08/03/2024
I have recently seen a few discussions on the cost of different purebred puppies. A common theme amongst these discussions is people being surprised at the cost of a well bred purebred dog. There are typically two kinds of responses to hearing these higher costs:
1. They are astounded by the price and think it is a scam or ridiculous.
2. They think you are insulting their $300 purebred by saying it is not worth as much.
No one is saying that your dog is worth less as a companion based on what you paid, but well bred dogs cost what they cost for very good reasons. A well bred dog can be thought of as an investment, you pay more up front to ensure a higher likelihood of paying less over the dogโs lifetime for health and behavioral issues.
The cost of a well bred dog varies heavily amongst breed and more slightly across different regions, but the averages for each breed can be roughly estimated. For example, a well bred golden retriever is likely to cost you between $2,000-5,000 for just limited registration pretty much anywhere in the US. So, if I see someone selling a golden for $1,000 or less that tells me that massive corners are being cut in regard to health testing, veterinary care, or titling. Reputable breeders so rarely even break even, so they certainly could not afford to take a hit like that, so this would tell me that most likely those puppies are not well bred.
To demonstrate why well bred dogs cost what they do, letโs dive into the details of what all goes into producing the litter. To make it simpler, weโll continue our example using the golden retriever and I will be giving averages based on estimates from clinics in my area and from breeders I have spoken to regarding this. Individual costs for each breeder will obviously be different based on location and how long it takes to title the dog.
๐๐ป๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ฎ๐น ๐ฐ๐ผ๐๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ฎ ๐ณ๐ผ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ฏ๐ถ๐๐ฐ๐ต ๐ผ๐ป ๐ณ๐๐น๐น ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป: $3,000
๐๐ผ๐๐ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ถ๐๐น๐ฒ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐บ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป: $10,000-$15,000
This includes entry fees, travel costs such as gas, hotels, meals, etc, grooming supplies. Breeders often have to travel very far out of state for shows, so these costs will vary. This cost can also be significantly higher if a professional handler is used, and goldens are a hard breed to finish so they often are.
๐๐ผ๐๐ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ถ๐๐น๐ฒ ๐๐ผ ๐ต๐ถ๐ด๐ต๐ฒ๐๐ ๐น๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐น ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ (๐ฅ๐ฎ๐น๐น๐, ๐๐ด๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐๐, ๐ฒ๐๐ฐ): $5,000-$10,000 per sport
This includes entry fees and travel costs.
These are important steps because they prove through an unbiased third party that the dog has proven itself worthy of being bred. Conformation is meant to serve as judgement of breeding stock, which means that the judges are comparing the dog to its breed standard to see how well it represents it. Titling in sports proves the dog has the drive and trainability to excel in these activities that will hopefully be passed on.
Health testing is one of the most important parts of breeding responsibly. The goal is to produce an overall healthier next generation, so doing all breed appropriate health tests and only breeding those who will pass on better genes is of the utmost importance. For goldens to receive a CHIC number, which is a certification given when the dog has been screened for every disease recommended by the parent club for that breed and those results are publicly made available, there are four required tests:
๐๐ถ๐ฝ ๐๐๐ฎ๐น๐๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ฑ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ >๐ฎ๐ฐ ๐บ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ต๐:
Radiographs: $100-200
Sedation if necessary: $100
OFA submission: $35
๐๐น๐ฏ๐ผ๐ ๐๐๐ฎ๐น๐๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ฑ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ >๐ฎ๐ฐ ๐บ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ต๐:
Radiographs: $100-200
Sedation if necessary: $100
OFA submission: $35
๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฎ๐น๐๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ฑ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ป๐๐ฎ๐น๐น๐:
Exam: $55
OFA submission: $12 new, $8 resubmission thereafter
๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฎ๐ฐ ๐๐๐ฎ๐น๐๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ฑ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ >๐ญ๐ฎ ๐บ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ต๐:
Exam: $100
Echo: $300-500
OFA submission: $15
In addition to these tests required by the CHIC program, many breeders will often do DNA testing to screen for common heritable issues in their breed. For example, PRA and Ichthyosis are commonly screened for in goldens.
๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด: $200 through Embark or $80 per test through other companies.
Costs associated with breeding or a pregnant bitch:
๐ฆ๐๐๐ฑ ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฒ: $1,000-3,000
There could also be extra costs associated with shipping the stud or costs associated with artificial insemination.
๐๐ฟ๐๐ฐ๐ฒ๐น๐น๐ผ๐๐ถ๐ ๐๐ฒ๐๐: $50
๐ฃ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ด๐ฒ๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐: $100/each
๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ผ๐ด๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ฝ๐ต๐/๐๐น๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ผ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐: $150/each
๐๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ป๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ, ๐๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฒ๐, ๐ฒ๐๐ฐ: $200
This is assuming the bitch has an easy pregnancy and birth as an emergency C-section could easily cost $5,000.
๐ฃ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐น๐ฝ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ป: $250
๐ฉ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ผ๐๐ ๐๐๐ฝ๐ฝ๐น๐ถ๐ฒ๐ (๐ฐ๐น๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ป๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐๐ฝ๐ฝ๐น๐ถ๐ฒ๐, ๐๐๐ฝ๐ฝ๐น๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐, ๐บ๐ถ๐น๐ธ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐น๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ฟ, ๐ฒ๐๐ฐ): $300
๐๐พ๐๐ถ๐ฝ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ฝ๐๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ผ๐น๐ ๐๐๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฎ๐ ๐ฝ๐๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ ๐ฐ๐๐น๐๐๐ฟ๐ฒ: $300-500
๐๐ผ๐ผ๐ฑ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐น๐ถ๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ณ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฒ๐ฑ: $50/week
๐ฉ๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐น๐ถ๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟ: $100/puppy
๐๐ผ ๐ต๐ผ๐บ๐ฒ ๐ฝ๐๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ ๐ธ๐ถ๐๐: $50-100/puppy
Taking all of the low end estimates and assuming immediate conception and a flawlessly simple pregnancy and delivery of an average sized litter already breaks $20,000, and none of these figures factor in the time and expertise of the breeder which cannot be quantified. They often take days off work to travel for shows and sport trials or during the first week or so after the puppies have been born. They spend years studying the breed, studying pedigrees, and carefully choosing their pairings. They spend at minimum 8 weeks with the litter once born following puppy raising protocols that ensure the puppies will be as socialized as possible by the time they get to you. They examine the puppies closely looking at structure and personality to decide which puppy is the best fit for you and your lifestyle. After all of this, they also provide a lifetime of support to you and your new dog.
I know that I too was a little shell shocked the first time I learned what a well bred dog costs, but the more that you learn about all that is involved and how important each of those steps are, the more you understand how incredibly worth the investment a well bred dog is.
We produce some of the most beautiful Golden Retrievers๐พ๐ถ in the world ๐๐
