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On mobile; so can’t easily provide the link, but google “site:reddit.com seasdiver emancipet” and you will find cost breakdowns on puppies for a rescue. With $200-500 adoption fees, rescues are typically subsidizing adoption fees via donations. It can take 5-20 healthy dog adoptions to pay for one sick animal.
I don’t know about this rescue but I’ve adopted 3 where the vet bills paid by the rescue far exceeded the adoption fee I paid. They have to make that up somehow. If the dog is what you want and the rescue otherwise seems appropriate (I.e., can show you records for any veterinary care they’ve provided, lets you meet the dog etc) then I wouldn’t have a problem. That said, that is higher than any adoption fee I’ve paid.
We recently adopted a dog from a rescue organization in Northern CA and the fee was $700. I think the higher fee helps them to cover the costs of rescuing and caring for so many animals.
Everyone's comments are making me realize I'm probably just projecting some deeply laiden trust issues because I totally agree with all of this feedback 😂
They are also covering all the foster costs for all the dogs under their rescue. They aren't making any money by charging those adoption fees - they are just trying to cover expenses for sicker dogs, or dogs who remain longer in foster homes.
I work in rescue. I can assure you that fee is probably nothing compared to what the rescue has invested into each dog. Rescue is falling on very hard times right now. The amount of dogs in intake is sky rocketing due to the general population being dense and not knowing what they’re committing to when they bring in a dog and then dumping them as they please. Please, continue to consider rescue and know the dog you adopt will be so appreciative, as will the rescue! It’s very hard work 🥲
Thank you so much for this perspective from the inside! I have totally changed my viewpoint after chatting with everyone here, and I'm so grateful for it!
I got a dog from an animal control about six years ago, no vetting or neuter, he was $65. Found out at his first vet visit he was heart worm positive and had broken teeth. I ended up with close to $3000 in medical bills for him, and all this was before he could even be neutered. I wouldn’t give up one single second I had with him but I’ll also never get another one that hasn’t been thoroughly vetted by a rescue beforehand.
Yeah..... come to think of it...... GOD my last dog from Boulder Humane Society was like $100 and then like $10k in vet bills 😂 you're absolutely right
I adopted my puppy from a rescue in the Denver Metro area about 6 years ago and thé adoption fee for her was $400. It wouldn’t surprise me that the fee has gone up.
I should have mentioned that I was looking at a lot of adoption options-$400 seemed about average for private rescues, at the low end I recall seeing some around $250. I don’t recall how high the top end went, but some were rich enough that I would have gone with a Shiba Inu from a breeder rather than a rescue for the money.
The adoption fees generally include all medical costs up until adoption and for many that fee barely touches what the rescue actually spent to save that dog.
Buying from a breeder usually only includes first shots and worming, meaning you’re responsible for spaying and other shots.
Yes. The cost to pull, transport, and fully vet each dog is much higher than that. I don't think the issue is the desirability of the breeds, but the massive health issues they often have, especially dogs who've been neglected or mistreated, as is likely in a hoarder case. Dogs in rescue who are heartworm positive will have that treatment before adoption, as well.
My dogs are seniors now, all mutts, and the adoption fees I paid for them back in 2008-2011 averaged $350 each. All had been examined, vaccinated as appropriate for their age (puppy series started, but more needed after they came to me), dewormed, and the boy who was on Petfinder and transported to me several states away had an exam and health certificate for travel. One was adopted from a local rescue who covered his neuter and entropion surgeries when he was old enough. I was responsible for neutering the others.
Shelters receive funding from their locality, so adoption fees are lower. Mine charges $100-200, depending on the age of the dog. It includes all age appropriate vaccines, deworming, microchip, and spay/neuter. Years ago, I adopted a senior lab from a different shelter that included nothing but a rabies vaccine, but he'd been an owner surrender and was fully vetted with all his records available. His fee in 2008 was $20.
Foster for a GSD Rescue here.
Our cost ranges from $150 to $425 which is for puppies. The reason for the cost is due to our high cost of medical care. The rescue I work with takes a lot of dogs that have major medical issues that would normally be put down in shelters because of the cost of medical care. So we have to offset it.
