Do you think Rescues charge too much??

On the front page of our local newspaper today is an article...

"Pets abandoned as credit crunch bites"

Our local rescue centre said "People are still coming in to rehome pets but are making unrealistic offers for them.
We vaccinate, neuter, microchip and clean the pet before it leaves us.
If they cant afford to pay for it now how will they afford it when it comes to bills in the future?"



This particular centre charges a MIN of
£65 for a cat
£150 for a dog.


Do you think this is the right price for an unwanted animal??
Even with centres overflowing?

Maybe you agree with this rescue that then only people with enough money can adopt therefore the animal will have more secure a future?

Or maybe you think this price is too high when centres are turning away animals as they are full up? And many a dog would have a home if they lowered the price?

How much do the rescues charge near you??

I am inclined to agree with the highlighted statement. Anyway it shows commitment if they are willing to pay and there is less likelihood of the animal being cast off after a couple of weeks if it has been paid for. Anyone genuinly wanting a dog I think would understand that they have to pay for it.
Rescue centres have huge overheads that have to be met somehow.
I paid £65 for Mo, cheap at half the price

Now i am not too sure...

I can understand that in an ideal world we could all afford to pay rescues for the dog and all the hard work they do... but i also can imagine what its like to have a good home waiting, maybe even have budgeted for a dog in your monthly income, but finding a lump sum is too much, and you see a dog that has been stuck in kennells for a long time and is desperate for a home?
What if your elderly and could offer a home to an oldie too that noone else wants..


I personally think the prices should be dropped, but continuous, vigilant home checks should be made -but then again this costs money unless they are volunteers, so bit of vicious circle I dont know!!

I don't know about larger and well-known rescues, but smaller rescues often don't get a lot in the way of non-adoption donations, and often the workers are all volunteers. If you think, neutering costs £80+, depending on whether it is a bitch or dog, then there's worming, vaccinations, microchipping... the rescue we're adopting from asks for a donation that covers these things, but then they also have the expense of feeding the dogs, etc. If you buy a puppy direct from a breeder, you not only have the cost of the pup, which can be £hundreds, but also neutering, vaccs, microchip, etc. So really, most rescues actually only ask for a donation towards the costs that the dog has incurred, rather than a donation for the dog itself.

Realistically, if people decided on their own donation, then most people (even those who could afford it) would give the minimum, and the rescue would be loosing money and would have to reduce the number of dogs the helped because it was costing too much.

I do think rescues should offer prospective adopters the chance to pay in installments if they are going to struggle, but I suppose they would have to wait until it was paid before the dog went home, as there is the risk that some people may not honour it.

Maybe some people think that £150 - 200 is too much for a rescue and go to the puppy farmer down the road instead so they get "more or their money" - sad but true!!

I think a lot of rescues don't charge much if at all for the oldies so maybe they would be suitable for the OAP's who would find the bigger prices too much . I think they also pay for medication for the rest of the dog's life if you take an oldie .

I think you are right Fernsmum.
We took on Mo knowing that she had a heart condition and the rescue centre have guaranteed to meet the costs of any treatment for her heart.
We would obviously try to do this ourselves.........but you never know.

I think that considering the dog is chipped & snipped, vaccinated & wormed before being rehomed the adoption fee is reasonable, added of course are the care costs while at the shelter including food, vetinary checks etc.

Regarding people taking on these dogs, there's always that uncertainty about it's history that may put some people off.

I looked into a rescue dog before I decided on Charlie (I didn't think that Lizzie would accept another adult dog) in my area rescues start from £80 for a crossbreed, although most seem to charge around £120 - £150. Some like Lab Rescue & Lab Welfare work on a sliding scale depending on the age of the dog, and in fact if it is over 10 Lab Welfare won't let you adopt the dog, it is classed as lifetime fostering & they pay all vetinary fees other than standard vaccinations, worming & flea treatments.

I really don't think that amount is too much considering their overheads.

I was talking to my friend today and we were working out just how much it costs us to look after our dogs. Vaccinations, dogs food, bedding, vet visits etc., and to be honest it can be a struggle some months especially if your dog has some unexpected condition/illness and then you have two like me and thats double the trouble.

Cut me down if you like but I hope rescue centres explain to people how much time and money dogs cost. If you can't afford £150.00 to pay for a rescue then you can't afford to look after one. I'm not saying you shouldn't have one all I'm saying is that the sad fact is vets are charging us more, food is going up in price, flea treatment is extreme in cost in itself, then if you take your dogs to training classes etc. it all amounts up.

Actually i do agree with you.
Rescues do have to cover their costs. Its just I do think that if they dropped it a bit people may be more inclined to get a rescue than a pup from a private seller... and with rescues overflowing can it be cost effective to keep the same unwanted dogs (that they have to continue to pay and care for) when there are others being turned away... couldnt they lower the price and therefor have a higher turnaround -(sorry couldnt think of word didnt mean it to sound like a supermarket!).