# current puppy price



## apkansas (Mar 9, 2021)

Greetings-
I am a soon to be Havanese puppy's human. I had done quite a bit of reading about Havanese and lots of internet research on breeders and got a local reference for a breeder in an adjoining state. However, I fell in love with a photo of a puppy! I know that is no way to go about this, but it happened. 

It took several days for the breeder to respond to my emails, but when she did she told me that the puppy that had captured my heart was sold, but she had his "twin" who was not on the website. This breeder shows dogs, and apparently the litter of our soon to be puppy was sired by a Champion. We are looking for a pet, which I told the breeder, when I asked about her prices. Her website had no prices, she is not located in a big city, and she home raises her dogs (which is great)! However, when I asked her the price of the twin of the dog I fell in love with, she quoted me $4500! I told her that we had been looking at dogs for about $2500, which seems a bit high based on what I have read on this forum. When I said that was way out of our price range, she said she could come down to $3500. Her response to the price of $2500 for a Havanese was, "those must be puppy mill dogs". I was very caught up in the moment and the twin was possibly even cuter than the twin. But, I need to know if I'm getting swindled. Is this a Covid-19 inflation situation? Is this a fair price for a 10 week old, home raised, AKC registered Havanese? We are also driving quite a long distance to pick up the puppy and the breeder is not being very accommodating about pick up times, and I feel pretty nickel and dimed about some of the other things she is trying to "sell", for example, the dog food. I would hope she would provide several days worth of food so that we could transition the pup from his current food to what our Vet recommends. 

I would really appreciate any learned advice about this. I don't want our family's joy of this new puppy to be squelched by being taken advantage of financially. 
Sincerely,
-ap


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## 31818 (Oct 29, 2014)

This is a survey over the last couple of years. It is NOT specific to 2020/21 but over several years:








WHAT DID YOU PAY FOR YOUR PUREBRED HAVANESE?


This poll is anonymous. I want to limit this to purebreds only since including rescue dogs and mixed breed Havanese could skew the results. You can vote more than once if you have more than one purebred Havanese. I realize that over the years prices of purebreds have gone up significantly but...




www.havaneseforum.com




Over the years the price most people paid was in the $2500 to $3000 range. But Havanese puppies have gone UP over time, not down. So in my opinion $3000 and above is the going rate for a Havanese.

Regarding your case, $4500 sounds like the very top of the market, especially if the breeder is going to nickel and dime you additional for things like a month's worth of starter food. It might be helpful if you could tell us who the breeder is.
Maybe they are one of the top breeders in the US breeding Westminster show dogs and that could make a difference. Their are a lot of variables in pricing puppies, including how much basic training the breeder has done prior to sending them to their forever home.

It is difficult to answer your question without further information and really doesn't depend on what other people paid in the last year


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## apkansas (Mar 9, 2021)

Ricky Ricardo said:


> This is a survey over the last couple of years. It is NOT specific to 2020/21 but over several years:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I am new here and I don't want to start out on a negative note. The way I found this forum was that someone else posted asking if anyone had ever heard of this breeder. Is there a way to PM people on this site, so that I'm not posting the breeder's name publicly? I would be very curious to know whether I am being charged the same amount as others, if anyone else has purchased their pup from this breeder...


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## 31818 (Oct 29, 2014)

No problem, I understand. To send a private message, click on their avatar to the left of their post. That pulls up their home page and then click on "start conversation." Hopefully they will be online and see that they got a message from you. Another way to do this is to give the general location of the breeder, for example "the northeast." Then we can suggest someone who is a regular poster here in that area and you can send them a private message for some feedback. I received a private message today about information on a breeder here in Southern California. That conversation will remain private.

We're here to help.


