Question to all beaglers. Open discussion

[GRHBCHSP1981]

In alot of cases you pay for what you get. and the dogs that are winning are more money then the dogs that are not winning. the way i look at it if you are not winning with what you got and you want to win then you have to go buy it. and it does not matter how much it is. but it is all on what you want.

[brknhrtskbeagles]

Not to get off subject here, but lets say you have a neighbor down the road that has several beagles. He has one that looks like the one you've been trying to find to buy, he lets them run loose, another neighbor picks it up and puts it in your yard thinking it was yours. You do the right thing and take the dog back to the owner and offer to buy but he says he isn't selling anything. How would you go about trying to buy this dog if you haven't seen it's running style but really liked the young dog. How would you make an offer not knowing all of this and not to offend him?

[tom summers]

unnless it is an ecetional hound he will sell it.
flat out ask would take to buy the hound. or make him an offer what you are willing to pay other than that I dont see what else.

[L.J. McKenzie]

Ive been in and out of beagles for about 15 years now and ive alwys said id never pay more then 300-400 for a dog. so far i havent. i know a few guys that have spent 1500 on a dog. i know guys that think just because someone is asking 1200 for a dog then that dog is worth 1200. wrong answer. people put a high price on a dog because they know their are people that will spend the money. to me 400 is a good price for a good dog. ky ohio and ten. have plenty of dogs floating around for well over 400 so i think that there is alot of guys that will spend 400 or more (much more) for a nice hound.guys pay 500 for an unstarted pup from branko. sorry but i disagree with houndsmen not spending money.

[Beagled1]

Why wont we pay $400 or more for a started or running pup when there are people that will pay that and much more from a pet store or puppy mill?

Why do we only charge $400 for a running dog when bird hunters will pay thousands for a dog that is started on birds when in my little expierence it takes less time to start bird dog than it does to get a beagle to run a good rabbit?

Is it because we flood the market with hounds?

Are we over breeding the breed?

Let me just add this to the discussion. Why is it that the puppy millers find Beagles such an easy, cheap breed to come by? Look at the pedigrees of a good deal of the Beagles bred by amateurs or mills. What is the one thing in common where these people acquired their hounds?
Thats right, from us. From field breeders. There are just too many of us who don't give a darn where the pups they breed end up, so long as they make the sale. All my hounds are from reputable Beagle breeders - that is to say someone who actively hunts or trials their hounds and is trying to improve the working ability and usually the conformation of the breed. But the most questions I've been asked is if I was going to hunt the pup.
Some of us are selling these hounds too cheap and to anyone who comes along with cash in hand. Guess what? The puppy millers and commercial breeders are well aware of this. They want new breeding stock they come to us, no questions asked, and they get a "breeeder" for $250. The standards need to be raised considerably.
I also do believe that some of us, although not as much as before, are overbreeding. Come on. When you breed a year old bitch and keep breeding her every year until she is 8 or 9 or even older, you have to ask yourself, WHAT THE HELL are you doing??? You're not doing the breed any favors - by that age, she should have had her litters and her contribution to the breed should be long over with. Its actions like that which flood the market and keep prices staggeringly low. The Beagle has a reputation for being a cheap dog. Cheaply bought, cheaply sold, cheaply cared for, cheaply fed. I don't like that reputation.
IMHO, the problem of Beagle overpopulation or market flooding and the cheap rates the pups/adults are sold for would vanish if we all collectively did just one thing.
Find out WHO you're selling to. Ask questions ( I only ask a handful but get a very good idea of who the person is), sell pet prospects on spay/neuter contracts, and don't price your hounds so cheap that is is evident to people that to price hounds so low you must have put out very littel time, money and care into the litter.

[Hondo]

I say it is supply and demand in the purest sense.

A item will sell for whatever some one will pay for it. The reason we pay low prices for pups is that there is so many of them to buy. I promise you that if there were 1/4 as many pups, the price would go up.

I have heard that English Bulldog pups sell for about $600 a pup. My understanding is that most female English Bulldogs cannot have pups naturally due to the large head size so a vet has to C-section them, raising the cost (and the desire of the owner to have pups). Smaller supply = higher prices.

[Beagled1]

I have heard that English Bulldog pups sell for about $600 a pup. My understanding is that most female English Bulldogs cannot have pups naturally due to the large head size so a vet has to C-section them, raising the cost (and the desire of the owner to have pups). Smaller supply = higher prices.

Ebglish Bulldogs commonly sell for $1200, due to the fact they usually require c-sections. So the higher price is placed on the breed to cover the breeder's loss of profit. Which is my point exactly. Most of us will price our pups just high enough to allow ourselves to break even or make a marginal profit. When we see Beagle pups for $100, what does that tell us about the effort placed into the litter? Most Beaglers place a great deal of time into their pups - but the price doesn't reflect it! The sad part is, my father purchased a hunting Beagle in the early 1960s from FC lines for $100. That makes no sense. Why has the average price of a Beagle not gone up accordingly? Are we spending that littel money and giving our litters that little care?
I sell hunting companion hounds first and foremost and keep the best pup(s) that show the most potential for myself. My pups go for $600 and I always get that price and sell out my litters quickly. That being said, I barely manage to break even or might make a profit on one pup. I am thinking of sellign started pups and will not let them go for any less than $850 or so. People will pay that - hunters and pet people - if they want it badly enough and if the supply is not through the roof.
We're stabbing ourselves in the back when we sell pups at rock bottom prices and take on the mentality of "its just a Beagle - who would pay all that kind of $ for it?".

[Hondo]

Beagled1 wrote: We're stabbing ourselves in the back when we sell pups at rock bottom prices and take on the mentality of "its just a Beagle - who would pay all that kind of $ for it?".

You and I are on the same track, just running it different. I say the price is so low because there are so many darn beagle pups out there. If you can get more for your pups, great. But most are selling for much less because of the SUPPLY of pups in the market.

I hope this makes sense.

[Windkist]

We have always sold our pets for more than our showdogs. The reason is that the person buying a showdog from us or in your case a dog for hunting is going put a lot into the dog financially and time wise. I try to be fair and sell them for what I feel is fair for my time and effort too. Lets face it. Raising dogs is work! Hard work and expensive as well. The folks looking for pets don't mind paying (it seems to me anyway) WE all need a little $$ to put back into our dogs.. training, breeding, housing, food etc.

Just curious? What is the average stud fee for a nice field dog with a good record, who has been a producer?

Leah

[tom summers]

$200 -$250