Poll: recent prices paid and which breed?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We'd be open to a rescue, small dog, 20lbs or less, older,, house broken, low shed, and good with a middle school aged child with anxiety.

Dogs this size are very seldom available for rescue unless there are serious behavior or age issues. That's just a fact. I served on the board of the Humane Society for a many years. I'm more than familiar with the "shaming" that goes with buying a small dog. Ignore the scolds. I paid $450 for my silky terrier but that was 15 years ago. He's been worth every penny. A puppy is easily and quickly trained if you keep at it and are consistent. Not so with adult dogs, who often have established bad habits that are very hard to break. You wouldn't believe the number that are returned to shelters within a few weeks. Shelters only became aware of this after a study done with microchipping.

[Anonymous]

Beware of any adoptions listed as part lab, boxer, part terrier or other such "vague" classifications. Many of these are pit bull terrier mutts, who are by far the most common surrenders to shelters. They are dangerous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Beware of any adoptions listed as part lab, boxer, part terrier or other such "vague" classifications. Many of these are pit bull terrier mutts, who are by far the most common surrenders to shelters. They are dangerous.

Oh please!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We'd be open to a rescue, small dog, 20lbs or less, older,, house broken, low shed, and good with a middle school aged child with anxiety.

Dogs this size are very seldom available for rescue unless there are serious behavior or age issues. That's just a fact. I served on the board of the Humane Society for a many years. I'm more than familiar with the "shaming" that goes with buying a small dog. Ignore the scolds. I paid $450 for my silky terrier but that was 15 years ago. He's been worth every penny. A puppy is easily and quickly trained if you keep at it and are consistent. Not so with adult dogs, who often have established bad habits that are very hard to break. You wouldn't believe the number that are returned to shelters within a few weeks. Shelters only became aware of this after a study done with microchipping.

That is not a fact. I have a schnauzer/cairn mix, about 22 lbs, who I adopted from a rescue group almost ten years ago. She is the perfect dog - super-sweet, well-behaved, easily trained, never any behavior issues. She was about 2 when we adopted her, and is still going strong, so definitely no "age issues."

If you educate yourself on the options for adopting, including rescue groups not in the immediate DMV area, there are PLENTY of small, well-behaved dogs available.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:^any suggestions on where to begin the search?

Petfinder.com

It’s where I found two of our rescue dogs. Be aware through that rescue organizations can be very thorough. References, home inspections, calling your vet to make sure current or past pets were kept up on vaccinations, spaying/neutering. I’m not complaining, and I’ve been through it, it’s just that it’s different from working with a breeder.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We'd be open to a rescue, small dog, 20lbs or less, older,, house broken, low shed, and good with a middle school aged child with anxiety.

This rescue is dedicated to small breed dogs:

http://www.caringheartsrescue.org/adoptable-dogs

Someone on CL posted this ad: (I worry about dogs on CL being "adopted" and then used for nefarious purposes.)

https://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/pet/d/mason-maltese-mix-young-male/6401604374.html

And this:

https://washingtondc.craigslist.org/mld/pet/d/adopt-sasha-loving-4yo-10lb/6416056124.html

https://washingtondc.craigslist.org/mld/pet/d/beautiful-5-year-old-terrier/6414892936.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We'd be open to a rescue, small dog, 20lbs or less, older,, house broken, low shed, and good with a middle school aged child with anxiety.

This rescue is dedicated to small breed dogs:

http://www.caringheartsrescue.org/adoptable-dogs

Someone on CL posted this ad: (I worry about dogs on CL being "adopted" and then used for nefarious purposes.)

https://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/pet/d/mason-maltese-mix-young-male/6401604374.html

And this:

https://washingtondc.craigslist.org/mld/pet/d/adopt-sasha-loving-4yo-10lb/6416056124.html

https://washingtondc.craigslist.org/mld/pet/d/beautiful-5-year-old-terrier/6414892936.html

I would be careful with dogs from Craig's List because there's no recourse with the person if something goes wrong. HOWEVER, many rescues monitor Craig's List and pull dogs from there. That's actually what happened with my dog. He was listed on Craig's List as a free fighting dog, a breed specific rescue got him from that person, and then nursed him back to health and got him ready for adoption. Look for some local breed specific (whichever ones you're interested in) rescue groups on Facebook. They often post available dogs and cross post for other organizations that you might not otherwise have known about. Good for you for seeking out rescue!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We'd be open to a rescue, small dog, 20lbs or less, older,, house broken, low shed, and good with a middle school aged child with anxiety.