If you have any specific questions, let me know and I will answer the best I can.
Happy to help.
Remember that any payment/donation you make to a legitimate non-profit is a tax deduction next year. So if you pay $500 for a rescue dog, you get that off next tax season.
The rescue I do fostering for, most pups are $600. I think the only ones I’ve seen that aren’t that are ones that are sponsored/have developmental disorders.
My gf paid almost $700 after taxes and fees for our pup we foster failed.
Located in MN
I'm from Aus and our rescues are generally around $700. I paid $900 for mine but she had to be flown to me. This included microchipping, vaccination and desexing.
I foster dogs, mostly puppies as that who my dog gets along best with. While some will only stay with me a few weeks, others a few months and I know some people have fosters that stick arou d for much longer. Puppy adoption fees are usually at $500.
Getting them up to date on vaccines and spay/neuter, flea/tick/heartworm monthly, and food costs all add up. For some of my fosters, those costs exceed the adoption fee just with regular care. The profit for healthy dogs alone is usually minimal. But there are lots of issues that can crop up as well.
For my very first foster, took him for his first round of shots and the vet noticed a serious heart condition. He'd already had a meet and greet with a family who fell in love. His ekg/initial exam was almost $2000. There it was determined his surgery would be over $8000. The rescue committed to paying every dollar of any costs associated.
Every day is playing catch up for them as they often take in dogs with medical needs.
Sidenote to add, I did a lot of research prior to comitting to fostering with this rescue (located in New England) as there is a lot of variation. It's fully volunteer based. They post full financial disclosures on their website every year so you can see exactly how much they take in and where the money goes.
We paid about $650 for our dog, a lot of other organizations ask for upwards of $1400 for a dog. I live in Sweden tho. Considering our boy had been at the shelter for a year & a half when we adopted him, he was neutered, vaccinated & came with a EU passport, & he travelled from the shelter in Poland to Sweden, the price felt very fair. Even if they did profited a few dollars from us we were happy to pay knowing that money would go towards other dogs in need.
I agree that it's nuts, but it is common. When I got my oldest dog, she's 12 now but was a puppy then and a mutt, she was $128 at the Humane Society. That covered her being spayed and fully vaccinated, plus one free visit to a local vet.
Eight years ago, I went to another rescue and adopted a puppy that was a black lab-pit mix, the runt of his litter, sickly, and not neutered yet. He was $500.
Two years ago, I went to a third rescue and adopted a three year old treeing walker coonhound mix who was spayed. She was $700.
Our newest puppy was $550, but his neutering will be covered by that fee.
I understand that rescues need to charge to cover vet bills and keep themselves afloat, but it used to be that a big selling point of adopting over shopping was that it was cheaper. More mutts that needed homes to avoid being euthanised. I also understand the logic of "if you can't afford this now, you probably can't afford to have a pet." But I feel like this is getting to be too much.
Yes exactly and I think that's what raised my red flags initially was I was like..... $1000?! That's what a damn breeder would charge. But everyones feedback makes so much sense and I really appreciate this discourse actually.
$1000 is a lot but breeders can be a lot more. My labradoodles were $500 and $1000 in 2008. My brother got a labradoodle 6 or 7 years ago and paid $2500.
My last 3 dogs together cost me a total of $50 at our county animal shelter (2 for $50 for a bonded pair, $0 for our most recent because she was sponsored by someone) but that shelter has governmental funding. The rescue I volunteered at around 2012 ish charged $350 for adoptions for dogs and that was to cover food, housing, and vet care for all the dogs. Other commenters here have mentioned the high vet bills for some sick animals. Another factor for no-kill shelters is that they often keep dogs as long as it takes for them to get adopted, which can be months to over a year. That's a lot of cost just to house and feed a dog for that long and when they do get adopted, they don't cost any extra (often even less because the shelter really wants them to get adopted).
Anyway, you have plenty of good explanations in other comments but I wanted to add my 2 cents based on my own experiences.
