Whatever the "adoption" fee is at the local shelter.

I don't pay for breeds and don't pay for unnecessary veternarian procedures, like "bloodwork" to find out the pet's cholesterol level. If it's serious, we consider options.

If I had access to really good, constent waterfowl or upland bird hunting, I'd pay probably $1,000 to $1,500 for a good Lab or bird dog, though, and would consider paying for training. A well-trained hunting dog is worth it IMO.

I agree. And I've told people this just getting into working dogs. I'm a firm believer if you can't put the time into raising a puppy and imprinting,environmentally conditioning(never done,something will always pop up),basic ob and training it for the specific work you want due to time constraints you don't need one. And for the the ones that just have to have one I've tried steering them to a juvenile or adult with the basics and that fits their lifestyle and purpose. But when price comes into play the $3000 puppy looks more like a deal until they realize that $6000 green dog is somewhat turn key and easier to deal with right from the go.It's so much easier to train the dog vs the handler.

Originally Posted by TickaTicka
The cost of the puppy is the smallest expense in raising a hunting or working dog.

Absolutely. We've been to the vet twice;once for a digestive issue, and once for 2nd set of shots. 2 more sets of shots to go. We've only had the pup 3 weeks.
I'm working from home, so I stand up from the desk every hour or so to let him outside, call his name a couple of times, and get him to sit. He's pretty close to housebroken, but we'll work on sit, stay come, whistle commands, and dummy yard work 4-5 times a day for the next year. Those hours add up. Forget the money, just to invest that amount of TIME, I want the best bloodlines I can afford.

And my earlier remark about $1,500 to $2,000 is fairly narrow minded. It's just a reflection of the little I know about retrieving/flushing breeds. I understand that some of the working breeds, such as German Shepherds or a Malinois, can run multiples of that.

I see labs from good pedigreed and proven lines going up in value not far off. You can't beat a driven field lab with hunt drive for days. The pointed ear dogs will always have their place in work but today's times are steering toward a less threatening looking canine that can hunt/find in my opinion. Thing is though I've seen several labs and chessies do grip work on hard sleeves,suits and hidden equipment with a few accidental live bites. A duel purpose lab at about 65-70lbs would be a wolf in sheep's clothing. Not all labs are soft mouthed.

I gave $300 for my dog, Maggie. I got her from BBFF Kennels in Brilliant. the guy who runs the kennel is a good friend of mine and former teammate from west Alabama. Maggie probably would've been a great bird dog, all I did was watch youtube videos on how to train one to retrieve birds and got out in the yard and her and I gave it a try. in the 3 years I had her before I got married, we spent LOTS of time working on it, and she retrieved birds for me relatively regularly on a fairly consistent basis. Maggie I guess is what you'd refer to as "started."(I think)... she could retrieve a single bird if she watched it fall, but she wouldn't be able to do some of the more advanced moves like retrieving more than one at a time or sniffing out a bird she didn't see hit the ground or the water.

Bear in mind I've got ZERO working knowledge on how to train dogs, all I did was watch obedience training videos, and move on to some basic retrieving drills once she learned some basic commands. My point being, it sounds like I wound up with a very smart dog for a comparatively lower price.

Nowadays, she's nothing more than a companion. we ride around on my boat together and I love her companionship but I haven't asked her to retrieve a bird in Lord knows how long.

I will add that she did find a deer last year that I shot with my bow. I sat her down in front of the first blood I found and she walked right to the deer. I never taught her to do that, just wanted to see if it would work, and it did.

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750 for my German Shepard. Best money I've spent. Worth every penny.

I've spent 450 on a Jack Russell then 80 on gas to go get him . First vet bill was 120 he goes back Tuesday for second round of shots .

I spent $500 on a lab and worked him 5 hours a week for 2 years and he is 5% as productive as the lab i spent $1,800 on and worked on her for 10 hours in 2 years.

I paid $800 a piece for the two English Labs I use to have. Recently back in the Spring paid $400 for a Ladner BMC that I have now. The labs were several years ago so prices have probably gone way up sense then I'd imagine.

Are negative dollar value answers allowed?

I paid $200 back in 1990 for my male that lasted me 12 years (last 2 he could not hunt). He was from English lines and blood out the wazoo. Block head and at his prime weighed 100 lb. I would gladly give whatever, if I could, to have a clone of him.

When I was training him I used to to to Conway Acres in Auburn to use the pond. There was a guy, real smart ass, walking with his full grown chocolate that weighed maybe 40 lb. I asked him a few questions and he spouted off "I get $2K for stud fee for him, he is a Field n Stream dog". I just looked at the dog, then him and walked off. No way in hell that dogs was all that.

I have 2 Springer Spaniels. One is a rescue, we paid $100. He's now almost 13 and we got him as a puppy, and we have a 3 year old that was a $400 puppy. Look on Craigslist. There are always people that their lifestyles have changed and they have to give them up. Just make sure to spend time with the dog while they still own it, as you don't want one with issues. Also the pound is a spot to get a nice mutt, or sometimes a breed you're looking for. Pound puppies seem to be appreciative of someone adopting them. The best dog I had in my life came from the pound.

We had a black lab in texas...i forget the bloodline...but they were specificallly bred to not only retrieve..but point quail also...we guided dove hunts alot and an occasional duck...also had alot of quail hunting..wr needed a dog that could do it all...buyin the pup,obedient school,pointing and retrieving scool....we had like $15k in her...shes magnificent when she wants to be...other times shes worthless...but a finer all around buddy...i love that dog..scary smart and acts like a person....to answer the ops question...id spend $150 on one of them gsp in the classifieds in a skinnit minute if we already didnt have too many critters...purty,purty,purty little critters

This.

My chessie really wants to be a pointer. I haven't trained him at all for it and he just seems to want to do it. If only there were any quail left I might put some effort in.

Most I've ever spent was $200 for the registered dachshunds. I've had two full blooded, but not registered, Labs and didn't pay a penny for them Both fine dogs and one was actually a very gifted natural hunter. She would have been superb if she had been trained to know that just because I shot it didn't mean there was something to retrieve and that when the person next to me shot and the bird went down it did not belong to us.

Paid $1500 for my 2nd full blood Rottweiler but he's the real deal.my first was a great dog but had hip dysplasia.so we decided buying big dog breeds we would get buy em from breeders with certified
X-rays traceable throughout bloodline.its no guarantee but hate buying dogs from people doing harm to a breed with poor breeding

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Kellogg kennels?
They had line of pointing labs.
My avatar LeRoy could hang with the best of any English Pointers. Quartered and checked back in style. Crazier than a run over dog to boot. Only problem you never knew when was gonna point or when he was gonna flush. That tail starting swinging quick you better get ready.

To answer the OP I was about to spend 2K but ended up with a free yellow off a good bloodline.