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## EvaE1izabeth (Nov 14, 2017)

Our puppy was around 2400, maybe a few hundred less, in 2017. DH would roll his eyes that I’ve forgotten the exact amount, since we own very few things that cost more than our Havanese and it was a stretch for us at the time  About a year later I noticed our breeder raised her prices by $1000 and I was surprised, until I noticed that was what other breeders in the area were charging, around $3500. I remember that price better because it was a big enough jump it would have excluded Havanese if that had been the cost when we were looking for puppies, and before I fell in love with the breed. I’m really grateful we brought home our Havanese when we did! I’m pretty sure she had since raised her prices again. 

I think covid has led to some cost of living increases since then, and could theoretically increase the cost of breeding, though I haven’t heard anyone discuss it in detail. I don’t think 4500 is an unreasonable price for a Havanese puppy at this time, depending on location, but it seems high enough I would want more of a polite discussion, not just a cost explanation related to puppy mills.

I do think it’s really strange that the breeder changed the price. My impression has been that most good breeders do not make a profit on their puppies, so they really wouldn’t be able to. Someone mentioned a while back it can take years for breeders to break even. Puppy mills rarely charge less, IMO. They charge some of the highest acceptable prices and cut costs on food, veterinary care, and training, and use commercial breeding tactics to create a profit.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

EvaE1izabeth said:


> I do think it’s really strange that the breeder changed the price. My impression has been that most good breeders do not make a profit on their puppies, so they really wouldn’t be able to. Someone mentioned a while back it can take years for breeders to break even. Puppy mills rarely charge less, IMO. They charge some of the highest acceptable prices and cut costs on food, veterinary care, and training, and use commercial breeding tactics to create a profit.


I think it's REALLY unusual for a breeder to "haggle" over a price at all. It is ALSO unusual for breeders to have puppies "sitting around" waiting for homes. As far as puppy mills charging less? Royal Flush is currently charging $4000, so paying more does NOT necessarily mean you are getting a quality dog! LOL! Puppy mills have learned THAT trick! A cute website and high prices make people THINK they are buying quality! LOL! It makes it tough for inexperienced buyers!  

To the OP, it is NOT something "special" for one or both parents to be a "champion". This is a normal part of responsible dog breeding.


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## Maya2019 (May 17, 2019)

apkansas said:


> Greetings-
> I am a soon to be Havanese puppy's human. I had done quite a bit of reading about Havanese and lots of internet research on breeders and got a local reference for a breeder in an adjoining state. However, I fell in love with a photo of a puppy! I know that is no way to go about this, but it happened.
> 
> It took several days for the breeder to respond to my emails, but when she did she told me that the puppy that had captured my heart was sold, but she had his "twin" who was not on the website. This breeder shows dogs, and apparently the litter of our soon to be puppy was sired by a Champion. We are looking for a pet, which I told the breeder, when I asked about her prices. Her website had no prices, she is not located in a big city, and she home raises her dogs (which is great)! However, when I asked her the price of the twin of the dog I fell in love with, she quoted me $4500! I told her that we had been looking at dogs for about $2500, which seems a bit high based on what I have read on this forum. When I said that was way out of our price range, she said she could come down to $3500. Her response to the price of $2500 for a Havanese was, "those must be puppy mill dogs". I was very caught up in the moment and the twin was possibly even cuter than the twin. But, I need to know if I'm getting swindled. Is this a Covid-19 inflation situation? Is this a fair price for a 10 week old, home raised, AKC registered Havanese? We are also driving quite a long distance to pick up the puppy and the breeder is not being very accommodating about pick up times, and I feel pretty nickel and dimed about some of the other things she is trying to "sell", for example, the dog food. I would hope she would provide several days worth of food so that we could transition the pup from his current food to what our Vet recommends.
> ...


Watch out for scammers! I almost gave a $500 deposit to one that I suspected was one. I started asking questions and he never responded. I just happened to had post under breeders today, where I got my beautiful Maya from. You many find her under Nana's Havanese in Facebook, I had the most joyous experience with her. Im in Atlanta, and the breeder is in Alabama, so she kept sending me videos and pictures of the litter showing the one that would be for me. Maya is now 2 and I'm still in touch with Donna, the breeder. Maya came from a loving home and that makes a difference in the dog's behavior. Avoid puppy mills, my friend got one that 2 years later had cancer and many other ailments due to these mills that breed sisters and brothers, and so on....