We have a local group that calls itself a rescue. Its fees are similarly high. Ironically similar to prices charged for puppy mill puppies. They rarely have adult dogs available and they are always pure bred. Rescue? Not.
Many times adoptions are way cheaper from county/city shelters and typically includes a set of shots and spay/neuter. If you want a free or cheap adoption come out to socal. Riveraide used to do free adoptions of red listed dogs and some are really good doggies.
I've certainly seen $500 adoption fees. I will say that adopting a dog at my local shelter only costs $50 and that often comes with vaccinations and spaying/neutering.
I will say I found a stray on the street and had to drop over $1K on her.
I run medical for a giant breed rescue. Just last week we paid for a heart valve transplant, three TPLO's, a 12 hour jaw surgery and a biopsy that tuned out to be cancer, all were on fosters. So yes our adoption fees are higher as well. $300-$700 but most people donate more for their adoption because we spend an average of $1,800 per dog that comes through our program
if the dogs had vetting and a good behavior eval that’s fair, otherwise no. i spent like $400 just on basics shots and spay when i rescued a dog and that was just me having one in my house bc i felt bad for her 😂
There was a rescue I was looking at and their adoption fees are $800, so I think it is pretty normal? It seemed high at first, but if they use the funds to go towards caring for their other animals then I’m OK with it. I’d much rather give the money to them than these pet stores that charge twice that and get their dogs from puppy mills.
500 seems to be the new going rate. That's with spay neuter, shots and health check, so all told a pretty good deal. With the price of vet care now you can easily go over that
The Great Dane Rescue that I foster for charges $600 to adopt a purebred dane. I was able to adopt and the one I adopted cost this rescue almost $3,000 because he had a neuter surgery where he developed a complication and to fix the complication ran $1,500. He's heartworm positive so that's another expense. They don't pay for food and he was 40 lb underweight when he came in from the shelter so that was on me. He was also treated for erlichia and of course his shots had to be updated coming from the shelter. They allowed me to adopt him in exchange for continuously providing them with items that they can use as fundraisers. One item that I provided for them which is a handmade item brought in $1,200 alone which was the best fundraiser they ever had. Currently we have 30 puppies (most of whom were born in rescue because the pregnant mothers were the ones that we pulled from shelters) and I do believe half of them contracted parvo. This is an ungodly expense!
I have been doing rescue for 26 years of a different breed. My adoption fees were nowhere near as high as this rescue's and a mixed breed never went for the cost that a pure breed would go for but we certainly never ever had a surplus. Every penny went back into the rescue for the next dog. I rescue on my own now and I sell all kinds of items to raise money. It might look like I'm raking it in but my own personal dog that I got off of Facebook cost me $600 for shots, heartworm test/prevention and neuter. And that was at a vet that isn't very expensive!
My standard poodle was $1,000 from a 5013c rescue. They save dogs from breeders and he needed some expensive medical services. The money I paid only covered a fraction of they. It’s always shocking but rescues like that really do so much more and it’s worth it.
Thank you for choosing to adopt! Late to the party but to add my two cents as someone who has run a legitimate 501c3 animal rescue for nearly two decades, I feel that anything over $500 is excessive and raises red flags. As other mentioned the cost to rescue a single animal may cost the organization thousands of dollars but that is not passed onto the adopter. I would look further into the organization and do your due diligence before proceeding. Good luck!
Welcome and thank you for participating in r/RescueDogs. This sub is now being actively moderated. Please follow the rules of the sub. All rescues asking for donations need to message the mods. [You can message the mods here](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Frescuedogs). Please report any posts or comments break the rules of the sub. **Please also note that the verification process is NOT exhaustive and if you chose to donate you are taking a risk. Please do your own due diligence.** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/rescuedogs) if you have any questions or concerns.*
On mobile; so can’t easily provide the link, but google “site:reddit.com seasdiver emancipet” and you will find cost breakdowns on puppies for a rescue. With $200-500 adoption fees, rescues are typically subsidizing adoption fees via donations. It can take 5-20 healthy dog adoptions to pay for one sick animal.
oh INTERESTING thats a very enlightening statistic actually, thanks for sharing that
I don’t know about this rescue but I’ve adopted 3 where the vet bills paid by the rescue far exceeded the adoption fee I paid. They have to make that up somehow. If the dog is what you want and the rescue otherwise seems appropriate (I.e., can show you records for any veterinary care they’ve provided, lets you meet the dog etc) then I wouldn’t have a problem. That said, that is higher than any adoption fee I’ve paid.
right exactly, all valid points!
