I have been in the same situation (almost exactly) Entire dogs and bitches (probably in a smaller space than you as well !)

This would not make breeders be less selective about people, it would not stop responsible people from keeping entire dogs (unless they are that keen on the money). But it just might give prospective buyers more of a push in the right direction.

PF's can charge less and undercut and still make a profit, becasue they have not done the health tests, breed back to back etc.

Responsible breeders set a price based on what others of a similar breed and standard are being sold for, which will, (from what I see in the paper) generally be more.

I could pick up a BC in the paper for about £200 Siren was £400 (and that was 3 years ago)

In my experience cr@p breeders/puppy farmers/ byb all charge pretty much the same as a reputable breeder, they're in it for the money and they want as much as they can get.

ahh right I see what you mean, but tbh I dont think the un-ethical breeders charge that much less than the ethical.. Certainly not what I have seen in my breed thats for sure, I have seen HL dogs for sale for as much as £1300 (faints) and yet I have never known a decent breeder ask that much possibly just half that. I do think it will be differernt for different breeds though, and many people think there is big money in cresties (and have great reason to when bad breeders charge such prices) - so jump on the band wagon to breed!

Im almost certain that if I went to get a CC from a puppy selling site, I would more than likely be paying more from non tested dogs, with crap pedigrees probs from pet parents, than I would if I went to a decent breeder again with all things done correctly for my next show dog.

Possibly - possibly different across the country as well.

Personally I am not a fan of "paying" people to do the right thing, is any walk of life.

People do NOT learn responsibility from getting paid to do A/B/C, the only way you do this is by being aware of right and wrong.

A breeder when choosing her new puppy owners has to rely a little in intuition and a lot of trust, IF you have a owner who has no intention of "being responsible" then they will find a way to gain the refund and also do as they please with the dog anyway!!

Offering a refund is not encouraging anyone to be a responsible owner.

Whilst I can understand why some are in favour of it, personally it doesn't sit well with me.

If a breeder said to me, if you get your pup castrated, I'll give you £250 I'd be insulted, and would most likely find another breeder.

It should be about mutual trust, you as the new owner, are trusting that the breeder has given the puppy the best start in life they can, and they as the breeder, are trusting that you will give the puppy the best life you can. You are both trusting that the other has and can be responsible, if you can't trust the breeder, then don't buy the pupy, and if you don't trust the new owners, then don't sell them one.

Just a thought, but how would people feel about offering potential breeders cash insentives to have their dogs health tested?

I personally would not want to make it easier for people to breed.

I might offer to pay for a test if I REALLY wanted a pup from a particular dog.

Slightly different but I did pay for a CL test on the brain of a dog that had been pts. Not mine but a close relative.

rune

Done correctly, you are often pretty much doing that anyway - see my earlier post on this thread - over £4K spent out - £3.3K back - if you include the pup I kept, £3.8K - that is STILL a loss of around £500 before you start.

I don't think people have any grasp of what it costs to produce a litter properly - maybe worth another thread - BH - I spend around £150 a week on food for JUST the litter - my winter litter raised by quarterly gas bill by £700

My washing machine and tumble dryer literally going 24/7 for 9 weeks at least.

If you are fortunate enough to have a breed where health tests are minimal, and prices for puppies are high, then good luck to you - but as I've already said, rose tinted spectacles springs to mind.

IN addition to the above - that was a GOOD litter - minimal veterinary intervention - I could have had a £1,200 bill for a C-section and a single (or even no) pups.

Done correctly, you are already pretty much giving the litter away - because you don't even break even - so now - in some people's eyes - we should PAY these people to buy our pups.

What about the honest person who approaches me for a working / show dog with the full intention they want to breed? They are then effectively paying more for their pup - a practice that is heavily frowned upon by most