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## Mikki (May 6, 2018)

apkansas said:


> Greetings-
> I am a soon to be Havanese puppy's human. I had done quite a bit of reading about Havanese and lots of internet research on breeders and got a local reference for a breeder in an adjoining state. However, I fell in love with a photo of a puppy! I know that is no way to go about this, but it happened.
> 
> It took several days for the breeder to respond to my emails, but when she did she told me that *the puppy that had captured my heart was sold, but she had his "twin" who was not on the website. * This breeder shows dogs, and apparently the litter of our soon to be puppy was sired by a Champion.  We are looking for a pet, which I told the breeder, when I asked about her prices. Her website had no prices, she is not located in a big city, and she home raises her dogs (which is great)! However, *when I asked her the price of the twin of the dog I fell in love with, she quoted me $4500! *I told her that we had been looking at dogs for about $2500, which seems a bit high based on what I have read on this forum. When I said that was way out of our price range, she said she could come down to $3500. Her response to the price of $2500 for a Havanese was, "those must be puppy mill dogs". I was very caught up in the moment and the twin was possibly even cuter than the twin. But, I need to know if I'm getting swindled. Is this a Covid-19 inflation situation? Is this a fair price for a 10 week old, home raised, AKC registered Havanese? We are also driving quite a long distance to pick up the puppy and the breeder is not being very accommodating about pick up times, and I feel pretty nickel and dimed about some of the other things she is trying to "sell", for example, the dog food. I would hope she would provide several days worth of food so that we could transition the pup from his current food to what our Vet recommends.
> ...


I think you should RUN not WALK away from this lady. The only thing you know about this breeder is what she's telling you and it sounds to me like a Scam. RED FLAGS are the Nickle and Diming. Coming down in price not only quickly but $1,000 is a huge amount! 

And...... The idea the puppy is a TWIN of the puppy you Love! is ridiculous. What does that mean? I suppose all puppies in one litter would be Twins. I doubt there are any puppies. She's probably showing pictures she's gotten off of the Internet. 

I don't believe this is a Puppy Mill which are outlawed in most states. It's a Scam. Don't send any money and if you've already sent money don't give them anymore. 

Unless you can physically go to the place, meet the breeder, see the breeding dogs and observe the environment, before you pay for a puppy, you shouldn't purchase a puppy. Another option is if you know someone who can make a referral. Even then I would only put down a deposit that I can reverse should things go bad.


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## apkansas (Mar 9, 2021)

We are able to go in person and check things out before the final sale. I have received good health documentation about the parent dogs from the breeder. 

I have also been in touch with someone who purchased a dog from this breeder a few years ago and that has all been positive.
I appreciate the feedback about which tests to ask for, etc. I feel much calmer about the situation after lots of documentation has been shared and multiple conversations have been had.


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## LeleRF (Feb 18, 2021)

Wishing you best of luck, AP! 👍


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## apkansas (Mar 9, 2021)

Introducing Felix our charming, clever, and very high maintenance Havanese puppy. He is charming, except when he is shriek barking because sometime is not paying him rapt attention 🥰 
I’m learning so much from the training posts and advice on this forum! Thanks Havanese people!


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## LeleRF (Feb 18, 2021)

Oh goodness! Felix is gorgeous! Congrats on bringing home your new baby. So glad it all worked out for you! ☺


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Awww, he's a cutie! Congrats!


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## Jackie from Concrete WA (Mar 23, 2015)

Welcome!


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## Mando's Mommy (Dec 8, 2020)

Welcome and congrats!


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## GoWithTheFlo (Oct 11, 2018)

Hello to Felix, he is so sweet 🥰


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