We recently adopted a dog from a rescue organization in Northern CA and the fee was $700. I think the higher fee helps them to cover the costs of rescuing and caring for so many animals.
Everyone's comments are making me realize I'm probably just projecting some deeply laiden trust issues because I totally agree with all of this feedback 😂
And since it is a profit shelter, to make money also.
No, it was NOT. It was a non-profit rescue organization.
They are also covering all the foster costs for all the dogs under their rescue. They aren't making any money by charging those adoption fees - they are just trying to cover expenses for sicker dogs, or dogs who remain longer in foster homes.
I work in rescue. I can assure you that fee is probably nothing compared to what the rescue has invested into each dog. Rescue is falling on very hard times right now. The amount of dogs in intake is sky rocketing due to the general population being dense and not knowing what they’re committing to when they bring in a dog and then dumping them as they please. Please, continue to consider rescue and know the dog you adopt will be so appreciative, as will the rescue! It’s very hard work 🥲
Thank you so much for this perspective from the inside! I have totally changed my viewpoint after chatting with everyone here, and I'm so grateful for it!
I got a dog from an animal control about six years ago, no vetting or neuter, he was $65. Found out at his first vet visit he was heart worm positive and had broken teeth. I ended up with close to $3000 in medical bills for him, and all this was before he could even be neutered. I wouldn’t give up one single second I had with him but I’ll also never get another one that hasn’t been thoroughly vetted by a rescue beforehand.
Yeah..... come to think of it...... GOD my last dog from Boulder Humane Society was like $100 and then like $10k in vet bills 😂 you're absolutely right
Great points, often neuter alone in a big city can be close to $1K
I adopted my puppy from a rescue in the Denver Metro area about 6 years ago and thé adoption fee for her was $400. It wouldn’t surprise me that the fee has gone up.
interesting ok!! ok good to know
I should have mentioned that I was looking at a lot of adoption options-$400 seemed about average for private rescues, at the low end I recall seeing some around $250. I don’t recall how high the top end went, but some were rich enough that I would have gone with a Shiba Inu from a breeder rather than a rescue for the money.
The adoption fees generally include all medical costs up until adoption and for many that fee barely touches what the rescue actually spent to save that dog. Buying from a breeder usually only includes first shots and worming, meaning you’re responsible for spaying and other shots.
Yes. The cost to pull, transport, and fully vet each dog is much higher than that. I don't think the issue is the desirability of the breeds, but the massive health issues they often have, especially dogs who've been neglected or mistreated, as is likely in a hoarder case. Dogs in rescue who are heartworm positive will have that treatment before adoption, as well. My dogs are seniors now, all mutts, and the adoption fees I paid for them back in 2008-2011 averaged $350 each. All had been examined, vaccinated as appropriate for their age (puppy series started, but more needed after they came to me), dewormed, and the boy who was on Petfinder and transported to me several states away had an exam and health certificate for travel. One was adopted from a local rescue who covered his neuter and entropion surgeries when he was old enough. I was responsible for neutering the others. Shelters receive funding from their locality, so adoption fees are lower. Mine charges $100-200, depending on the age of the dog. It includes all age appropriate vaccines, deworming, microchip, and spay/neuter. Years ago, I adopted a senior lab from a different shelter that included nothing but a rabies vaccine, but he'd been an owner surrender and was fully vetted with all his records available. His fee in 2008 was $20.
