I'm with a car/kitten organization, so I really don't know about dog adoption fees, but with our's, the fee is $75.00 and that includes, spaying/neutering (if old enough)and all up to date shots...If the pet is too young for the altering, the new parents have a deadline to have this done and we refund some of the money....
With you situation, I'd wonder how they could think of charging the same amount they paid...Of course they might feel they have invested, vet bills, food etc., but just doesn't seem right to me...But then I often wonder how anyone can adopt and then turn around and give up that pet...That's part of the family, just like one of the kids...When you move, would you leave one of the kids behind??? Interesting subject.....Good luck with your new addition....

Oh the classified ads! Aren't they ridiculous? I love how people expect you to pay the same amount for an animal now that is two years old, not to mention, probably un-neutered and untrained. Also, where did they get this dog anyway? Probably a pet store....

I would go with either of the shelter options. The fees sound pretty reasonable to me. And kudos to you for adopting from a shelter, my favorite way to save a life (and find a great companion!).

In my experience, shelter fees vary WIDELY by location; around here, adopting from the local SPCA can run upwards of $200 for a puppy. (Granted, that also includes shots, spay/neuter, microchip, etc.) Where my parents live (very rural area), puppy adoption fees are less than $100.

I'm not griping AT ALL about the adoption rates, mind you-- if we brought our puppy to the vet and paid for all of the above, the bill would be closer to $400, so it's actually quite a bargain.

But I agree, the nerve of someone discarding their adult dogs and asking hundreds and hundreds of dollars for them is unconscionable. I suspect it's out of a sense of not wanting to "lose money on an investment" or some such nonsense-- as if it was a used car or something. Sorry, but those people make me sick.

I got Tatya from husky rescue group for $125. She had already been spayed, vaccinated, and had spent a couple of months in a foster home who trained her for basic commands, crate trained, housebroken, and leash walking. She is a 1 year old Husky, rare agouti color.
K'Ehleyr is my 8 year old Rottie that I got through a different rescue for free. They waived the fee because she was spayed by students at school at no cost to the rescue and because she is so old and I'm a vet student.
As far as the paper ads, it depends on the dog. If the dog was very high-quality with documentation of 3 generations of perfect hips, elbows, eyes, etc. I would pay more than for some unknown history backyard bred uncared-for, untrained dog. That's if I was ever to purchase a dog again, which is extremely unlikely. I prefer the breed rescues because I am very attached to my Huskies and Rotties, and I don't want to deal with young puppies and housetraining and such.

My shelter charges $100 for dogs or puppies, which of course includes their spay/neuter.

I have a sister who paid several hundred dollars for a min pin puppy from a breeder. She grew tired of all the care involved in puppy care and decided to sell him. She also wanted as much money for him as she had paid! I thought that was unreal. However, her children talked her into keeping him so I don't know if she could've gotten her price or not.

Have you checked out Petfinder.com? They have classifieds of found pets that sometimes if people can't keep what they've found they're willing to give to a good home.

Good luck in your search for a new member of your family!

Wow! The fees certainly vary according to where you live. I'm in Ontario, Canada - I paid $165. for my last cat from the local Human Society. He had been neutered. Few days later, I had a vet bill as I was concerned about his sneezing. My last dog (Hannah, HW positive) from a Rescue in the Toronto area would have been $400. spayed & up to date with shots, however due to HW, I paid for HW treatment & will have to pay to have her spayed. Our mongrel, DH picked up, had cancer so we paid quite a bit for that, spaying, shots etc. The elderly previous owner of my male Sheppy wanted me to have him 'free' as he was terminally ill & wanted a good home for him to put his mind at peace. Broke my heart to take a poor old man's dog, so we gave him $500 much to his surprise. We figured he paid for the dog, had all it's shots & neutered & was paying the vet in installments. A week later, it cost us an additional $500. for lazer surgery on his ear.

I would never be able to put a price on any one of my pets as to me they are all priceless.

There are no guarantees in life, so just be aware that even if you do get a dog for free, you may encounter unexpected costs & be prepared.

As for a person asking a specific price for their dog, I think it's totally up to the individual & the perspective adopter.

I guess that's greed vs. I made a mistake and now I need to find the best home I can.

I think when some people pay hundreds of dollars for a dog it's with the intention of breeding and making all that money back plus some.

I got a great dog for $60 or 70 from the pound and a great dog for $90 (waived) from rescue, both adult dogs.

