Pandemic bites: People pay nearly $9000 for mixed breed cavoodle puppies
Dog sale scams are on the rise as lonely Melburnians turn to canines for companionship during lockdown, with mixed breed mutts being sold for up to $9000.
Victoria
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Mixed-breed ‘designer dogs’ are being bought for up to $9000 by lonely locked-down Melburnians.
Poodle-cross-spaniel puppies, dubbed “cavoodles”, are being advertised on Gumtree for $8950, as demand for four-legged friends soars during Victoria’s COVID lockdown.
Other mixed breeds which sold for $3000 in February now carry price tags of $7000.
It comes as RSPCA Victoria reveals it has received a staggering 32,000 applications for pound pets since April.
With the increased demand for pets had come exorbitant prices for puppies sold online and dog sale scams, RSPCA inspectorate chief Terry Ness said.
“In particular, there has been a notable increase in the advertised prices for ‘oodle’ (poodle cross) and toy poodle breeds on online selling platforms,” he said.
Pedigree dog breeders said while demand for their puppies had also rocketed during the pandemic, their prices had not, and warned families against being ripped off by opportunistic backyard breeders.
Purebred Samoyed and labrador puppies from registered breeders were selling for between $3000 and $4000 when the Sunday Herald Sun made inquiries this week — far less than the mixed breed “oodle” puppies.
Pedigree dog breeders said inquiries about their puppies had surged from just a few a week before lockdown, to up to 15 a day.
The Victorian Poultry and Kennel Club’s Barbara Taylor said paying nearly $9000 for a crossbreed puppy was “just crazy”.
“Most purebred puppies wouldn’t cost anywhere near that much,” she said.
Samoyed Club of Victoria secretary John Wilders said some backyard breeders were even charging more for runts and odd-looking puppies, many of which likely had health problems.
Mr Wilders, from Bacchus Marsh, said he spent up to $1000 on testing for hereditary problems and vet care on each of his Samoyed puppies — priced at $3500 each — “to ensure they are healthy and going to stay that way”.
“Most backyard breeders don’t do any of that, they just put two dogs together, have puppies and get rid of them for the highest price they can get,” he said.
His wife, Dawn, said she was worried that dogs would be left alone to howl and fret in backyards across Melbourne when life returned to some level of normality.
Labrador breeder Sylvia Power said backyard breeders were creating an oversupply of dogs, many of which would be surrendered or abandoned next year.
“People right now are thinking ‘we’re home, we’re bored, let’s get a puppy’ … and I’m very, very afraid that next year there are going to be a lot of dogs looking for new homes because I think many people don’t really know what the long-term commitment is all about,” she said.
Mr Ness said people should not buy puppies without meeting them and seeing the conditions they were raised in first.
“Buying a new pet is a 10 to 20 year commitment,” he said. “If you are unable to visit a property to purchase a new animal right now, we encourage you to wait … to ensure you have a happy, healthy pet for many years into the future.”
Anyone thinking about buying a pet should ensure the breeder or seller they were dealing with was listed on the Pet Exchange Register, the RSPCA said.
To check the register go to https://per.animalwelfare.vic.gov.au/
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