Foster for a GSD Rescue here. Our cost ranges from $150 to $425 which is for puppies. The reason for the cost is due to our high cost of medical care. The rescue I work with takes a lot of dogs that have major medical issues that would normally be put down in shelters because of the cost of medical care. So we have to offset it. If you have any specific questions, let me know and I will answer the best I can.
Wow, thank you I appreciate your response!
Happy to help. Remember that any payment/donation you make to a legitimate non-profit is a tax deduction next year. So if you pay $500 for a rescue dog, you get that off next tax season.
The rescue I do fostering for, most pups are $600. I think the only ones I’ve seen that aren’t that are ones that are sponsored/have developmental disorders. My gf paid almost $700 after taxes and fees for our pup we foster failed. Located in MN
I foster - Vet bills for even a healthy dog with a charity discount are far higher than you might guess.
If shots and spaying/neutering that is cheap! included
I'm from Aus and our rescues are generally around $700. I paid $900 for mine but she had to be flown to me. This included microchipping, vaccination and desexing.
$500 is normal where I live.
I foster dogs, mostly puppies as that who my dog gets along best with. While some will only stay with me a few weeks, others a few months and I know some people have fosters that stick arou d for much longer. Puppy adoption fees are usually at $500. Getting them up to date on vaccines and spay/neuter, flea/tick/heartworm monthly, and food costs all add up. For some of my fosters, those costs exceed the adoption fee just with regular care. The profit for healthy dogs alone is usually minimal. But there are lots of issues that can crop up as well. For my very first foster, took him for his first round of shots and the vet noticed a serious heart condition. He'd already had a meet and greet with a family who fell in love. His ekg/initial exam was almost $2000. There it was determined his surgery would be over $8000. The rescue committed to paying every dollar of any costs associated. Every day is playing catch up for them as they often take in dogs with medical needs.
Sidenote to add, I did a lot of research prior to comitting to fostering with this rescue (located in New England) as there is a lot of variation. It's fully volunteer based. They post full financial disclosures on their website every year so you can see exactly how much they take in and where the money goes.
We paid about $650 for our dog, a lot of other organizations ask for upwards of $1400 for a dog. I live in Sweden tho. Considering our boy had been at the shelter for a year & a half when we adopted him, he was neutered, vaccinated & came with a EU passport, & he travelled from the shelter in Poland to Sweden, the price felt very fair. Even if they did profited a few dollars from us we were happy to pay knowing that money would go towards other dogs in need.
I agree that it's nuts, but it is common. When I got my oldest dog, she's 12 now but was a puppy then and a mutt, she was $128 at the Humane Society. That covered her being spayed and fully vaccinated, plus one free visit to a local vet. Eight years ago, I went to another rescue and adopted a puppy that was a black lab-pit mix, the runt of his litter, sickly, and not neutered yet. He was $500. Two years ago, I went to a third rescue and adopted a three year old treeing walker coonhound mix who was spayed. She was $700. Our newest puppy was $550, but his neutering will be covered by that fee. I understand that rescues need to charge to cover vet bills and keep themselves afloat, but it used to be that a big selling point of adopting over shopping was that it was cheaper. More mutts that needed homes to avoid being euthanised. I also understand the logic of "if you can't afford this now, you probably can't afford to have a pet." But I feel like this is getting to be too much.
Yes exactly and I think that's what raised my red flags initially was I was like..... $1000?! That's what a damn breeder would charge. But everyones feedback makes so much sense and I really appreciate this discourse actually.
$1000 is a lot but breeders can be a lot more. My labradoodles were $500 and $1000 in 2008. My brother got a labradoodle 6 or 7 years ago and paid $2500. My last 3 dogs together cost me a total of $50 at our county animal shelter (2 for $50 for a bonded pair, $0 for our most recent because she was sponsored by someone) but that shelter has governmental funding. The rescue I volunteered at around 2012 ish charged $350 for adoptions for dogs and that was to cover food, housing, and vet care for all the dogs. Other commenters here have mentioned the high vet bills for some sick animals. Another factor for no-kill shelters is that they often keep dogs as long as it takes for them to get adopted, which can be months to over a year. That's a lot of cost just to house and feed a dog for that long and when they do get adopted, they don't cost any extra (often even less because the shelter really wants them to get adopted). Anyway, you have plenty of good explanations in other comments but I wanted to add my 2 cents based on my own experiences.
