Patience is a virtue when looking for a quality puppy at an affordable price.They are out there but you need to do tons of home work and have lady luck on your side.

I refuse to pay the out rageous prices that a lot of breeders are asking for their pup's.
Always remember any pup no matter what the pedigree or form the so called best breeder can turn out to have problems.

I can't tell you the number of times I have told members on this forum they are crazy to pay these totally inflated prices. But they went ahead and then came the tale of woe and I should have listened to you.
Just because you pay $1500.00 to $2000.00 for a pup does not guarantee a happy healthy pup.

Be patient keep checking the listings. I deal with small breeders who mostly are into training and breed for the love of the breed not the money and are more concerened about placing their pup in a quality home than making the almighty dollar.

My female is now 18 months old and is AKC regestered both parents were born in the Czech Republic. She is exactly what I wanted and more much more and is the picture of health very happy and I paid $600.00 for her. Sure it took some doing but I almost bought another GSD pup for the same price but she had a heart murmer because I was dealing with an ethical breeder he told me about it.
As I told you they are out there be patient and do your homework
Don't listen to the negativity on here. Yes the pup you always wanted is out there at the price you want to pay. good luck.

 

Cassadee- Judge's breeder lets people make payments in certain situations. I "paid" $600 on a co-own for him. He was pick of the litter. His pet quality sister was $750, limited registration, and the buyer was able to make payments until the dog was paid in full. She let the buyer have the dog with a $100 deposit. Sometimes breeders want to see their dogs go to good homes, some good homes just can't get over the sticker price shock.

There are options out there.

Courtney

 

Courtney,

Thanks. I really need to find out more about her dogs. She doesn't seem to have a website. If you have her email can you PM it to me? Thanks

Judge is gorgeous.

 

Originally Posted By: larrydee33I refuse to pay the out rageous prices that a lot of breeders are asking for their pup's.

I'm curious. What do you consider an 'outrageous price'?

 

Anything $1000.00 and above for a puppy.

 

I dont think I would pay $1000.00 for a puppy. My cut-off is $750.00

 

I just spent over $500 at the vet for my $200 dog.

 

You'll have to work extra hard to find a great breeder who breeds great dogs for $750.00

 

Not all dogs that are great cost more than $750.00

 

ask breeders for a breakdown of their cost incurred in producing a litter and then judge what.

Good healthy dogs sometimes come from litters with little or no thought, but the odds aren't in favor of that.

 

No you're right not all great dogs cost more than $750.00

But in order to find a breeder that's doing everything right, it'll be tough work to find one that is selling their pups for under $1,000.00

And with all of the really horrible GSD breeders out there, it's very important to not support someone that just throws some dogs together and has a litter, it's what is ruining this breed.

 

Originally Posted By: Barb E.No you're right not all great dogs cost more than $750.00

But in order to find a breeder that's doing everything right, it'll be tough work to find one that is selling their pups for under $1,000.00

And with all of the really horrible GSD breeders out there, it's very important to not support someone that just throws some dogs together and has a litter, it's what is ruining this breed.

Since Ive joined this forum, Ive learned so much about what makes a breeder reputable, and what makes a breeder disreputable. There are so many obvious things to look out for when buying from a breeder. I had no idea.

I cant believe I almost considered buying a puppy from someone that was delivering them right from their van.

 

You have to keep in mind too, the breeder Courtney's Judge came from lives in an area that is economically depressed. I know, I just moved from there less than a year ago.

She may not be able to ask and get the big sticker for her pups although she has very nice dogs. She may be a nice option for you Cassadee.

 

We are talking about an 8 week old puppy here. You can get one of the so called top breeders and pay top dollar and still wind up with a problem puppy. I have seen it time and time again right here on this forum.

It is one thing to pay top dollar for a trained adult GSD but a puppy is a whole other thing. With the adult you know what you are getting you can't say that with an 8 week old puppy.

I just seen a breeder advertising a litter for $1300.00 for a puppy. I looked at the pedigree and I know there will be problems in that litter. But how many will say oh she is selling her pups for $1300.00 For $1300.00 this must be an outstanding litter?
How do I know this. There is a male in the pedigree that when mated to a paticular female has shown in the past to have problems not only that this pair is on both sides of the pedigree.

A wise person learns from their mistakes. But as P.T.Barnum said there is a sucker born every second.
So these overpriced litters will sell because these so called good breeders have perpetuated the myth that dollars equal quality.
This is a false assumpatation especially with an 8 week old GSD puppy.

 

Market value in the area is also something to consider when looking at breeders.

