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So, my husband and I were very excited about having our first dog. Neither of us had ever owned a dog. We got her from a friend of a friend of a friend who was moving to an apartment and couldn't have a dog.
2.5 weeks into dog ownership, she had puppies!!!!!!f
The pups are now almost 5 weeks old and they are soooooo much work but equally cute. We're about to sell them. Clearly it is not one dad. The Mommy is mostly husky.
Just had to share the craziness that is our lives.
Oooh. And a poll. How much should we charge for the pups?
PS. The mom has been a bit sick. Vet bills piling up. We project that we've spent $1000 (not including our constant work as 'zoo workers') and we have 6 pups to sell.
Figure out what your costs have been, supplies, vet bills and food, then divide by puppy. You certainly deserve to cover your costs, but I would be hesitant to get a puppy from anyone trying to make money off of them. You may also want to get them their first vaccines and deworming and recover that cost, it's much safer for puppies to move to a new home with some immunity already on board.
It's a good idea to require new owners to puy a puppy package from their veterinarian including the cost of vaccines and spay/neuter. That way this situaiton won't repeat itself and you can be sure they will be taken care of.
Also, puppies should be with their mother until they are eight weeks old for proper socialization. Now's a great time to line up future homes for when they reach that age.
I would see what you can get by comparing newspaper ads. You may have to start at one point and then eventually go lower if you don't have takers for all the pups, but hopefully you'll be able to make something to put toward the vet bills (and maybe a spay surgery). I would definitely not hold my breath on recouping your loss, since mutts are easy to find in a shelter or "free dog" ads. 
I've heard of people being able to sell mixed breeds from time to time, but I've also met people with purbred dogs who eventually had to give the last few pups away because they just couldn't sell them. It probably depends on where you live, though.
Yes, we are just going to advertise now for them to go home at 8 weeks.
We have had them at the vet, dewormed and will give them the first shots before they go home.
It has been soooo expensive. Our $1000 figure doesn't include the two days that I had to stay home without pay--first for the birth day and second for a day to take them to the vet. To recover costs, we should ask at least $200 per puppy. But is it not unreasonable to pay ourselves a little tiny bit more for the hours and hours we spend cleaning and working with them? 8 weeks of our lives upside down.
I know around here you wouldn't be able to sell a puppy that was a mutt unless you had fixed it. Mutt pups are pretty plentiful.
You could try to pay yourself a bit by pricing at $200-250, and maybe you'll be lucky. However, people rarely make much (if any) money on puppies- for people I've known they usually end up costing more than the person amkes (and the last few may have to be given away). Even professional breeders who breed expensive show dogs don't tend to make a lot of money, all things considered. Unless your goal is to move them out as quickly as possible (in which case you'll want to price extremely low or free), why not start at the price you want, and then go lower each week you don't have a buyer?
I agree with previous posters... you should only charge what you spent on them. You can't/shouldn't make money off of them unless you are a breeder.
I don't think you will be able to find them homes at 200 because they aren't a special breed and people can go to the pound and get a dog with all of it's shots and microchipped and fixed for 40-150 dollars which You can not provide all of that for that price.
People will be looking to get a free puppy not a puppy that is being sold for 200 or more. I understand that it can be expensive and this was not expected...but I really doubt you are going to recoup any money.
Why are you out 1000 in vet bills? Did something go wrong with the birth?
I think you should charge what you spent on each puppy, which shouldn't include what you spent on the mother. Good luck finding them good homes, and make sure you spay and neuter them, or give them to people who will!
They need to be a minimum of 8 weeks before they are rehomed. (8 weeks is minimum for medium & large breed dogs; small dogs mature slower so should be 12 weeks.)
If possible, spay/neuter them before you send them to new homes. Then charge the cost of vetting per pup.
0Seeing as they are going to be rather large and high energy dogs, finding them homes will be difficult... Your best bet is to ask for 50 or less, but by not "giving them away" you will be able to help weed out some less than perfect owners. Good luck.
I agree with those saying do not "give them away". Some people look for "free puppies" to use as bait-dogs to train fighting dogs.
We got our purebred with an amazing pedigree bi-colored eyes, brown husky puppy for $800 (just for comparison)...You can try selling them through the pet shop (they don't bother about the pedigree or anything much), but i don't know how it's done honestly.
Honestly, I would recommend contacting the Humane Society and explaining your situation, then asking them for advice. Also, if you can afford it, please please spay and/or neuter these pups! There are too many unwanted dogs out there as it is. My sense (given that my brother recently had a dog which gave birth to mutt puppies) is that you won't be able to get much, if anything for the puppies. He finally ended up having his wife and kids set up outside of Petsmart with the puppies and a "Free puppies" sign. The good thing about that is, even though they were giving the puppies away, they could basically 'interview' interested people about pet ownership, etc.. They also ended up giving the pups away mostly to families, which isn't a guarantee of a stable home but certainly helps. Unfortunately I don't think it's likely that you will be able to recoup your expenses--but look at it this way! You are saving yourself the future expenses of caring for half a dozen little pups.
