Searchadoption pricing?
So what's the acceptable rate for adopting a pure-bred champion sired dobie puppy with all of the garuntees? I'm just wondering since it seems a bit ridiculous to me.
Ok, wow. I knew that good, responsible breeders are few and far between. I know as I've been looking! However, I did not know that it took so much work. Considering all of that, heck, even before considering all of that, I thought that $1,500 to $2,500 was rather reasonable. (for me). After all, I know I can get cheaper puppies from just about anywhere but I've been that route with my husband and that was a HORRIBLE experience for all involved. I'd rather support someone who takes the time and care to do things right anyhow. The reason I asked is because we're looking for a lifetime dobie who'll be a loving part of our family and part-time protector if need be - well, more of an please bark if someone comes to the house that's not supposed to be there. the higher $2500 and up pricings seem to be rather high for what we're wanting. Unfortunately I haven't been able to find it in all of my searching.
I would suggest going to the DPCA website and looking under breeder referal. Make sure you also contact breeders in surrounding states. They may not have puppies available but can point you to reputable people who do. Even with this being said you must have the motto buyer beware. It is up to you to do your homework before and know what health testing should be done and why. Expect a good breeder to ask as many questions of you as you do to them.
If you want to show the dogs then by all means the effort and $ required to search out the exact puppy is well worth it. You have a variety of individuals in this area from the professional Doberman kennel operations that have a large number of dogs and puppies during the year. They can be found advertised in most dog magazines, along with similar operations for other breeds. Then you have smaller breeders no less dedicated to the breed who may have one litter every several years, and many times the puppies are raised in he home until they are adopted to their permanent home. We have several members in this category.
Many small breeders of quality dogs also exists just under this group, they care greatly about their dogs, work diligently to raise a quality puppy, but do not show their dogs, so do not have that expense. Years ago I had a very good female and a local AKC judge who also ran a kennel (not Dobies) suggested I consider showing her. My friend knew her lineage because she came from a friend of hers who had several litters a year but never advertized and hadn't shown in years. I asked about the cost and at that time it was in five figures. So much for that idea.
The expense of showing the dogs comes out of their pockets because if there is any prize money, it is small. Usually the photos, ribbons and trophys are the only thing the winnners come home with.
If you meet someone who is able to make a living off breeding dogs, run from them as fast as you can. The only way to do that is to cut so many corners, what you have is a back yard breeder.
However, there is another avenue if you are not into showing the dog. There are a lot of dogs that need a new home. Some members on here have rescue dogs and all comment what a wonder relationship they have with their dogs, because a dog that has been in bad circumstances and is now in a loving supportive home remembers and is appreciative of the new home. I was fortunate enough to get my last dog as a puppy from a very good breeder, but I think when it comes time to bring another one home, it will be a rescue. They make very good companions. They take some work because even if they have not been injured physically, they have been mentally and they have to relearn the trust of humans.
Read some of the threads of those who have rescue animals.
I am in Australia,
The average price here is about $2000 AUD but only if the breeder is willing to lt one of their pups go to you. If the breeder does not think that you will be a reliable, loving and responsible Dobe parent then it does not matter how much $$$ you have, you won't get one of their pups.
I had some inital problems when I first wanted to adopt Remus. I used my married name when enquiring with the two breeders that I was interested in. I could tell that they were not that keen to even chat on the phone. I was told the waiting list was years long. When I explained that I had grown up with Dobes and now was ready to bring one into my own family. I was asked my maiden name and which breeders we had adopted from in the past. I had the papers of our other dogs with me and spoke about them.... Suddenly the wait list was very short!
Let me ask a crazy question. What do you tell someone who cannot, or is unwilling to, spend $1500+ for a Doberman puppy?
When I got Freyja I wasn't in a position to spend that much money for a dog. I had 2 choices; look for a dog from what many on here would consider a back yard breeder (I had yet to encounter that term) or go to the pound for another pound puppy (our previous dog, Moon, was a pound puppy and had been with us 12 1/2 years before he passed away). We ended up with Freyja for under $500.00. I was pleasantly surprised at the surroundings she was born and raised in. There are no champions in her pedigree but I wasn't looking for a show dog or a dog to breed. I wanted a Doberman to be my companion and friend. I had considered entering her in obedience trials, but decided that wasn't my cup of tea after attending one (even though she knows all the Novice and many of the Open elements).
I guess I got lucky and ended up with a wonderful girl. She is everything I ever dreamed a dog could be, and then some. The vet says she's healthy, although I guess there could be problems that will surface later. From the lay public I get unending complements on her beauty and temperment. I love this girl, I wouldn't take 10 5-figured dogs for her.