A breeder who might have a lesser litter will still charge what the market will bear becuase they don't want to look like their selling a lesser dog. This drives up the price in the area.

As someone else said, you might be able to find a really nice dog in a more recessed area. The economy sucks.

There's a lot to be said for really nice pups in the 6months to a year range that are in rescue. Someone got the dog, couldn't handle them, changed their mind, lost their house, whatever.

The finest dog I've ever had was 6 months old, a stray brought into the shelter. I paid $5 for her. Perfectly healthy, knock wood she's been sick ONCE in her life. Her hips are fair but she's 8 1/2 now doesn't bother her much other than going up the stairs a little slower than she used to. Doesn't stop her from going up and down the stairs atleast 30 times a day chasing me or my kids. Doesn't stop her from biting the pup on his hiney for being a brat

 

Kathy... yes I agree, I am looking into that breeder.

I have gone through Petfinder and other sites like that. I found a very nice looking pup under 3mo old who had a cast on her front leg. I emailed the contact, and even though I asked, I got almost no information back. "She was a stray." Yes, but I asked what happened to her leg, what kind of care it might need, whether she has been temperament tested. I got nothin'. Very discouraging for someone trying to consider a rescue. I emailed again, being very nice and interested, and got no response. Maybe the pup got adopted or something but it would be nice if I got a response.

 

Originally Posted By: onyx'girlI just spent over $500 at the vet for my $200 dog.

For what?

 

Here is the bill from Onyx, she went in for chronic ear infections, feet chewing:
Service/Item (?) $16
Exam $ 19
Ear cytology $ 29
Xenodine(meds) $ 20
Gentizol ointment $15
Rabies(3 yr) $20.60
Heska Allergy test $ 323.50
Thyroid Panel ANTECH $ 93.50
Total $546.10
OUCH!!!!!! Also paid for 3 PromAce pills beforehand.
There goes my new DSLR for awhile...

 

Originally Posted By: onyx'girl
Here is the bill from Onyx, she went in for chronic ear infections, feet chewing:
Service/Item (?) $16
Exam $ 19
Ear cytology $ 29
Xenodine(meds) $ 20
Gentizol ointment $15
Rabies(3 yr) $20.60
Heska Allergy test $ 323.50
Thyroid Panel ANTECH $ 93.50
Total $546.10
OUCH!!!!!! Also paid for 3 PromAce pills beforehand.
There goes my new DSLR for awhile...

None of that can happen with a dog thats over $1000.00? Or..???

 

I think the point is that there is no such thing as an inexpensive dog . . .

 

Originally Posted By: CastlemaidI think the point is that there is no such thing as an inexpensive dog . . .

And youre exactly right.

 

So the moral of the story is; our beloved GSD's(or any breed/mutt) do cost from the beginning to the end, but they pay us back 10fold with love and devotion. The cost is a minor player in the big picture.

 

Onyx Girl, that would be the bottom line. Yes.

 

Sounds about right! My two dogs from shelters both had LOTS of gealth issues. Blitzen had horrid skin problems,ear infections, and immune issues for the first couple years we had him. We spent about $1300 on veterinary treatments and tests, tried different vets and specialists. When we move from the east coast to Colorado, his issues seemed to magically dissapear fortunately!
Sasha was a malnourished stray and very skinny, with severe ear infections in both ears. Of course on top of that she got nasty kennel cough that quickly turned to pneumonia, and lost even more weight. We spent about $600 on her, she is mostly okay now but does still have ear problems regularly.
Dasher I got from a BYB for $200 and he has never been sick. His hips seem fine and our vet doesn't see anything to be concerned about so far.He is very athletic and can literally go all day! I am very happy with his temperament and appearance.
I think it's pretty hard to guarantee a dogs health and temperament no matter how high quality the breeder is or isn't. I know people who have or had GSDs from reputable breeders with fine pedigrees that costed $$$ and weren't happy with them. THere are plenty of folks with BYB dogs too that love them and plenty who found out why that can be a bad idea.
When I get a new dog, I really go for a certain feeling I get from the dog. It's hard to explain, but something just seems to tell me "This is your dog". I had looked at other pups and shelter dogs before I got each of mine but waited for the one I got that feeling with. If t's the right dog, I will pay a breeder their asking price, adopt or buy somone's oops pup.

 

Originally Posted By: CastlemaidI think the point is that there is no such thing as an inexpensive dog . . .

i'm not so sure about that [yet].
tilden cost me less than a bag of dog food, in in his 3yrs of life - my most expensive purchase was his leash. his hip x rays were done for free and are 'good', so at least on that front - we're okay!