Your fees vary according to the cost to the entity and the amount they are given by local and federal groups. IF it is a shelter (or what the ASPCA or HSUS considers a shelter), there are many grants that can be obtained.

Our fee (about 3 yrs ago) was $90 in our suburbian area. That included spay/neuter, heartworm test, first round of shots (or 2nd if a documented animal that had had first round), and deworming.

The breakdown was this....
- $10 for heartworm test. Vets here charge $36.
- $6 shots. This was the parvo/distemper/yadyadayada shot (6/1 shot).. Vets charge $16
- $35 for spay/neuter. Vets charge per size of dog or cat -- this can be upwards of $120 if a large female dog. Their least fee is $80 for a cat neuter. So $35 is a bargain.

- $6 deworming. Vets charge $6 for deworming around here.
- $16 rabies shot. State law in TN dictates $16 for rabies and licensure (dog license is imbedded with the rabies shot).

We only charged the adopter the cost of our supplies for the animal. And we never charged for the upkeep or feeding during the animal's stay.

That is what made us a non-profit. If an animal was already spay/neutered, we still charged the standard $90. That is because we had other costs for the shelter that held that animal alive. Those costs included feeding, housing, cleaning, electrical and euthanasia of other animals.

Also included was 2 months of "Shelterpet" pet insurance for an adopted animal and minor training.

To me that is quite a bargain. We are in TN and many vet fees are significantly higher than our vets in our area. However, most areas outside of TN are much higher than our state.

Our fee was quite reasonable and we are a non-profit. There are pure-breed rescues that charge more. However, you have to consider that purebreed rescues have to compete for the attention of those that want to adopt from breeders. Frankly, the dogs that purebreed rescues have for adoption CAME from purebred breeders.

Our shelter would also adopt to legitimate "purebreed" rescue agencies simply for the price of spay/neuter ($35. By law in TN, you cannot let any animal leave your shelter without promise of spay/neuter. We eliminated the "if" factor and required that we do it before we let the animal go).

I hope this post gives folks a broader understanding of the costs shelters are associated with.

My current dog is a 2 yr old chocolate lab from Canine Companions/Prison system. He failed the Companion training...loves playing with toys too much and would lose focus. He was exceptionally trained, knows about 10 commands and is joyful with all environments. I found the program through petfinders. There are over 100 prison trained dog facilities across the US...a very worthwhile program. They do charge more, but when adopted you have a history of the pet and all medical/training. They also take you through their training commands.

Just an added suggestion for another resource.

$500 is out of line, but our local Humane Society actively counsels people to: "Always ask for an adoption fee from the adopter. Never give your pet away as 'free to a good home' because this can attract the wrong kind of adopter."

They say this in writing several times and explicitly say so when they counsel people to try to rehome their animal themselves before surrendering it to the shelter.

So I wouldn't think twice about someone with a well-mannered pet that they needed to rehome asking a modest adoption fee... (say $100 or so) but it shouldn't be the same amount they paid to the breeder in the first place! (And what kind of breeder doesn't have a life-time takeback policy/requirement on all his animals anyway?) (Rhetorical question.)

I agree 100% with jazmynsmom. Well said, and very true.

When I purchased my Golden Retriever from a breeder, the contract I signed stated that if I decided to give her up, I would give her up to the breeder or get the breeder's permission before giving her up to anyone else.

Of course, after being owned by her for 5 years, I'd give up DH first (just kidding). But the breeder still keeps in touch with me (Christmas cards, email)

When people have to give up their purebred for whatever reason, they always ask what they paid for him as a pup--sometimes more. The thing is, they almost never get it. If someone has a "must sell" dog for $300 make them an offer. Leave your business card and tell them if they change their minds call. Or check back when the advertisement expires. Talk to local vets and ask if they know of an older dog needing a home. And definately check with breed rescue. Breed rescue often will let animals go for next to nothing to a home they consider ideal. Another place you can very frequently get a nice dog at a very reasonable price is from a breeder. I have had several collies from big breeders and showers in my area. I call and ask for older dogs. They almost always have a female that can't be bred for some reason. They usually charge $50 to $100 with a spay contract. As with adopting any older animal--they sometimes come with emotional baggage.

Funny story: I got a lovely male collie from a very competative show owner for $50. When I brought this dog home to my farm I noticed right away that he only ran in circles. (Being in a chain link run for 5-years.) Strangest thing I'd ever seen. He was fine in a few weeks. Lived a long and happy life with me.

Good luck!