Everytime I go to the local petstore I see the cutest and most adorable puppies and kittens. Yet for some reason the little dogs cost hundreds of dollars, whereas the kittens sometimes only cost as little as 20 or 25 dollars and the thing is their just as cute as the puppies. What's the reason for the huge cost difference?
2007-03-26 14:50:17 · 15 answers · asked by ann h 3 in Pets ➔ Dogs
For one thing you do not ever want to buy a puppy from a pet store!!!!!! Most pet stores do not keep health records.
And if purebreds or hybrids, or any other mixed puppy, The pet stores purchase the puppies from people who breed for greed, and then add $100 to their price, because they have to make money too.. That is why you pay a lot at pet stores for a puppy. Sometimes they will come into the store sick or feeble and the store owners push them on through without vet care to the animal. Sometimes you will be lucky enough to find a store that has the health record and breeder of the pup so you can contact them for further info on the animal.
If you are looking for a puppy, you should always check with your local animal shelters. There are many puppies and kitties looking for a home. If you are looking for a purebred, then do some research on kennels. Ask if you can visit their kennels, ask them for names and numbers of people who have purchased a puppy from them.
Most kennels will let you. If they will not, stay away from them and find another.
2007-03-26 15:16:57 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
If it's a typical pet store, the puppies probably came from a 'puppy mill' somewhere out in the Midwest. These operations charge about $200 a puppy, which - even with the crappy care and conditions - only barely keeps them in business. The puppies are then bought and distributed by intermediate dealers, who take orders from pet stores. The puppies are then shipped overland by truck, often under legal age limits, as much as 3 days with nobody but some retarded high school dropout to look after them. The pet store pays the distributor about $400-600 to cover this cost, more now that fuel prices are going up. Then, of course, the pet store has to cover its own costs and make a profit. So you end up paying about $800-1200 (depending on demand) for an unregistered, poorly cared for puppy of uncertain quality.
They scoop up the kittens from 'free kitten' ads or local residents, who will often pay the store to take the little fur balls off their hands. And the kittens usually aren't vaccinated.
2007-03-28 23:38:18 · answer #2 · answered by dukefenton 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
"Everytime I go to the local petstore"
The reality is that while some dogs can be extremely expensive, any puppy found in a pet store will have absolutely no real value at all. In fact a dog found in a no-kill shelter will have a higher value. I started breeding, showing, and trialing dogs under the guidence of my parents in the 1940s, and have been involved in dog games ever since. Still to buy my first puppy from a pet store!!!!
And I only have a few ;)
http://www.hunt101.com/img/449178.jpg
Most really don't know what determines a dogs value, and because of that often a person can find quality dogs at bargain basement prices and then turn around and pay a fortune for a dog that really has very little value.
Here are some realities of the dog world.
A quality "foundation bltch" will only produce 10-20 puppy's in her lifetime, and be the hardest of all dogs to find and buy. So this one example in the dog world can be worth thousands. 3xNFC Candlewood Tanks A Lot (Lottie) was sold for $265,000.
The other end of the spectrum is a quality titled male is perfectly capable of siring 500 offspring's in his lifetime. This makes the young unproven male puppy extremely easy to find and really not worth all that much.
2007-03-26 22:34:05 · answer #3 · answered by tom l 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
This is going to sound awful, but its simple economics. Supply and demand. I would never even think of paying for a kitten. I would adopt from a local shelter. Cats survive in the wild, dogs cannot, which means they also have babies in the wild which means they overpopulate more easily. Hence, the higher supply than demand.
Puppies on the other hand require deliberate intervention by the breeder. But please, don't buy a pet from the store! Go to a shelter or at least go to a breeder that has been recommended and credentialed by the AKC or similar body.
2007-03-26 22:09:48 · answer #4 · answered by On the move 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Businesses are out to make money, first and foremost. Cats breed like rabbits. There are loads of ads in any newspaper worthy of the name for free kittens. That's why they're so cheap. Supply and demand, pure and simple. Purebred dogs are different. The supply is in the hands of breeders, and they're out to make money just like the stores are. If you want a cheap dog, go to an animal shelter. You might even get lucky and score a purebred, although it probably won't have papers. But that's only important if you're planning to breed it. And if you're not particular about breed, or lack thereof, the shelters are still the best place to go. The cost of adoption is usually $100 or less. No pet store is going to be able to match that price!
2007-03-26 21:58:16 · answer #5 · answered by texasjewboy12 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
those puppies are probably purebred. Where as the kittens are probably "unknown"s. Purebred animal, (of any kind) can cost up to thousands of dollars. I recomend going to your local shelter and adopting a just as cute little mixed breed puppy or kitten. Most shelters put down hundreds of cute little puppys and kittens every day because they can't find homes (because people think it's better to have a purebred). Please, if you're going to get an animal, go to your local shelter and save a little puppy, or kitten, from a horrible fate. I promise they will be ever greatful, and show it!
2007-03-26 21:55:05 · answer #6 · answered by EYoungmom88 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The dogs at the store are expensive because they have a *perceived* value. They aren't actually valuable (not the ones at the pet store anyway) and I don't think that anyone can honestly say that they are expensive because demand outweighs the supply. There are so many puppy mills that dump the puppies that they can't sell on high kill shelters it makes me nauseas. There's a puppy mill up the road from me and the county just seized and euthanized *85* unadoptable PURE BRED dogs. The breeders are allowed by special permit to have 145 breeding dogs. Supply and demand, my foot.
2007-03-26 22:07:26 · answer #7 · answered by th3dogmomma 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'd encourage you to visit your local animal shelter. They have many cute puppies, dogs, kittens, and cats; All of which would love a home. The cost is the cheapest you can find and you are also getting karma points for adopting unwanted animals, which is always good.
2007-03-26 21:56:58 · answer #8 · answered by Leon 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The dogs at the store might be a specific type of dog that is demanding in the dog lover community. For example, dashunds and yorkies would cost lots because people are always buying them because they look cute. Kittens are less expensive because they are not as popular and could be for many other reasons. One reason i can think of would be that there are many cats in my neighborhood that like to "visit".
2007-03-26 21:59:52 · answer #9 · answered by flipnotik 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
why do people spend more money on a dog at the pet store when they dont even come with an akc certificate? you can get a dog cheap if u search the classifieds on the internet or in the papers, if u had known me , i had many purebred pups i would have sold u one really cheap under 100.00 , dont buy dogs at the pet store they are bad
2007-03-26 22:18:56 · answer #10 · answered by california_ck 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