Doggy adoption fee's

[sarah8484]

I went to a rescue centre today to look for a little dog. As a family we fell in love with a small sized dog (thought to be a highland terrier cross jack russell) the dog was 5 years old. The adoption fee for the dog was £300. Is this the average adoption fee as seems a little high, especially for the age of the dog?

The adoption fee covers vaccinations, neutering and microchipping plus a donation to the shelter so £300 seems pretty reasonable. The age of the dog is irrelevant - it’s to cover the costs the shelter has spent on caring for the dog and providing vet care to this point (which I suspect has been more than £300)

It's higher than I've seen, but as Veterinari says it's probably less than the dog has cost them in bills.

It's a tiny sum relative to the amount you will spend on this dog over the coming week months and years. I would consider the adoption fee to be a very low priority relative to finding the right dog for your family. A year from now you'll have forgotten the adoption fee but be very aware of what the adopted dog is like to live with.

That is higher that we would charge for a 5 year old dog. Adult dogs are usually about £150-200 depending on if they have been neutered/fully vaccinated, have a passport, microchipped etc.

However if he's the dogs for your family then that would be a small price to pay for years of happiness :)

I would happily pay £300 for a rescue dog 🙂 My first rescue cost £60 14yrs ago, she was 8 weeks old, no vaccinations, not spayed or microchipped. My second cost £190 but was vaccinated, microchipped and spayed. My latest cost £280 he has a pet passport but was to young to castrate, so will be done once fully mature.

The adoption fee covers costs and helps others in need 🙂

Seems a little high, I would expect £150-£200 depending on the dog. But even £300 is likely to be good value when you factor in the costs of spaying/neutering, vaccinations, chipping, etc.

£300 isn't a lot of money tbh in the grand scheme of things regarding dog ownership.

I would be concerned about anyone thinking it's a lot of money when you consider how much vets/insurance/food/training/boarding etc costs over a life time of a dog.

I agree it's not Bitey, but it's almost twice what the RSPCA asked us for just a year ago. Which is why it seems a little high to me.

I guess it depends on the shelter and their available resources. Some are better at raising generic funds to support their work and others have to rely more heavily on adoption fees.