Dogs this size are very seldom available for rescue unless there are serious behavior or age issues. That's just a fact. I served on the board of the Humane Society for a many years. I'm more than familiar with the "shaming" that goes with buying a small dog. Ignore the scolds. I paid $450 for my silky terrier but that was 15 years ago. He's been worth every penny. A puppy is easily and quickly trained if you keep at it and are consistent. Not so with adult dogs, who often have established bad habits that are very hard to break. You wouldn't believe the number that are returned to shelters within a few weeks. Shelters only became aware of this after a study done with microchipping.

Wrong. I have a small, purebred toy poodle (under 10 lbs) that I got as a puppy from a breed specific rescue in 2014. I actually wasn't even initially considering a puppy, just wanted a dog under 5 years old because small dogs tend to live a decently long time anyway. Unfortunately, the rescue I used is no longer operational because the woman who coordinated the placements was seriously injured in a hit and run incident.

Here's what worked for me. If you want a smaller dog rescues that are based near areas where most people don't have yards (I.e. City itself, not suburbs) tend to have more small dogs. Additionally, you can go on the AKC website and search for breed specific rescues for any dog breeds that is the right size/low shed. Then I would just apply for as many dogs as you are interested in. If you have a fenced (non-electric) yard and/or vet references you will be more competitive. Also, if you mention your children be sure to note that they are middle school aged because some small dog people worry about rough housing. I didn't have a yard or veterinary refs (because this is my first dog as an adult). So it took me a year to get a dog. But a decent amount of older individuals get dogs that are under 20 lbs for companionship and then their loved ones don't want the dogs when they die. So there are some out there.

I personally wanted a dog that was fostered in a home but I know that the PG County animal control website had a lot of abandoned small dogs, if that is something you are interested in.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all the great leads! While we're not opposed to a puppy our preference is a rescue because there seems to be so many pets that need a home. We're just hoping to find the right matc. Thanks again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We'd be open to a rescue, small dog, 20lbs or less, older,, house broken, low shed, and good with a middle school aged child with anxiety.

Dogs this size are very seldom available for rescue unless there are serious behavior or age issues. That's just a fact. I served on the board of the Humane Society for a many years. I'm more than familiar with the "shaming" that goes with buying a small dog. Ignore the scolds. I paid $450 for my silky terrier but that was 15 years ago. He's been worth every penny. A puppy is easily and quickly trained if you keep at it and are consistent. Not so with adult dogs, who often have established bad habits that are very hard to break. You wouldn't believe the number that are returned to shelters within a few weeks. Shelters only became aware of this after a study done with microchipping.

I got my Cavalier from a breed rescue and he has no health or behavior issues. He's 10 now and when we got him he was 2 and a half. Sweet little guy who is great with my kids...his family was just having financial problems.

[Anonymous]

I searched for a year for a rescue goldendoodle. I never had any luck. We just bit the bullet and purchased one. She was 1500$. We bought her from a breeder in West Virginia.

[Anonymous]

Mini goldendoodle, $1750. We wanted to adopt but waited a year for a small (under 30 lbs) and hypoallergenic dog less than 7 years old to no avail so we went with a breeder. She is the *perfect* dog!

[Anonymous]

$1600 English Lab, show quality

[Anonymous]

AKC Spaniel. $2500. It is a rare breed of Spaniel so no rescues.

[Anonymous]

My first Hav purchased in 2004 was $1800 from a breeder that OFFA health tested and CHIC certified her dogs and BAER tested her pups. She bred two bitches that won Westminster Best Of Breed.

In August I paid $2500 to a breeder who health tests, shows to championship and does "Puppy Culture" trainin and Early Neurological Stimulation. My puppy also came trained to a potty system. He is super smart, very well adjusted and socialized. I've never had an easier time with a puppy. He was so good I'm picking up another from her at the end of the month, she is giving me a discount for being a repeat customer $2300.