How much should a puppy cost?

[pinkpip100]

Hi, we have been thinking about getting a puppy for a long time but finally decided to go for it so I have been researching online. Breeds we have been considering are miniature labradoodles, cockapoo/cavapoo, miniature schnauzer and a few others. At the moment, everywhere I look they are around £2000-3000! This is a lot more than I was expecting. Are these 'normal' prices or is there a lockdown puppy boom that has pushed prices so high? I'm just trying to get a handle on whether this is reasonable- if so we need to save for a lot longer! Also any comments or recommendations on breeds would be much appreciated.

Beware a puppy and kids and cats! Puppies chase. And bite. And chew. And pee in the house. And steal Toys. And chew.
Did I mention the chewing??
You need to be totally committed to never allowing the puppy to chase the cat. Long lines etc.
And the cost isn’t where I would start. Exercise, training, space you have, what breed traits could you cope with or not, how much grooming could you do?
I would avoid poo crosses like the plague. They’re a licence for puppy farmers to print money!

@Wolfiefan cost definitely wasn't our starting point - it's just that when I did start looking I was really shocked by the prices!! We have been trying to figure out which breed would suit us: exercise - happy to walk for up to an hour each day (could be longer at weekends), we're not experienced but happy to put the work in to train - but easy to train would be helpful, not too much grooming (once or twice a week is fine), not too much shedding, and small to medium sized. By far the most important characteristics are being good with children and even-tempered - most other things aren't a deal breakers.

@CatkinToadflax thank you - your lab sounds gorgeous! I worry about the size though - ideally we wanted a smaller breed. But definitely a dog that will be able to cope with our dd's slightly unpredictable approach would be perfect!

There are breed selector quizzes online. TBH an hour a day really isn’t much at all and you may find lots of breeds rules out because of that.
By grooming I’m thinking of types of dogs that need to go to the groomer etc.
Puppies won’t be good with kids. They are bonkers and unpredictable beasts!
Don’t underestimate the amount of training. My pup is nearly 8 months old. We are part of the way along a very long road!!!!
And if you don’t want shedding then you definitely don’t want a lab!

Miniature schnauzer 2 years ago £1,200

I don't know if there is much of a split in Brittanies between field and show lines, but the ones I've seen that are used as gundogs are very full-on intelligent dogs who need some clear boundaries. They're an HPR breed - hunt point retrieve, and the 'hunt' comes first for a reason.

Puppies and cats: all of our puppies (we've had three) have learned the mantra Cat is King very early in their lives.

Puppies and kids: kids need to be taught to respect the puppy (let it eat and sleep in peace, never pick it up, never drag it around), to clear away their toys if they don't want them chewed, to put away their nice new sandals if they don't want them chewed, and to keep their hands away from puppy's mouth if they don't want them chewed either. IME the biggest problem if you have a puppy and young children is finding the child-free time to train the puppy properly.

Training is generally much more knackering for a dog than exercise. A long sit-stay in the middle of the playing field means my young dog has to really concentrate on NOT moving, and I swear 5-10 minutes of that wears her out more than twice the time romping about in the woods.

And yup, as PP have said, prices are mental at the moment, with even some fairly reputable breeders taking the piss a bit. That said, the really reputable breeders are charging what they always have: one I know with a litter of top-end working dogs is charging what she always does.

@G3entlemanjack

I was being cynical about puppy prices shooting up and presuming it was due to greed, but then I wondered if actually breeders are deliberately doing it to price out those who are only buying a puppy on a whim? To protect them?

Nice thought but I doubt it.

Pre-lockdown you'd maybe pay £400-800 for a 'backyard bred' puppy of various types and breeds, £800+ for registered and/or health tested pedigrees, proven working dogs or popular/trendy crossbreeds. I paid £850 in 2018 for a health tested puppy from champion parents in a numerically very small/obscure breed. Current prices are insane.

Non-shedding and not too much grooming don't often go hand in hand. I would expect to brush a poodle or poodle cross near daily (proper brushing and combing down to the skin, not passing a slicker brush over the top) and to have a professional grooming appointment perhaps every six weeks. I'm a mad dog person and I wouldn't countenance a dog that needed such frequent grooming, I find the mass shedding of the spitz type breeds easier to deal with!

