Financial cost of getting a Labrador Puppy

cyberbob

poohzee wrote: »

Thanks everyone - have been looking into insurance costs and the policies do vary wildly! I have just been doing pretend quotes to give me a good idea of what to expect to pay when the time comes and we have a real one!

I think I am looking at around £1000 for the one off costs, this includes, the puppy, spaying, crate, doggy classes and microchipping

I am basing this on the fact that the pup will be around £600 - I have seen many advertised from £150 - £750.

I was wondering if anyone had bought a pup in Scotland and what price they paid?

Our Golden Pup we 3 years ago he was around £400 (a lot cheaper than our cats). The breeder who was great had all the hip scores and both parents to view. Its best to visit more than one to get a feel of them

poohzee

Great thanks cyberbob, the only problem with visiting is I can tell I will fall in love with them all!!

viclspence

Just completely unrelated to prices......when my parents got their labrador pup (who has just turned 12) he demolished every soft toy he saw - including sneaking upstairs when everyone was out and stealing mine and my sisters, he chewed through carpet and he scratched holes in a concrete floor, all of which cost to put right. We got a stair gate for the stairs so he couldn't get upstairs and 'steal' anything. He also just to piddle on the carpet when he get really excited and he was really small and we paid for someone to come out and clean it, but when they tested the carpet it became apparent that it was mostly behind furniture where we couldn't catch him.

foreign_correspondent

poohzee wrote: »

Great thanks cyberbob, the only problem with visiting is I can tell I will fall in love with them all!!

Never bring a pup home just 'cos it is cute (they all are!) or because you feel sorry for it - can be tempting, but it is not a good idea!

Some tips on what to look for when choosing a pup here:
http://www.dogstrust.org.uk/_resources/resources/factsheets09/factsheetgettingapuppy09.pdf

Also, you may want to contact the labrador breed club to find a reputable breeder, and to ensure you are not supporting puppy farming/irresponsible breeding - more info here:
http://www.dogstrust.org.uk/az/p/puppyfarming/default.aspx

majicbus

PooZee,

I know of a great breeder of Lab's in Scotland, whether she currently has any plans for a litter or not in the next year i can't say, but she would be very helpful to speak to, meet her clan and advise you in the best possible way of other breeders to go to or avoid at your peril.
PM me if you'd like her details. Her Lab's aren't working stock, but they can work if that makes any sense. Don't be afraid to travel for the right pup, i know in my breed people travel up and down the UK to find what they are looking for.
Also to note not many breeders have the sire at their home, they tend to seek the best sire they can find as a good match regardless of mileage!!!

poohzee

majicbus wrote: »

PooZee,

I know of a great breeder of Lab's in Scotland, whether she currently has any plans for a litter or not in the next year i can't say, but she would be very helpful to speak to, meet her clan and advise you in the best possible way of other breeders to go to or avoid at your peril.
PM me if you'd like her details. Her Lab's aren't working stock, but they can work if that makes any sense. Don't be afraid to travel for the right pup, i know in my breed people travel up and down the UK to find what they are looking for.
Also to note not many breeders have the sire at their home, they tend to seek the best sire they can find as a good match regardless of mileage!!!

Thanks - have pm'd you

poohzee

viclspence wrote: »

Just completely unrelated to prices......when my parents got their labrador pup (who has just turned 12) he demolished every soft toy he saw - including sneaking upstairs when everyone was out and stealing mine and my sisters, he chewed through carpet and he scratched holes in a concrete floor, all of which cost to put right. We got a stair gate for the stairs so he couldn't get upstairs and 'steal' anything. He also just to piddle on the carpet when he get really excited and he was really small and we paid for someone to come out and clean it, but when they tested the carpet it became apparent that it was mostly behind furniture where we couldn't catch him.

Thankfully on the pee front we only have wood floors - so will hopefully be easy to find! And as we have small kids we still have two stair gates inplace already!

poohzee

foreign_correspondent wrote: »

Never bring a pup home just 'cos it is cute (they all are!) or because you feel sorry for it - can be tempting, but it is not a good idea!

Some tips on what to look for when choosing a pup here:
http://www.dogstrust.org.uk/_resources/resources/factsheets09/factsheetgettingapuppy09.pdf

Also, you may want to contact the labrador breed club to find a reputable breeder, and to ensure you are not supporting puppy farming/irresponsible breeding - more info here:
http://www.dogstrust.org.uk/az/p/puppyfarming/default.aspx

Thanks very much for these websites, I know in the end of viewing I would let me head rule over my heart - so I will be sensible - promise!

Lobell

Also when finding a breeder you need to make sure that both dam and sire have been health tested and the results are good.
They need to be hip scored and you need to look for a low score on both parents.
They need to be elbow scored and you are looking really for clear elbows on both parents.
Also they need to be eye tested and Lab's should be tested yearly for this as well. Go for parents which have shown clear for 2 years on both sides.

Good advice but I feel it may be useful to expand on this a bit...
Both parents should be hip scored. The lower the score the better. An acceptable score is less than 15 in total as this is the current breed mean score for Labradors.
Elbows are scored 0-3. In a breed with a huge gene pool, only dogs with a score of 0 should be bred from. A score of 1 may be acceptable IF the dog is exceptional in every other regard. However, with the sheer no. of Labs (c. 45,000 pups registered with the KC annually, probably as many again bred but not registered), there should be no need to compromise on this and the best breeders won't compromise. Scores of 2-3 indictae moderate to severe dysplasia.
Eye tests should be carried out annually. You need to see the most current certificate and it should be dated within the last 12 months. If it's not, then it's out of date and invalid.

Membership of a constituted breed club is generally a good indicator of the reputability of a breeder as they will have to abide by a code of ethics which ensure responsible breeding.

Spuddle

Microchips arent that expensive.

You will need their jabs doing, and will need to buy wormers. Remember to get insurance and if you can afford it, pay in one go, as the monthly payments are usually atleast £30 more than the BIN price.
Vets bills can seriously amount up if you have a troublesome pup.

Our lab had been pinned as a 3 week old puppy, which left him with a horrible eating pattern and digestive upset. Nothing wrong with him as a dog, just someone decided to go old school on him.

If you do claim on insurance, make sure its worth while. If you claim for a broken leg, remember if it rebroke it would most likely not be on the cover policy any longer.

The parents need good hip scores, lopsided hip scores arent good. Go and see several litters, if they arent KC registered, personally i would just walk away.


If you are going to crate train them, a decent crate is around £50-60

Beds and bedding later on can range to quite expensive, but it isnt that bad.

Best feeds are things like Science Hills. DO NOT go for certain brands of dog food, as the amount of rubbish you would end up putting into your puppy would be horrific. Cant name names on here, but do your research and check what is on the label!
We feed a pet stores own brand where it is 100% meat.

Collars and leads are cheap and easy, ours has a lovely nylon collar which we got for £10

Our lab is a gun dog, so has the added expense of slip lead, dummies, floaters etc.