After studying about the breed for nearly 2 years now I know there's more questions I should have asked and more things I should have taken into consideration, especially concerning the medical history in her pedigree. But if I had simply decided I couldn't afford a Doberman at $1500+ I would have missed out on one of the biggest joys of my life.
While deployed to Iraq our Internet access was a little sketchy at times. I knew once my 15 mo deployment was completed Susan & I would (leave FT Lewis, WA) move back to Texas. Either by resignation or preferential PCS orders. I was frustrated / sad I needed cheering up. Made two decisions, which later followed thru on. Sold my Vette & bought a MiniCooper S AND bought a beautiful Dobe puppy. On the www I located a breeder in Central Texas. The website (Britton European Doberman Farms) was very impressive with beautiful champion Dobes. Yet, was hesitant due to don't trust fancy websites & all the puppies cost well over $2500.00. Well, about a year later I found the breeder's facilities more impressive than his website. No need for shipping, which saved $$$, and talked him down to $2K with a plastic crate. (Sage now sleeps in an XL wire kennel) If, I'd known then what I know now about Sage I would have paid DOUBLE! We live in a very cruel world, but when Sage is by my side (Velcro, LOL) it is me & my best friend and all else is just insignificant.
BTW, the $2K included tail docked, dew claws removed, MED crop, microchip, and current vacs... along with the forementioned crate. 
SoldierRN, yeah, it's nice how dogs remind us of how pesky our worst fears are. And it's hard to be depressed when you're treated like you're famous.
Freyja's Dad, the important thing is finding a breeder who is focused on health. Price and champion lines don't equate to health. And actually, sometimes champion lines can equate to poor health. Remember, a champion title is usually awarded to a very young dog. So a breeder primarily focused on champion confirmation could very well neglect health.
There are breeders uninterested in the show ring and specialize in raising Dobermans for pet homes - so focus almost entirely on healthy well-tempered Dobermans.
Just be careful. There are also plenty of bad breeders who put on a nice show. And, there are plenty of puppy buyers who don't realize what they're doing, or convince themselves that they're "rescuing" a puppy from a bad breeder... Any money that goes to a bad breeder results in more cruel breeding.
If someone can't afford the price of a well bred Doberman - which is entirely understandable - pound-puppies are 100% the way to go. Bad breeders keep dog pounds full...
I think it is on the rare side to have a pet breeder that concentrates on the health of the dog. It would be interesting if someone could come up with names of people who do all the health testing and are not over breeding the same female and male that live in their house just because they have them. Another thing that is not typically found with pet breeders is knowledge of the dogs behind them. I've not found one pet breeder that fits the criteria to recommend to anyone. I would want someone that knew more about the dogs behind the pedigree and was honest. I would run the other direction if someone told me their dogs lines didn't have any health problems, and the mom and dad are fine. Here is the recommended testing. To anyone looking for a puppy these are important questions to ask your prospective breeder. Also ask how the puppies are raised and socialized.
OFA
CERF
vWD
Echocardiogram
24hr holter monitor
Thyroid - sent to a university for a COMPLETE panel (vets are unable to run a complete panel)
Complete blood work to check for liver and other issues.
Another thing that people lack consideration while looking for puppies is the earcrop process. Most respectable breeders will crop all the puppies before they leave for new homes. This is quite expensive but not as expensive as if you look around for you own vet to do so. MOST people do want a cropped dog. Many people buy a cheaper dog out of the paper or wherever and of course the breeder didn't have the ears cropped. Now these puppy buyers are having to find a vet that will do the surgery. Any time spent on Doberman forums you quickly see all the bad crop jobs and problems that come with it. Not to mention the cost of a crop for a single puppy. In my area it is around 800-1500. So by the time people add this to the cost of the cheap little puppy they bought they aren't saving anything, on the contrary in most cases the cheap poorly bred puppy is now more expensive then saving and buying a quality dog. Just food for thought.
tj - your experience in the breeder really not wanting to sell you a puppy is actually understandable when you look at how you feel about your Dobie. A responsible breeder feels the same about the puppies as well as the parents. When I was raising puppies, even though I had an ad in the paper at times, when I answered the phone, and if the person at the other end could not quickly with their tone of voice and the first few questions convince me they were a suitable home, the prince went up about 10 fold. Today the puppy application that many use serves the same purpose.
rnd - $800-$1500 just for the cropping? Ouch. Down here, it's not nearly that much. If the vets here charged that much there wouldn't be very many Dobies here with cropped ears. The market just won't support it.
Soldier and Freya's Dad - you both got wonderful dogs, but don't dismiss lightly the impact of the owner on the dog. I can tell from the postings that you have a real emotional attachement to the dogs and they in turn have one to you. That emotional attachment is what we are all about. It's why our dogs are the way they are, because they are in a stable committed condition and they recognize that and reflect it. Luck had nothing to do with how the dogs turned out, your committment to their training and the love they get does.
