like cars and houses I definitely want to know that what I'm paying is not over the odds, that they are of good quality, well made (or bred in the dogs case :d) etc. that they are able to do what they are supposed to, so yet again I make no apologies for putting them not in the same category of course but the same reasoning behind.

Not all good breeders who health test their dogs, breed them in the home, are there 24 hours a day etc. charge extortionate prices that others who don't do.  But I can tell you now many pet people believe that they are getting the best dog because they are paying more even though the pups are from parents who haven't had the necessary health tests!!! 

I'm more than happy for people to ask price first, not always happy when someone says that they want a bitch first though.  They usually have listened to the old wives tales and believe that they are so much better.  I know that in my breed this is definitely not so.

From this thread it's obvious that everybody has their own unique way of buying a pup and also, from the breeders POV, selling ;)

I've always felt embarrassed discussing the price of a pup on the phone with a breeder. Many other questions come to mind before I consider price and I'm definitely not rich, but just don't think it's the done thing. Normally after several phone conversations I am itching to ask but always wait until I meet them before asking. With my last pup, luckily the breeders were firm friends, but I had to pay in instalments....and still feel embarrassed!

When I got the first of my current breed, I didn't have a clue what they sold for and was fairly naive. I phoned the secretary of the breed club and she was so helpful, giving me pointers on average price, what to look for in a puppy of my breed, as the adult result is a far cry from a pup :P They don't even look like the same species, let alone breed

I don't know if it's because it's the British way of doing things, but I find that whenever money is involved we are always backwards in coming forward, except my OH that is :D

with me tho ide like to know the price befor i go and see a litter(personnal opion),because say you go to see the litter & all your boxes are ticked with that breeder and litter.but you cant afford the price there asking . :( ide be gutted at not being able to afford a pup. obviosly ide ask if theyde been health checked ect. i personnally wouldnt wait 3/4 phone calls befor i asked the price .coz if i couldnt afford the fee then ide of waisted not only the breeders time but mine!
if only every1 charged the same!

There are such varying prices in the same breed for a pup, many people price dogs and bitches differently (something I don't agree with) and with Bulldogs for instance you could pay anything from £1200 - £2000 therfore I would call the breeder, ask about health checks, pedigress and kc reg, ask the price and then arrange to go and view if ALL sounds good to me, of course if all the 1st lot of questions are satisfactory you would be willing to [ay the price however as we all know many people are up for getting a few extra bob for the back pocket so I would ALWAYS ask the price before seeing the pup - a greedy breeder is not one I would want to purchase a pup from put it that way.  I hope that makes sense??

I agree with you, if you go and look, decide you can't afford, then you've wasted everybody's time ;)

But if you do your homework about your particular breed before you start ringing around breeders then you should have a fair idea what you're in for. IME, it doesn't vary in price that greatly, the biggest difference in price I have ever found is £100.00, that might seem a lot but when you're paying several hundered £££'s anyway it's hardly going to make a hugh difference.

All the breeders that I have encountered with my particular breed have all charged the same, so on these occasions I have been very lucky :)

So if it's rude to ask the price, then how can people do the homework and find out the average price?  They have to ask SOMEONE??  How can they be expected to know if people are saying it's rude to ask.  Is there a buyers guide or price list out there that they can read so they don't have to ask (very tongue in cheek here)

Wendy

>Is there a buyers guide or price list out there that they can read so they don't have to ask

Yep! The breed clubs will tell you what is a sensible price! ;)