Mckernae had some great advice...contact the local shelter and/or rescue group for advice on rehoming them. You do not want to give them away for free, because that can attract bad owners, or those who want to use the puppy for bait, or sell them for animal experimenting, etc. But you are likely not going to be able to recoup your losses by selling mutt puppies of unknown origin. Especially because, as someone said, you can go to the human society and spend the same amount or less for a puppy that has been fully vetted and fixed, (or that comes with a coupon to get fixed).
Breeding dogs is terribly expensive, especially when done right, which is why people are told to run, not walk, away from breeders who are breeding for profit. But it's awesome that you are trying to do right by these unepected surprises. Hhas the former owner been notified and/or offered to help financially?
I would make someone pay money (to make sure they have a vestment in taking care of it). But I wouldn't make them pay more than $50. Personally, I wouldn't pay anything for a mutt. I paid $200 for my schnauzer and would be willing to pay more for another one. But because mutts are so common, I'm almost certain I could get one at anytime for no money.
We did notify the previous owner and she said she felt terrible and she feels like she should send us child support. We thought it was funny at the time, and sweet. Now we're a bit in the hole and want to recoup the costs.
Costs include: $200 for check-up and deworming, $150 for checkup and antibiotics for sick Mom, $80 of dog food every 10 days (which should last 40 days for just Mom), $50 lumber to construct a 'puppy zone' in our house, will cost another $200 or more for vaccinations.
Costs not included: loss of 2 days of work for me ($400), poor sleep, cleaning up pee and poo constantly (at least 60 minutes of solid cleaning and sanitizing daily, plus the constant pick-ups), doing a bazillion loads of laundry to keep their area clean, extra trips home to check on the dogs, ruined floors. Hours and hours on the internet learning how to do the right thing!
I see people suggesting that we get them all fixed, but I don't think you can do that at 8 weeks old.
Thanks so much for all the feedback. This is a good reality-check for us with the money situation. It stresses us out a bit, and making the money back would really help.
The first pic is the Mom. For the rest, the boys are on blue and the girls on the pink.
Awww! Cute pups!
"I see people suggesting that we get them all fixed, but I don't think you can do that at 8 weeks old."
Depends on the vet; some will do it at 8 weeks, some won't..
@cvbee: One of my best dogs is a mutt but I didn't pay for him, around here mutts are normally the 'free pups'. But those are adorable!
The reason vets don't spay/neuter that early is because it is more risky and at that point the dogs belong to someone. It's the hard truth, but the animal shelter will generally do it as soon as they get dogs in, because if something happens, they won't be held responsible by an angry owner.
I agree with PP's that you should contact your local shelter and ask them what they think you should do. I understand that you've had a hard time taking care of these pups and want to recoup some of the costs, but I think you should be more concerned about finding these puppies good homes with responsible owners that will care for them properly and get them spayed/neutered so this cycle doesn't repeat itself. I'm not sure how much you will actually be able to get for mix breed puppies. Most people can get a dog for around $100 that is fixed and microchipped from the local shelter... so I wouldn't ask over that.
I'm glad your puppy has found a good home, though. The previous owner obviously had no intention of keeping a dog long-term or getting her spayed to prevent this from happening. I'm surprised she was so clueless about her dog being pregnant...
@abbyful: Being in the vet business for the past 8 years, spaying and neutering is NOT recommended until 6 months of age. I have seen some done at about 4.5 months- but that is the absolute earliest! These are very special situations! This age gives the juveniles time to physically mature and their reproductive system time to fully develop. This also allows them to recieve all of their vaccines and their immune systems will be able to handle anesthesia/recovery.
Your pups are beautiful! A couple of them really have the husky breed features so perhaps you will get something for them. It's too bad you don't know the fathers breed as that might help you sell them (I hear of people all the time now buying cross breeds like maltipoo's etc. but I personally think that is still a mutt, lol)
In my province (I noticed you were from Canada too!) you wouldn't likely sell the pups since they are not purebred. But good luck to you, they are beautiful and I am sure they will make great pets for some lucky families. I am in love with the grey girl, second pink photo. She's a beautiful puppy!
Don't sell them for less than $100. You don't want to sell them to people who aren't willing to spend money on them (get them fixed). Maybe you should write up a contract so people who buy them have to agree to get them fixed.
I paid $250.00 for my purebred husky puppy with akc papers, I don't think anyone is going to spend more than $50 for those pups and they will only pay that much if they have their shots and have been dewormed.
I rescued my other husky pup she was 10 weeks and I got her at no cost.
You can get a mutt pup from a rescue agency for about $100 and that's with shots, deworming and spay/neuter that's how much we paid for our 8 week old pit bull pup.
Just letting you know so you can find the pups a home before they get too old.
Good luck they are adorable!
I dont know how much shelters charge in your area, but in my area, the adoption fee is $350 and that's not a puppy, so you should be able to try and recover as much money as possible. I think it's ridiculous to get less than $100 after all the money you've spent, not to mention, people who aren't willing to pay that much for a dog in the first place, most likely wont be willing to spend money down the road on vet costs, should something arise.
