Dear Terri, You wrote:
"Nicely put.... My " kids" are the very thing that keeps me going when I feel like I cannot get out of bed in the am...But let's be honest. Most people making money at this are not doing the testing. The importers and alot of the backyard breeders don't care. You and I care...which is why we wait to breed until 2 or better, have all the clearances, move dogs on that " don't make it ", even at a loss." That depends on how many dogs you have, whether you need kennel help, whether you have C-Sections and how often, whether you have your own stud dogs or pay stud fees outside the home etc. All of these things add up. My Cavaliers "pay for" my Charlies. It takes four to six litters of Cavaliers on average to pay for a kennel assistant. If you have 8 -10 Cavaliers and no kennel assistant you might break even if you show a few of them yourself, have no major medical bills and a couple of litters a year - testing only the ones being bred at clinics. I managed to put a little bit aside the first few years but plowed it all back into the dogs, dog books, equipment, crates and show entry fees. At that level you barely make a profit that can go to anything but a reserve fund for some catastrophe. You wrote: "But having bred horses, and getting 1 foal after 11 months of gestation, then waiting 2 years to acheive goals or sell at a loss, that's what I call losing money!" Try Lipizzans. You can't ride them until they are four years old! LOL " And yeah, you gotta love it. Which , I do. But Cavaliers.... Have 1 pup, and you paid your yearly expenses. So, maybe on a larger scale it is a financial black hole, but on a small scale, it appears to be the reason why there are " puppy mills " and importers. Lots of pups = Lots of money. And as you said, I'm talking about the 2000 pet. How about the ones you mentioned? The 20,000 dog? Never heard that one before. but it's scary to think people would buy into that!" I was offered one for $15,000 once - back in the early 90s. I loved the dog but he hadn't produced anything nice so I wasn't interested. Since then, I have twice imported males and their daughters, who have been lovely, so that I could show people what the dog was capable of producing and at the same time I've also had something to go back to from the same line. I've never regretted buying two at a time this way. I've also, since then, had much more fun taking risks on young puppies. I'd rather spend less money and take my chances then spend lots of money on a star, especially one that's under five years of age that then gets a murmur. If it's over 5 years of age and is cardiology cleared that's another story. But I can't afford to do that any more because of the upcoming adoption. (For those of you who don't know, I'm in the process of adopting human children...talk about financial losses. This is definitely not a hobby or a business, LOL.) Also, I will come down on my price if I feel the home is right for the dog, and as you say I have placed many older dogs for very little money when I've been convinced it was the right home. But as you say part of it depends on the kennel size. Just remember, one CSection can wipe out the profits on the sale of one puppy, you might end up with a small litter in a case like that too. If that's your only litter for the year, too bad. Best, Vanessa Kenjockety Spaniels ========================================================"Magic Commands": to stop receiving mail for awhile, click here and send the email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?body=SET%20CKCS-L%20NOMAIL to start it up gain click here: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?body=SET%20CKCS-L%20MAIL E-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] for assistance. Search the Archives... http://apple.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ckcs-l.html All e-mail sent through CKCS-L is Copyright 2002 by its original author.