Rescue dogs demonstrate this all the time. A bad owner gets a good puppy and we get a damaged dog in the shelter. A good owner comes along and commits to the dog and in a few years you have the true potential of the dog.
One of the things that makes this forum so great, is that we can all see the commitment of the others in the posts. It is all about the dogs. There are times when I go out back and look at what Princess and Red have done to my grass in the back and think that is terrible, but then I would much rather have to two in my life than a pristine yard. Shoot - it's one of the reasons I moved out into the country, so their predessors would have room to run and play. Now it's the turn of Red and Princess to enjoy the room to run and play.
I have only ever seen one Dobe with cropped ears. He was a beautiful American dog that the breeder had imported about 25 years ago to Australia. He was magnificent. It has been illegal to crop here for many years. Remus does have the docked tail but that is becoming much more rare here. Dobes for some reason do not seem to be very popular in my part of the world. Although, funnily enough one of his brothers lives in the next suburb. Shortly after Remus came home, I was walking him and along came his spitting image. I got to chatting with the owner and it turns out he was from the same litter. We quite often see each other when out with our boys and they still look very much alike.
What do you tell someone who cannot, or is unwilling to, spend $1500+ for a Doberman puppy?
"Unwilling" is one thing, and I guess I won't address that. "Cannot" is another, and it's just not a premise that I buy. *Anyone* can save for what they want. Why has the concept of saving just flown out the window these days?
I bought my first Doberman in 1981 when I was a teenager in highschool. The dam of my puppy was the half sister of the top Doberman female in Canada at the time (her record has since been broken) and the sire was a well-known, high profile Am. Can. Ch. The price in 1981 was $500 which seemed pretty astronomical for a high school student working in a bowling alley snack bar and making roughly $60 every two weeks. Nevertheless, I set about saving for what I wanted. That was going to take a long time so my mom was kind enough to borrow against an insurance policy to get me the rest of the money that I needed to buy my Sabre, and I worked my tail off for quite some time to pay her back every cent. That meant I served a heck of a lot of pops and coffees, burgers and hotdogs and meant I missed out on a lot of "normal" teenager stuff since I chose to work whenever I could get the hours.
If someone wants something and it costs more than they have, I just don't see why they can't save for it. Seems to be a concept that is sadly lacking these days.
Glengate...I could have spent $1500 for a Doberman, but then it would have cost me half of everything I own, my wife would have taken it in the divorce 
But Karen loves Freyja now and wouldn't take $15,000 for her (I think it's all their lap dog time that sealed the deal).
rnd...Thanks for listing the health tests. By knowing what tests are important will help all of us be more knowledgeable about the health concerns of our breed. I know the GD website has helped teach me a lot about Doberman health issues and I am really thankful for that... As for ear cropping prices I called vets in 3 counties before I had Freyja's ears done and the highest price I was quoted was <$200.00.
rgreen...Thanks for your comment. I agree, nurture has a lot to do with the final outcome of our dogs. The best bred dog in the world in the hands of a bad owner is probably not going to turn out to be a very good dog, and vice-versa. We on this forum love our Dobermans, and that love is more important than how much or how little we spent for them.
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It is ridiculous. Totally ridiculous!
Let's start with the champion sire. Just achieving that takes a lifetime. And finding a female with confirmation suitable, and/or an owner qualified, is rare.
Breeders who produce puppies of this quality, when the litter is due, literally go days without anything resembling a full night's rest, often sleeping in their clothes. This only gets worse once the puppies are finally born - which can take a whole day, and required constant human attention and at times some tricky midwife assistance.
And then you have the puppies to care for and raise - evil Doberman puppies. You've got to find suitable homes, people you are certain will take care of your precious puppies at least as well as you would...
And any honest breeding project is going to have extra dogs: Retired mommy-dogs, puppies you chose that didn't turn out to have the proper health/temperament/confirmation, and so on, that you still have - all along with your breeding dogs eating and going to the vet. Vet-$ Vet-$ Vet-$
I'm telling you, it's more than ridiculous. It's about impossible. And then you have people coming over to look at the puppies - sucking up what little time you do have for yourself, as if your a pet store or some foolish thing, browsing the Doberman puppies.
You don't just stick two Doberman's together and two months later find 12 puppies under the stairs - happy bundles of cash. There's nothing hands-off or profitable about breeding quality Dobermans. It's a seriously expensive all-consuming probably-unhealthy hobby.
It's really hard. It's really expensive. And at that, most of the time, if you're willing to wait on a long list, you can still get a quality Doberman puppy for as little as $1500! Sometimes less! Truly ridiculous.