What is the most I should pay for a dog?

GO TO THE POUND!Fully one quarter of animals that end up in shelters are purebred something or others. Save an animal from death row for about $60. It will be neutered and have it's shots.

If you want a pure breed that is strictly a pet, you should consider adopting a young dog from a rescue. That way you have the traits of the breed you want, it's beyond the puppy stage, and has usually been through obedience classes. Any problems with behavior are (usually) already known. I'm sure there are adoption fees (in order to make sure they go to a good home where the perspective owner is willing to provide for the dog) but I'm sure they will be far less than $1500. Maybe you can adopt two so they have each other for company. All in all, it's a good fit, especially since breeders are typically looking to improve the lines through selective breeding, and those efforts are lost when a dog is neutered or spayed and just becomes a pet. You pay high dollar for the genetics that can be passed to your dog's offspring, not necessarily for the dog itself. Good luck and I hope you find a good dog...Blessings

The only type of breeder you want to buy from is a breeder who is into showing and bloodlines. This way you are supporting the GOOD part of the breeding industry, and you are much likely to get a healthy dog. Anyone who isn't showing or isn't involved with their breed is no more than a backyard breeder or a puppy mill, both of which usually produce low quality dogs simply for money. $1500 is NEVER too much for a good quality pet. If you are balking at the price tag, consider purebred rescue groups or a shelter dog. My purebred toy dog was around $200 from rescue. She was 7 months old, fixed, vetted, and came with a whole host of goodies. But, with how much I love her, I would easily pay $1500 for her. http://www.petfinder.com and http://www.akc.org/breeds/rescue.cfmEdit: What's it matter what the people on here think of what you are spending on a dog? Remember 90% of the people on here support puppy mills and backyard breeders. They don't have a shred of morality and generally have no clue when it comes to buying or caring for an animal. Do you *really* want their approval? I sure don't. If you can afford it and you want the dog, go for it. It a heck of a lot smarter than spending $800 on some puppy mill mutt from a pet shop or $500 on a backyard breeder dog.

Well, I don't think it is too much to ask, I think it is a vote for the future if you care anything about dogs. I know that any reputable breeder will always accept the dog back if it doesn't work out, and correspond with you before they place a dog with you, and will do their very best to ascertain that you are a responsible owner who knows what to expect from a breed of dog, and is a good match. Even blind people wait a long time to get a dog who matches their step, who shares their attitude to life. How awful would it be to love a pet dog and have to lose it to a disease you know you cannot afford to have cured, one that should never have been bred? So a reputable breeder will fully expect you to ask for - or have your vet check - that the dog will not inherit very painful conditions like hip dysplasia which would shorten its life cruelly. And also prove to be very expensive for you in vet's bills, because once you own and love that dog, you are going to be responsible for their health and hate to have them go without good healthcare, right? These inherited conditions are totally predictable through bad breeding, and so a real breeder will spend a lot of their own money tracking the dog's family tree all the way back, calling around to check that the parents and grandparents of that dog were free of those nasty and dreaded conditions. They will take the trouble to do all that before asking if they can be considered as a buyer of a future puppy from that pair. They really want all dogs to be healthy! They know in their heart and soul that this is the only way to be sure that they are doing their best for our best friend. A pet shop won't ever do that. A person with two dogs and not enough kennel space won't ever do that. A person who runs a puppy farm - not only won't they do that, but they will overbreed a pretty dog and throw the corpses out the back in a barn until they can afford to hire someone to dig a hole to hide their failed sales. It is such a short term plan, and so ugly a move for the puppies bred that way, that I would never ever visit or even bear to look in the window of a pet shop that sells live dogs. I am serious. I do apologise for this very long posting. I do think that most people who love and buy dogs do not understand what an easy and cruel profit is made from the natural enthusiasm of dogs, and the deliberate careless breeding that results. People think it's easy money, and they can always drown the ugly ones. It's a horrible, factory idea, and then they advertise. But you really do get what you pay for. The price quoted to you is not unreasonable, but please, please, do ask for paperwork and be ruthless about having it first. It's the only way that puppy factories can be disowned. They have such a lovely image, and no one sees the skeletons behind a dog without a pedigree or a healthy and happy future. You really should think and ask out loud - If their dog - this beautiful dog - is the best they can possibly plan for, and they love dogs, why should they sell it so easily to me? How do they know that I will not starve it or mistreat it? You will encounter wary breeders who have had a hurt dog returned, who have driven across a state or two to retrieve it, and thanked the buyer for letting them have it back before they had any other differences or punished the dog they were not suited to own. If you do take a dog from an animal shelter, that is the reason why they will require it to be spayed/fixed. Because they deeply care about dogs. If you have a pet, it's not a working dog, one of 20 in the team, right? If it dies painfully and early in its life, or goes blind or lame, of a totally preventable condition, because it was bred from diseased siblings, how much worse are you going to feel? It's not one of a gang, it is your only pet and companion. I personally would save carefully and invest in a good dog. But there is no reason why you should not budget as much as you might spend on a PC; for a good dog with healthy genes and a happy future as planned. I would not, myself, care to profit those unscrupulous people who think "Here are two cute furry animals - people pay good money for puppies. Who cares if they are mother and grandson and limping? Who'll know?" Breeders will know. And they and their own family and friends and other breeders will never ever buy a living creature from that person again. They won't even give a reason. Just No. I believe they are worth investing in, because they are reputable, and so many dog-owners are absolutely not.

like everyone else has said, you can get wonderful dogs at the pound...also stores like petsmart adopt out animals from local shelters .......you will have to pay a fee but they give them their shots and either spay/neuter them or give you a voucher to have it done free when they are of age......also there are rescue associations out there for specific breeds if there is something you are looking for.....either of these ways you will have about $200 tied up into the dog and it will be a much better companion probably.

Any money you spend on a breeder is a contribution to the problem. You said you want a healthy companion animal, not a show dog. There are rescue societies. There are SPCA's. There are classified ads. Go one of these routes, or know that your purchase helped fuel another death at a shelter.

You have said it your self "ONLY A PET". With that mind set then yes $1,500.00 is too much for YOU to pay.

My best dog was a free one from a farm. She is a Border Collie Lab mix. Great dog when the kids was growing up. My other dog is a Border Collie that was in Rescue. 18 months old at one time he was abused. Has one leg 3 " shorter than the other. He is 6 yrs old now and was a lot of work. Get yourself a puppy or a young dog from a shelter.If you have to ask how much to adopt a dog? Don't bother read the "New work of dogs" By Jon Katz