I like the suggestion of a previous poster about getting a puppy package from their vet that includes a neuter/spay down the road. Also, make them sign a spay/neuter agreement! I don't believe in spaying/neutering less than 6 months, especially for larger breeds. I know its probably the lesser of the two evils because you dont want inexperienced people breeding these mutts down the road, but you also want these pups to grow up as healthy as can be, so you have to SCREEN the homes carefully to ensure they will be neutered/spayed down the road.
It sounds like you have been doing a great job and have put the mother and the pups first, GREAT JOB. Not many would go to such lengths after something like this.
Have you checked Kijiji to see what similar pups are going for? Try to sell at a comparable price, I would think you can get $300 a pup to recover your costs. They are super adorable, I'm sure you won't have a problem.
Good luck!!!
they are super cute. You do need to realize that most animal rescues adopt their pets out for about 150 and they are already spayed and neutered. which is part of the 150. since they are mutts you probably wont be able to get too much for them. As for charging more to make sure they go to a good home..,..many places do interviews and contracts before the pets are given, so that might be something to think about. Owning a pet is a lot of work and you cant really charge a lot for the puppies because the mom was sick and and make up that expenses of the vet. you should know that things will come up and your pet will need to go to the vet from time to time. it happens.
This is reitirating much of what PP have said but you're going to have tough luck recouping money on mutts. I volunteering at a local rescue so I have a lot of first hand experience. People will pay a few hundred to thousands for purebreds but not for mutts. Sad because mutts are awesome. OUr rescue has a $95 adoption fee which includes everything like microchip so you just can't compete.
Some areas have less problem with strays and therefore have fewer dogs and higher rates but its not the norm.
My biggest advice is try to adopt them out ASAP. I know purebred breeders who can't unload all their pups. The bigger they get the less desirable they'll be. At our rescue we'll have people adopt an 8 week old dog but after 9 months they're overwhelmed and return the dog. Do you know how hard it is to adopt a dog that is full size but still with all the puppy tendencies? Now the new owners miss the "cute" stage but still have to deal with the more frustrating side of pups!
Puppies are hard. It sucks that you were doing such a nice thing and got stuck with the financial burden. Good luck!
They are really cute puppies!
If I add up all your actual costs its $680. You figure by the time they go home, you will have probably spent almost $1,000.
For 6 puppies, I think start your ad at $200 a puppy and then be willing to go down to $150 from there if they haven't sold by 10 weeks or so.
I know a lot of people are saying that seems high compared to what you see at the humane society, but these are puppies that were hand raised with their mom. A lot of dogs at the humane society are that "cheap" because they are older, have behavior issues, etc.
I think charging $200 per puppy is reasonable and it shows any buyer that you took the time and the costs to raise the puppies right. Also, I think that if a person can't afford $200 for the initial fee for a dog, I would question how they are going to be able to afford to raise a puppy.
Here is an idea, what if you list them for $200, but offer a $50 reimbursment towards the spay/neuter (once the new owners provide you proof at 6 months or whenever)?
I have two differing opinions here.
One is that nobody is going to pay for a mixed breed dog what they pay for a purebred from a breeder. If it were me, I'd probably just give them away.
But then, if you just advertise free puppies, who knows what kind of irresponsible people might want to take them? If you charge a small amount, like just a recoup of expenses, then you might get slightly more responsible people.
You might want to contact a rescue, they might be able to help you find homes for the pups, even while you're fostering them at your home.
@kimberlysnyder08 - I didn't say it was the most ideal time (I persoanlly would say 6 months isn't the most ideal either, but that's another disucussion), but that it is possible to spay/neuter at that age.
Shelters frequently spay/neuter 8-12 week old puppies. It's like the spaying while in heat topic; some vets are okay with doing it, some aren't.
The AVMA (American Veterinary Medical Association) condones spay/neuter as early as 8-12 weeks.
@caszos: Dogs at the humane shelter aren't cheap due to behavioral issues, etc. They're "cheap" because the shelters and rescues are funded by grants and donations therefore the whole cost of caring for the dog is NOT passed on to its future owner.
Also, most puppies are hand raised in foster homes and not in the actual shelters.
Its unfounded gibberish like you are spouting which is making it even harder to adopt perfectly wonderful dogs that are overflowing in our shelters.
@cvbee: it doesn't really have much to do about age so much as weight... a lot of vets now will spay a dog at two pounds... Neutering at a young age is a bit more difficult because you can't remove what isn't there, so you have to wait for boys until they actually have their business, but some drop really early (like around 8 weeks) some it can take up to 6 months!
ETA: Look into checking with your local shelter or for a spay/neuter program in your area, a lot of towns have a spay/neuter program where you can get your animals spayed/neutered at low or no cost.
@kimberlysnyder08: I actually think that is an older school of thought... There are pros and cons to waiting as well as getting them fixed early on. 95% of the vets in my area will spay/neuter dogs and cats at 8 weeks of age (as long as they are 2 lbs). I worked at an animals shelter for over two years and we got all of the kittens and puppies fixed as early as possible and not ONCE with routine surgery did any have adverse reactions. They actually bounced back quicker and returned to their normal selves almost immediately.
My dog was neutered at 12 weeks (when the shelter got him) and he is now two years old and wouldn't know the difference and has no health issues because of it.
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