Pricing

Nikki

Pricing: You get what you pay for!

We require a $300 deposit to hold your spot.   This is non-refundable unless otherwise agreed upon.  We don’t refund people their deposit if they change their mind and pick up a puppy somewhere else.  We don’t take deposits until puppies are born so generally, you have an idea of the puppy you want will be there before we would even take a deposit from you.  Please call us for the price for each litter.   There is a deposit to hold and the rest is due upon pick up at 8 weeks old.

I have a lot of people contact us looking for a $300-$500 dog because they want “just a pet”. I know these people will ultimately go elsewhere, but I try to respond to every email, message, phone call, etc. in detail and try to educate and explain why our dogs cost what they do. Just know there is a huge difference between a $500 dog and someone who has put the time energy and effort into a quality English labrador.

Price: You truly do get what you pay for…

The $500 dog will typically come from a backyard breeder that does no health testing and provides the bare minimum of care for their puppies and will generally sell their puppies to anyone that shows up with the cash. These are the dogs that typically end up in shelters, looking for new homes, or on death row. These are the true “Greeders” of the breeding world that has no regard for the health of the animals they are breeding and the puppies they are producing. They are legitimately breeding for money. They are typically just as uneducated as the buyers purchasing the puppies. Unsuspecting buyers think they are getting a good deal because they got a purebred dog for much cheaper! Unfortunately, there are no “good deals” on dogs… as I said earlier you get what you pay for and ultimately you are paying for heartbreak. We spend tons on Labrador disease panels. Labradors are susceptible to many genetic diseases: Exercise-Induced Collapse, Degenerative Myelopathy, Progressive Rod-Code Degeneration, Hereditary Nasal Parakeratosis, Progressive Retinal Atrophy, Skeletal Dysplasia, Retinal Dysplasia, Oculoskeletal Dysplasia, and Centronuclear Myopathy just to name a few. Labradors are also prone to Hip Dysplasia and Elbow Dysplasia, which can not be deemed healthy without an evaluation from the OFA (Orthopedic Foundation For Animals). We spend hundreds more on these OFA tests. These diseases are all common in the breed and can cost families THOUSANDS in Vet bills. Unfortunately, I have heard these heartbreaking stories from some of our own puppy families who have purchased the cheaper dog and have lost their beloved family members way too early. It is devastating.

The more expensive lab comes from a breeder who has spent months prior to breeding just researching pedigrees to find the right match for their dog. They spend thousands on their dogs to complete health clearances to try to ensure they are only breeding healthy, quality dogs. Then come the stud fees and breeding fees which also can cost the breeder thousands. There is an unbelievable amount of time and effort invested into these puppies before they are even conceived. Now let’s keep our fingers crossed that a whelping goes as planned and doesn’t end up in a $1500-5000 emergency c-section which we had to do with Annie’s last litter. A reputable breeder provides the top of the line care for their dogs and puppies. They will ALWAYS stand by their puppies and will ALWAYS welcome them back to their homes.

We feed a top-quality food that costs us over $50 – $60 dollars a bag. We spend well into the hundreds a week on just cleaning supplies for the puppies (YES, JUST CLEANING SUPPLIES!). We spend hundreds on toys, vet care, and equipment. We give our puppies the absolute best start in life and work extremely hard to ensure they are all happy and healthy. We love all of our puppy families that have taken home a Dawson lab puppy! We have found some of the best families in the world!