An hour a day will limit your breed types a lot, and no puppy or young dog is 'good' with children.

That said - small to medium, often non shedding, generally of affectionate temperament? I'd start looking with the toy group of dogs and quizzing breeders intensely on the temperament and resilience of the parents and extended family as to whether they're likely to be suitable for a family with children. Maybe some of the smaller utility breeds - Japanese or German spitz? Again, some grooming there.

We've got a red toy poodle and she was £1200 in early 2017. I was agog at the price at the time because I had never spent so much on a puppy. In fact I used to have horses as a young woman and I had never spent that much on one of them either! However, her parents had had all the relevant dna tests for heriditary diseases and she has a pedigree as long as your arm, not that I'm bothered about that because she's just my best mate, not a show dog.

What you really need is a feisty enough cat to teach a puppy correct cat-manners. Our very old and arthritic mog eyed the new puppy coldly, swiped it with a claw-filled paw the moment it got too close, and trained it to sit politely behind her waiting for a lick of her plate.

Non-shedding and diddy? You could look for a Havanese- much the same size as a cavapoo but silkier and purebred.

It doesn't need to be tiny - small to medium is fine, just not big! And we could definitely walk for more than an hour a day, I just thought that was about average...

@GuppytheCat that’s not great advice. Puppies can be blinded by a cat. And a puppy that’s hurt by a cat could lash out and kill it.
It’s down to the owners to ensure the cat never feels threatened and the puppy has manners!

We paid £700 for our tested cockapoo 2 years ago. Couldn't ask for a better dog she's amazing and has taken her new role as a big sister very seriously 🥰

The Kennel Club has a breed selector tool which might be useful www.thekennelclub.org.uk/services/public/findabreed/Default.aspx

Miniature Schnauzer, fabulous family non shedding dog. We got ours last December and paid £1,100. KC registered breeder. Don't be tempted to pay Covid prices, it's a disgrace people are charging £2-3k at the moment. Join some FB groups dedicated to the breeds you're interested in. Plenty of owners and breeders on them that will give you the low down and answer any questions you may have. Good luck!

If you do decide on a pedigree then contact the relevant breed club.
Never shop online for a puppy.
All the mini schnauzers I have met have been a handful to train. Wilful and sometimes not dog friendly. Need careful handling and socialisation. Have I been unlucky?!

There is a lockdown puppy boom- there was a write up in a broadsheet a couple of weeks ago. It said that French bulldogs were usually £2.5k now £4K and cockerpoos now £2500.

Beagle!! We paid £950 10 years ago.
Sweetest thing, crap recall. Like food! Soft as putty with kids. Never growled or barked at the toddler.

We got our KC registered pure bred lab 4 weeks ago. He's now 13 weeks old, gorgeous (and bitey!).
We registered our interest in him before he was born, he cost us £800.

@Wolfiefan I've only had my pup but yes, I think you've been a little unlucky! I'm on quite a lot of schnauzer groups and he general consensus from what I've read Is that they are easily trained, bright and friendly. Maybe a little vocal (!) but we have trained ours out of that quite successfully.
She gets on well with other dogs, no problems there. Definitely a mind of her own but I quite like that! She gets on fabulously with our cat too, they cuddle up together.

I second the idea of a staff, they're loyal, short haired, small/medium and lazy as sin.

That said they're mental puppies for the first 18 months then suddenly they chill out and then again at 3 years they hit another chill stage.

My idiot dog cost me £500, raised in a family home, met both the parents but no KC papers.

I think if you want an even tempered dog, look at pedigree dogs. Look for breeders that breed for "Type and Temperament", get a feel for the breed, especially the adults, because that is what you will have once you put in the time & effort and manage getting past the mad puppy stage.
I can only recommend Tibetan Terriers, they do have a lot of coat care and aren't the best of puppies. But the adult dogs are great fun and will be happy to join in with whatever the kids throw at you!