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Pricing Pups

There are several things a breed community and organization shouldn’t do and one of them is recommending pup prices. Everybody’s program is different. In many breed groups I see people getting insulted when prices are too low, and insulted when prices are too high. But people can do what they want. It’s a free country.

There are two factors in a pup price, 1. how hard someone has worked on genetics, and 2. how hard someone else has worked on genetics. People just need to make sure they fall into category 1 if they have high prices.

If a breeder has spent years working on her own genetic lines, she will be able to ask more for her pups because she feels more confident standing behind them. Nature is nature and not all dogs work with all owners.

Dog breeding is complex. You can’t really buy perfect breeders and go forward problem free. You really do have to work at it, and it takes generations. In nature, as in dog breeding, few animals are really breed quality. And there are categories of quality, some dogs being short term contributors, and some being that rare unicorn that has it all and can throw it. As long as people do not get money-oriented, things go well.

My pups started lower and rose as time went on, as my feelings of trust in my own genetics have risen. I could sure be a pet mill. People ask me for dogs every day. I absolutely could license with my state and pump out pups, and I just have no heart for that. I love genetics.... absolute nerd for genetics.

The price you set reflects how much quality you think your dogs have. The price you set will also contribute to the quality of homes they get. So be brave. Pricing dogs low doesn’t mean quick money, it usually means expensive problems. Look around and see how other programs are representing their dogs, and get right in there.

You can’t really serve God and mammon, or anything and mammon, and you definitely can’t serve dog and mammon.