We paid $35 each a few months ago for a couple of beautiful Australian Cattle Dog puppies (Blue Heelers.) We had looked at some other blue heeler puppies a couple weeks before, and they wanted $65 each and their conformation was not good, their parents were sloppy looking, etc. We passed on the $65 ones and then the $35 ones came up with someone else, a farmer who has been using the heelers on his farm for years, and breeding the best ones only. No registration or anything, but some of the most beautiful and well-behaved dogs you'll ever see. He has bred for over 20 years only the ones who don't bite or snap, as most heelers nip at heels as part of their makeup. These are way better than the $1200 ones we found online, registered and all, that didn't look anywhere near as good.
We got ours when they were just weaned. They're half-brothers, and they're beautiful, loving, and well-behaved, as well as extremely intelligent and easily trained. They have the perfect cattle dog form, too, which we were looking for. I had a blue heeler when I was a kid, and he was the best dog ever! Never ever went after any of us kids or our cows, but when the neighbor's doberman came up and started chasing our cows and us kids, he went after that doberman and literally ripped half it's jaw away. The doberman was more than twice his size! Then back to being a gentleman when the mean dog ran away. Very impressive dog, and that's why we wanted blue heelers now, but we also wanted to make sure they were excellent dogs from good lines, not poorly bred. We ended up with two amazing dogs!
I can't believe the shelters are charging so much for their rescues. I know it costs them to take care of them, but they end up euthanizing so many because no one can afford them. Having all kinds of requirements for people who get a dog there is also ridiculous. I understand they don't want the dogs going to a bad situation, and there's the silly to me argument that if the new owners can't afford $400 for a dog they can't afford a dog, but honestly, there are all kinds of wonderful loving homes for dogs with people who can't afford to pay that much for a dog but will feed it well, love it, and take it to the vet when it needs it. I know an actual vet who had his adopted dog from the shelter taken back by the shelter because he was housing it in his horse barn in a stall, rather than giving it its own room in the house! It had acres and acres to run around on, the best care, a cushy high end stall as its home, and it wasn't good enough. I think some of these shelters have got off-track in their desire to help animals. More humane to kill it than to let it go to a loving family cheaply?
Anyway, yeah, I don't think I'd pay more than about $50 for a dog, and that only if it was one I really really wanted. There are tons of good dogs being given away on craigslist and other places right now because people can't afford to feed them or they've lost their homes to foreclosure and are having to move into apartments or back in with family who can't or won't allow the dog. Keep looking and you'll find that perfect dog for you with the perfect price.
Check craigslist for all the surrounding areas within reasonable driving distance. Check both the pets section and the farm section. We found our dogs in the farm section, since they're purely working farm dogs.
