High Adoption Fees - Page 1

I recently started looking to adopt a dog and realized that some shelters have some pretty high adoption fees, as high as $450.  It almost seems as though they are focussed on making a profit instead of getting these dogs homes.

Please explain

Are you talking about shelters or rescues?  I think that's insanely high for a shelter but can think of a few reasons a rescue might charge that.

I volunteer with a rescue and our adoption fee is a flat $250.  But many of our dogs cost the rescue far far more than that.  80% of the dogs in our program come to us with heart worms, which costs the rescue $200 to treat.  Add that to a routine spay/neuter, shelter pull fee (if there is one) and shots and you're already over the adoption fee.  Every month we get one or two that need additional medical attention:  mange, broken bones, etc.  In addition the rescue has to buy heartworm and flea prevention for the 20 or so dogs in the program.  We strive to keep our adoption fees low, so we make up the difference in fundraisers, individual contributions, and from the volunteers' pockets.  I can promise you that in my rescue, nobody is getting rich.  :-)

The rescue you're talking about might not have as generous donors as we do and need to make up the difference in adoption fees.  They might be charging for each individual dog, what he/she has cost them.  Or somebody might be lining their pockets.  :)  There are people out there who pose as "rescues" but are really pulling dogs from the pound and then charging high "adoption" fees for them just to make money.  You can always pull a rescues' 501c3 status from the government to make sure they are in fact a non-profit organization.  The IRS keeps a pretty close watch on those to make sure nobody's getting rich.  

James, if you are going through specific breed  "rescue", then yes prices are high, even Humane Societies fees are now @ $100...if you go to animal shelters where they don't do medical exams, don't alter animals..they just pick them up and hold them for 3 days than PTS if not claimed;  those places are $25.00 flat fee and you take animal at your own risk....I seen unclaimed GSD's purebreds in there....sometimes if you tell them what you want they will contact you when an animal comes in but you have to go there frequent...thank god for rescues organizations if you let them know you seen a specific breed most likely someone will come and get it....call animal control in your area and find out where they take their "found" animals..thats where you want to go..if you want to get animal at lower price but you are taking a risk with lack of socialization, behavioral issues, and medical problems.

you get what you pay for..........

"3 day and kill"
county animal control
Dogs & Puppies   $80
you get them as the come in.....good luck

"45 days and kill shelter"
Houston ASPCA
Puppies, Small Dogs, Purebred Dogs - $150
Large Dogs - $95
not much is done except for altering.

(no kill for "adoptable animals"
Houston Humane Society
Adoption Fees
Dogs under 25 lbs or under 6 months of age are $125.00
Dogs over 25 lbs and over 6 months of age are $95.00
All dogs seized in the Panola County Puppy Mill Raid are $200.00
dogs that are ill or hurt or malnurished and "not adoptiable"

"no kill - period"
Greater Houston German Shepherd Rescue
The adoption donation fees:
• 6 months of age or younger $300
•GSDs older than 6 months and up to 6 years is $275
• GSDs over 6 years $225
dogs are treated for heart worms, and other condidions and altered as part of the cost.

To the original poster..... I have done GSD rescue, essentially out of my own pocket for more than 15 years. Some years I spent in excess of $21,000 on vet care for dogs in my program. I did not use foster homes and I cared, fed, trained, vetted and where possible, adopted the dogs out at a very low fee. I cannot even suggest how many thousands of dollars of my own money I spent each year on food, let alone try to figure out compensation for housing, supplies, my time, etc. What I discovered all these years was that I was just STUPID and was using the very money I needed to survive in my senior years, rather than charging a realistic fee. I was a rescue that did not simply take a dog and get "rid" of it as fast as I could. I kept the dogs until the RIGHT home became available, and often, that took several months, and in a few cases, a year or more, and in several, I could not adopt the dog out and it stayed with me until I had to put it down of age or infirmity. Usually these were situations where the dog ended up being un-adoptable because of health issues. I fed quality food. I used quality vets and all dogs received whatever care necessary. In all but one case, where more than $3500 worth of surgery had to be done to repair a badly broken leg, I paid for those costs. I never had a dog I adopted out returned, although one lady lost her dog. I took only a few dogs out of all those I got called about, simply because my resources were limited. Still, over those years I adopted out more than 500 dogs and spent innumerable hours helping people. To this day, I receive between 10 and 15 emails and phone calls every 3-4 weeks from people seeking to dump their GSD. Continued below:

 I have four rescues now, but generally have had to tell people for the last 3 years that I cannot help them. Wonder why? Because I cannot afford to care for other people's dogs. Even the local shelters in my state have had to raise their adoption fees and many can hardly make ends meet. I can't make ends meet. So when I see a complaint like yours, I must say it makes me angry. I suppose,like in all walks of life, that there are groups or people who abuse this situation and make money, but I don't know of many. I made sure I was legitimate and licensed. Even my license fee was $300 or so a year. Most rescues don't bother and just do it willy nilly and illegally. Sometimes they don't place dogs appropriately and that ends up hurting the dog as it goes from home to home or shelter.

