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Is It Common For The Price Of Pups To Go Up Depending On Demand?


Fleuri
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I've talked to a few breeders and I reckon about 8 out of 10 them will charge more for a show dog then a pet dog. I thought it was common and normal :(

Also charge more for male then females too.

A friend of ours a few years ago purchased from a GSD show litter and chose the long coat puppy that was on limited register due to a coat fault in the breed. The other puppies were all on main register with show potential and our friend tried to bargain with the breeder to get the faulty puppy a bit cheaper. The breeder wouldn't budge on the price which was the same price for all :confused:

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I personally don't see a major issue with charging a different price for pet and show, depending upon breed - some breeds do require considerably more care, grooming, training and socialisation for show prospects between weaning time and the time to go to their new homes. I don't agree with charging more for colour though.....

But it sounds to me like this "breeder" is operating on a sliding scale, almost a doggy auction if you will. So if there are say 10 people looking for a show prospect puppy, she can charge 10 x what she would have charged if there were only ONE person looking for a show prospect???? I think not!!!!! :confused:

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It costs the same to raise a litter, regardless of whether the puppy is show prospect or pet homed. Also while a puppy may appear to be show prospect there is no way to 100% guarantee it. Finally, there are many 'show prospect' dogs in pet homes - the reality is that there are more people who just want a dog as part of their family and are not interested in showing.

Was the breeder you spoke to registered?

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I assume that by 'show pup' we are talking about a pup on the main register. It doesn't matter if the pup doesn't turn out to be show quality it can still be bred with if so desired by the owner. In that case I don't see a problem with a pup on main register costing more.

I do think that going up on demand is a bit dodgy though and that would put me off.

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My breeder charges more for show pups, but so do many US Chessie breeders, it seems to be the done thing in my breed. However I think the difference is the amout my breeder is spending on advertising campaigning the show puppies of the litter.

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I charge more for show potential puppies. The price of my puppies has slowly increased over time, so they don't cost the same they did 5 years ago but what does?

Yes all puppies cost the same to produce which is no where NEAR covered by sale price.

I have invested years of my time to research, travel and import. When I sell a show potential puppy I am selling not just the puppy infront but the generations of selective breeding and the potential to go on to utilise the genetic material I have put together.

There is VALUE in that and I make no qualms in charging more for it.

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I think a lot of breeders will charge more for show puppies (and yes I theoretically do, though have never actually done it! I tend to sell mine for less to encourage people into the ring) because you send them out with some basic guarantees. And if they fail to meet certain standards I would feel obliged to replace that puppy with another. So the extra cost probably covers that risk. In my own puppies the difference is about $200. But when we bought our Amstaff, for example, the difference between show and pet price is $1000. That is a LOT of money!

I have a set price that is in line with other breeders. We generally confer, and have the same prices so no one is underselling the others. I think a breeder who cannot quote a price is doing it for the wrong reasons. Rare colours and all that are easy to accomodate - you just say, any XXXX colour or markings will cost XXXX much. Just like in years gone past, bitches cost more than dogs.

Anyway thats just my two cents worth.

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seems a bit strange

price should be the same for show or pet, from what i have read previously on here its hard to tell if a pup will be suitable for show at 8 weeks old so in the end shouldnt they be charging for a healthy puppy with good parents (ie genetic conditions not present etc)

i would look else where

Rightyo

many breeders will charge more for a show/breed potential puppy to go on Full register

than if the same puppy was to be sold as a pet (ie on Limited Reg).

(NOTE: this is not the same as charging a less amount for a pet puppy and then charging more to put the same puppy on Full Register ie show/breed papers).

Yes some breeders charge the same whether the show/breed potential pup is sold as a pet (Limited Reg.) or Show/breed (Full Register), but many dont.

When you buy a puppy on full register, a puppy that is the standout from its littermates, you are buying the breeder's work, good will, love and diligence to the breed.

I wont part with a standout puppy on full register for pet price - no way.

Pet homes get the same price ($1000-$1500 cheaper than show/breed homes) whether domestic or international bloodlines.

But full register, potential breeders, you wont puchase a puppy that cost 10-20K to put on the the ground and expect to get much change from $3000.

HOWEVER

if that standout pup does not fulfill the owners and my expectations of what is breed/show worthy

its refund or replacement, or refund of cost differential once pup is desexed.

To the OP:

A breeder who might slap on $500 give or take pending the market and what you are willing to pay

might not make for a good choice.

Though like so many other things, so much is breed specific. So really your best guage to what is 'normal', is what other breeders do with the same breed and the same type in the same country (and even then),

rather than what other breeders do with their breeds/pups.

There is no one hard and fast ethical measuring stick that's applicable to all.

Edited by lilli
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Well - shoot me! :(

Personally, I won't decide on a price for my pups until I can figure out what quality they are; what sexes and colours I've got and yes, what other breeders are charging atm. This really varies in both my breeds and naturally I want to sell the pups at MARKET value.

If I set a price a lot higher than other breeders then the likelihood of sales is minimised in an already small market. If the price is too low, people might think they're dealing with Woolies! :rofl: If I get a female chocolate puppy - once again, I *can* charge more as the market demand is much higher - it's not like I can actually breed for a chocolate in my breed and if it's already here and I don't need that pup for my own purposes, then why not ask (and get!) a decent price for it? (I've only bred the one choc Hav and she *is* in a show home.) Ditto for particolours which everyone seems to want.

Sorry but I don't see that as being a crime!

I don't have a hard and fast rule about show potential puppies being more expensive - in fact - in some cases, the price has been less as I'd prefer a pup to be in the ring! Limited register pet puppies generally need more back up support, more questions, more grooming advice - how do they join a puppy school, when should I give puppy a bone, puppy has the runs what do I do etc etc.

No, IMO the price shouldn't go up.

The breeder should be looking to place their pups in suitable homes.

Matching pups with suitable homes is of utmost importance but I'm still going to sell pups for the price that I want to. :cry:

Ditto. I don't think much about what I will charge until later down the track (up to about 7wks). I will usually just give people a price range and decide later. Sometimes it may come down to how much I want that person to have one of my pups. I don't breed often enough to have set price.

Edited by badboyz
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[Though like so many other things, so much is breed specific. So really your best guage to what is 'normal', is what other breeders do with the same breed and the same type in the same country (and even then),

rather than what other breeders do with their breeds/pups.

There is no one hard and fast ethical measuring stick that's applicable to all.

I also agree with this. When I had beagles and was part of the club, all breeders in the club for the most part kept to the same or very similar pricing. With my current breed, unfortunately there are no decent breed clubs operating, so it seems to be anything goes and a high price rarely has any bearing on high quality. For my new breed, I will be guided by my own dog's breeder.

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friend of ours a few years ago purchased from a GSD show litter and chose the long coat puppy that was on limited register due to a coat fault in the breed. The other puppies were all on main register with show potential and our friend tried to bargain with the breeder to get the faulty puppy a bit cheaper. The breeder wouldn't budge on the price which was the same price for all :(

They chose it, they knew it was on Limit register and a pet, it wasn't raised or treated any differently...

For the most part I charge the same amount for pet/show potential puppies, many do!

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We originally were planning on getting an 8 wk old puppy, but there was only one female available, who was "show quality"- it was $2000 which was too expensive for us.

We got another older pup from the breeder, who was going to be used as a breeding dog, but luckily ended up with us!!! she was the perfect dog too!

I've noticed that older pups seem to be cheaper... I suppose that is becuase everyone wants a baby puppy?

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