Hi I live in Southern England and I looking to buy an 8 wk old male GSD I have already contacted a breeder who has a litter planned for September but can only afford to pay £300 - £500. I will have to buy a crate pay for inoculations insurance micro chipping, puppy class, and this is influencing the amount we can comfortable pay and I wondered if it would be considered rude if I told the breeder how much I could honestly afford to pay. I have been told that some GSD's are being sold for up to £800 and don't want to waste the breeders time if he is planning to sell the puppies at this sort of price but don't want to come across as only wanting a cheep pup.

hi guest. £800 is steep for a GSD, the price range you have stated seems much more realistic. the best advice I can offer you is to ask the breeder direct how much they charge for their puppies and then you will know the figure you need, and have time to save up/put some money aside for all the other expenses etc :-)

puppy's are expensive - have you considered a rescue GSD?  There always seems to be so many GSD's at rescue homes these days....  :-)

from what guest was saying, i think they have their heart set on a puppy. a pup is always best as you can train it the way you want. rescue dogs may be cheaper but they can be costly as they can have health problems if they are older dogs or have been abused in the past, the other cost t think about is time....it may take a long time to re-train a rescue dog to adapt to its new life. if guest wishes to buy a puppy they should do so if it is the best thing to do for their circumstances. :-)

I am not sure of the price of GSD pups but i believe £450 - £500 may be fine, i am sure someone will put me right if i am wrong :)

Do be sure your breeder has done all the tests - SO important, or you could end up with a pup who is unhealthy and constantly needing the vet. Try to visit the breeder several times if possible before you buy too ;)

Don't be afraid to ask them lots of questions ie are the pups brought up to be used to household noises....and not just stuffed away in a kennel all the time.

If you explain the reason for asking, and say you are aware of costs for insurance etc i am sure the breeder will be OK, but don't make it your first question as many breeders would be put right off you ;)

I agree there are many GSDs in rescues, it may be worth thinking about.

Good luck

Lindsay

Our GSD is from Battersea and we have had him for 8 years, he is the best dog we have ever had and at the time cost us £50! Please consider a rescue one, as long as you know the history they can be the best dogs in the world! If you are worrying about the cost now they can be expensive once you have them too, do make sure you get pet insurance and be prepared for the amount they eat! Also GSD's can be a bit naughty with chewing!! Happy looking!

£500 is a fair price for a GSD considering you could have it for the next 12 years and it's going to be a part of the family:-)  That's what my last pup just cost me- and he's the pick of litter.  I know many are charging over the odds these days but there are still some out there prepared to sell a quality puppy to the right home at a reasonable price- same as anything you just have to shop around :-)

Stacey x x x

For the £500- he's had an initial parvo boost to protect him, microchipped, wormed regularly, so many weeks free insurance etc :-)

Stacey x x x

Guest I live in the South and I have GSD stud dogs, believe me the price is an average of £450-500, if any breeder is trying to sell you a pup at £800 take a long walk in the opposite direction, especially if the person is in London. If you contact me personally I can help you find a reputable breeder in the South or if you are considering  a rescue as I have many contacts but......... I would only have a rescue if you know the full details from the dogs owner and only if you are experienced with GSD's, they are fabulous dogs in the correct hands but if you are not experienced they are the easiest dog to get wrong.
But I don't think rescue is the issue here, I think someone is trying to take advantage of your nature :)
Debbie.

Just wondered, in our breed, the more poorly bred the dog is, the more it costs! I presume this is because the buyers for these pups haven't done their homework which the bad breeder knows, so they can charge what they like and the unsuspecting puppy buyer pays over the odds for a poor pup. These 'breeders' often charge more for things like blue eyes and rare white colouring. A tiny bit of research would show that there is nothing rare about whites or blue eyes! Just remember, in dogs, you don't always get what you pay for.

Yes Husky that sounds about right, same applies to coat colour.

Hi Guest, wouldn't you consider a rescue dog? About 12years ago, I adopted a GSD from the council dog home. Sadly we only had her for 4 years before she died. I have to say though, she was a brilliant dog. I still miss her to this day. She had been badly treated but we nursed her back to health and was a truelly rewarding girl. There are some brilliant dogs out there in need of a home. However if you have your heart set on a puppy then I would research everything there is to know about a GSD. That way, you will know a great deal about them. I know that puppies can be expensive, but is it really £800!! WOW. Thats a lot. I am in Scotland and a GSD puppy is around 350-450. I am getting a dachshund puppy soon and he is £500 but that includes, innolculations, food, five generation pedigree and insurance. I know that people say 'you get what you pay for' but I think that £800 is expensive especially considering you have to pay for innoculations and everything else. I would reconsider that breeder and head North.

Hi Guest £800 does sound a little expensive,this could be for one or two reasons-
firstly the breeder is just out to make a few extra quid in which case they are not reputable so stay away!
secondly the puppies are from rare or imported lines meaning the breeder had extra costs when breeding this litter.
The parents of you puppy should be hip scored ,eye testes and hemothilia tested(gosh i wish I could spell!!) so double check they are .
also if you cant afford this price look for rescue the best dog I ever owned was as a child she was a german shepherd cross greyhound and adorable. :)

And guest, please remember that the purchase price is only the start of the expense, it just gets bigger and more as the years go by.

Exactly!

Not so long ago I refused to drop the price for a puppy. I felt a real heel about it especially as the people had been waiting for a good time, but eventually I decided that if they couldn't afford a (relatively) moderate price that they'd known about for months I couldn't trust them to be able to pay for any nasty surprises later on. I still feel guilty about it though ...

I did take the price of another pup in another litter as installments but that didn't 'feel' the same. The people were quite willing to pay, but were having building work done and didn't have the readies at the time. I thought that if they would pay installments to me, they would pay the far more important ones for insurance. Glad to say it worked out very well and that pup has an excellent home.

Edited to say to say to Guest that tcarlaidh is right - more expensive definitely does not always mean better.