The fact is, it is expensive to take care of dogs, to feed them properly, to give them the appropriate medical care (even giving ones own vaccinations is not cheap) and to see that they have some modicum of a decent life not constantly confined in a crate or small enclosure. It takes time to take care of them, and to answer inquiries, even if only to say no or to provide a tongue-lashing in hopes that the person wanting to dump their dog for no good reason will reconsider. So I don't have much patience with people who complain about adoption fees. There are a few large groups who probably make due with lots of volunteers. But most, like me, had little help.

If you don't want to pay a fee or the fee asked, go elsewhere. It is simple. But don't come here and complain. Try buying a quality dog, with known bloodlines, from a reputable breeder instead. Go to your local shelter and see what they charge. In the end, if you find the animal you wish to give a forever home, then I suggest it is worth paying what you have to pay. In addition, people who complain about having to pay often, in my experience, have no clue about what it takes to maintain a dog properly. It is not cheap to own a dog and care for it appropriately. So if money is an issue, have an ant farm instead. Check out the groups, but I bet if you look hard at legitimate groups or individuals, you will find no one is making a living doing rescue.

By the way, I never applied for non-profit status because I did not have the time or the filing fee. But you can be certain I never made a cent, and now, I may loose all I have because I was not always prudent thinking more of myself than what I could do to make a difference and do so for the breed I love and for unwanted GSDs. My top adoption fee was $300 max, and that rarely covered the given dog, let alone all the dogs I ended up having to keep. I just put a dog down recently and the cost was more than $200 with a vet who gives me as much discount as possible on all charges. Again, I don't see any rescue lining their pockets.......

I have never seen a "shelter" ask a $450 fee.  Generally, in this area, "shelter" refers to Animal Control shelters in the area that are "kill shelters."  They do not offer any type of Vetting other than, IF you're lucky, a Rabies vaccination.  Their adoption fees are generally $20-$50, and then you, as the new owner, have to go out and pay for any Vetting and spaying/neutering the animal requires.  

I have, however, seen breed-specific rescues charge all the way up to a $500-$600 adoption fee on their dogs.  Their breakdown is usually with seniors having a lower adoption fee than puppies since most everyone wants to adopt a purebred puppy.  

For a $450 adoption fee, I would hope that the dog in question be already spayed or neutered, fully vaccinated, up to date on any preventatives, microchipped, and fully vetted for any illnesses or injuries that they may have had. 

If a "shelter" is charging a $450 adoption fee, and the animal has no vetting done whatsoever, then I'd really have to question the "shelter" and their practices. 

However, to assume that a legitimate* "rescue" is out to make money is absurd. For example, say a rescue has 5 dogs for adoption.  (* legitimate meaning rescues that are licensed with their State, if required, etc.)

All 5 of their adoption fees are $450 ( $2,250 in adoption fees.)  

Perhaps two of the dogs had illnesses or injuries that racked up $800 each (easily done, and that doesn't include any setting, casting, or amputations for broken bones.)  

One of the dogs may have racked up a $500 Veterinary bill due to an illness, and another dog has a $1,000 Veterinary bill due to complications from a pregnancy before the dog was picked up by the rescue. 

That's now...$3,100. 

Add in spaying/neutering, vaccinations, etc. and you're looking at another (let's say they got a discount) $150 per dog ($750.)  Now we're up to $3,850...but the rescue's "gain" is only $2,250 from the adoption fee they charged.  

 Flashbang gives some good figures.....here is another. I took in a dog who apparently had been hit by a car. Another rescue could not keep him because they utilized foster homes and had none to switch to when the dog wanted to kill the foster home cats. So I took him. Found out immediately by looking at him that his hip was broken.....almost $4,000 to repair his hip, not to mention 6 months of confinement and enough attention to keep him from going stir crazy. Was unable to adopt him. He lived with me the rest of his days and became acutely ill one day. Trying to save him cost another $1200, and was not successful. That dog alone took so much money to save, and although I ended up loving this dog, perhaps I should have put him down when I realized he had a broken hip.....

I have a dog now who has a mammary tumor and I will have to put her down this week because I cannot afford to even try to save her. She is only about 7 or so. Rescues don't make money and in my state, I don't know of any shelter that is making ends meet either. As it is, they are often going out of business as well. There are a lot of costs one doesn't even begin to think of when an actual shelter is involved, such as insurance, building maintenance, staffing costs, etc.

@hodie, I know the expenses needed to take care of a dog. I currently have a GSD and I've had preformance dogs all my life. With the surplus of dogs and over occupied shelters I wanted to donate my  time and resources to give a dog a permanent home.

But thank you to all the posters because I did not know the difference between shelters and rescues. I figured it was cheaper for an agency to give the dog away to a good home instead of keeping it and continueing to allocate expenses. 

Why should a shelter or a rescue "give away" a dog when they have incurred expenses? If you want to give a dog a permanent home, that is wonderful. So go pay the fee and give the dog a good home for the rest of its life. Unfortunately, in my area, if someone can pay a fee, they get the dog, regardless of whether they really will be a permanent and appropriate home. Did you apply for the dog? Were you turned down? Or just turned off by the fee? If the dog is the dog you want, then go pay the fee and take the dog. Hopefully it will be the right situation for you and the dog.