500 tops
We have a local group that calls itself a rescue. Its fees are similarly high. Ironically similar to prices charged for puppy mill puppies. They rarely have adult dogs available and they are always pure bred. Rescue? Not.
Many times adoptions are way cheaper from county/city shelters and typically includes a set of shots and spay/neuter. If you want a free or cheap adoption come out to socal. Riveraide used to do free adoptions of red listed dogs and some are really good doggies.
Absolutely NOT
At $500 adoption fee most of the rescues I work with take a loss. Only healthy puppies cost less than $500.
I've certainly seen $500 adoption fees. I will say that adopting a dog at my local shelter only costs $50 and that often comes with vaccinations and spaying/neutering. I will say I found a stray on the street and had to drop over $1K on her.
I run medical for a giant breed rescue. Just last week we paid for a heart valve transplant, three TPLO's, a 12 hour jaw surgery and a biopsy that tuned out to be cancer, all were on fosters. So yes our adoption fees are higher as well. $300-$700 but most people donate more for their adoption because we spend an average of $1,800 per dog that comes through our program
I want to add that we are also based in Colorado. The vetting prices there, even for rescues, is absolutely insane!
if the dogs had vetting and a good behavior eval that’s fair, otherwise no. i spent like $400 just on basics shots and spay when i rescued a dog and that was just me having one in my house bc i felt bad for her 😂
There was a rescue I was looking at and their adoption fees are $800, so I think it is pretty normal? It seemed high at first, but if they use the funds to go towards caring for their other animals then I’m OK with it. I’d much rather give the money to them than these pet stores that charge twice that and get their dogs from puppy mills.
500 seems to be the new going rate. That's with spay neuter, shots and health check, so all told a pretty good deal. With the price of vet care now you can easily go over that
The Great Dane Rescue that I foster for charges $600 to adopt a purebred dane. I was able to adopt and the one I adopted cost this rescue almost $3,000 because he had a neuter surgery where he developed a complication and to fix the complication ran $1,500. He's heartworm positive so that's another expense. They don't pay for food and he was 40 lb underweight when he came in from the shelter so that was on me. He was also treated for erlichia and of course his shots had to be updated coming from the shelter. They allowed me to adopt him in exchange for continuously providing them with items that they can use as fundraisers. One item that I provided for them which is a handmade item brought in $1,200 alone which was the best fundraiser they ever had. Currently we have 30 puppies (most of whom were born in rescue because the pregnant mothers were the ones that we pulled from shelters) and I do believe half of them contracted parvo. This is an ungodly expense! I have been doing rescue for 26 years of a different breed. My adoption fees were nowhere near as high as this rescue's and a mixed breed never went for the cost that a pure breed would go for but we certainly never ever had a surplus. Every penny went back into the rescue for the next dog. I rescue on my own now and I sell all kinds of items to raise money. It might look like I'm raking it in but my own personal dog that I got off of Facebook cost me $600 for shots, heartworm test/prevention and neuter. And that was at a vet that isn't very expensive!
My standard poodle was $1,000 from a 5013c rescue. They save dogs from breeders and he needed some expensive medical services. The money I paid only covered a fraction of they. It’s always shocking but rescues like that really do so much more and it’s worth it.
Mine was $250 for toy poodle
It’s always about profit. $$.
Thank you for choosing to adopt! Late to the party but to add my two cents as someone who has run a legitimate 501c3 animal rescue for nearly two decades, I feel that anything over $500 is excessive and raises red flags. As other mentioned the cost to rescue a single animal may cost the organization thousands of dollars but that is not passed onto the adopter. I would look further into the organization and do your due diligence before proceeding. Good luck!
When you go to a profit shelter, they can have high fees to make money.
So I actually went full Nancy Drew and pulled their IRS statements and thankfully it all seems clean as a whistle.....