​How do you choose what to price the puppies at?

I regularly see this question: "Why do Labradors cost so much more than they used to?" There isn't necessarily one cut and dry answer that fits every breeder and their motivations, but I can let you know how we at VK Labradors decide on prices for our puppies.

Some breeders choose to price their puppies differently based on gender and color. Some also charge a premium for breeding rights/full registration on their puppies. While this is not necessarily 'wrong,' we choose to charge a flat rate for our puppies rather than charge more for more in-demand puppies or for breeding rights.

Our puppies are priced taking into consideration the mother's health screenings (OFA, genetics, brucellosis), veterinary examinations, ovulation timing testing, the stud fee, travel time, whelping materials, deworming at 2, 4, 6, and 8 weeks, first distemper vaccine and Bordetella vaccine, full registration (once conditions are met), microchip, and microchip registration fee. Puppies also go home with puppy packs that include toys, treats, and information packets. They come with a 24 month hip and elbow guarantee and lifetime breeder support from a licensed veterinary technician. To say there is no profit at all would be a lie, of course, given the time commitment involved, but a large majority of the price goes directly toward breeding and raising quality athletic dogs for you to add to your family.

Why choose a more expensive, ethically bred dog over a cheaper backyard bred individual? A cheap dog is more expensive down the road. Allergies, hip dysplasia, elbow dysplasia, and other orthopedic problems such as CCL tear are extremely expensive to treat. While we cannot guarantee every puppy will be healthy its whole life, a well-bred puppy with extensive health testing is much less likely to encounter these problems.