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Cats and dogs · room 7 of 7 · The breeder purchase

Where pets come from

Breeders, puppy mills, the federal rules, Florida's pet lemon law, pet-store bans, what a pet really costs, inside the shelters, and microchips: the pet market as an economics lesson.

Every dogEvery catStrange catsFat catsPurse dogsUgly dogsWhere pets come from
For little learners (K–5)

Pets can come from a breeder, a shelter or a friend. A good home asks lots of questions first. A shelter pet is waiting for someone right now.

Today

Five doors to a pet

economicstrade & commercialization

A dog or cat can reach a home through five doors: a responsible breeder who raises a few litters at home; a backyard breeder who breeds the family pet for extra money; a commercial breeder (a "puppy mill" when welfare is poor) selling through brokers, pet stores or websites; a shelter or rescue; or a friend, neighbor or stray.

Each door has a different price, a different risk and a different effect on animals that are not yet born.

Sources: ASPCA, adopt or shop responsibly
Stacyable · Wikimedia Commons
1966 to today

Puppy mills and the federal rules

economicshistory

The federal Animal Welfare Act (1966) requires commercial breeders who sell to pet stores or brokers to hold a U.S. Department of Agriculture license and allows inspections. A 2013 rule extended licensing to breeders who sell animals "sight unseen", such as online, if they keep more than four breeding females. Animal-welfare groups say inspections are too few and penalties too weak; breeders say small home breeders are caught in rules meant for big operations. The often-quoted figure of about 10,000 puppy mills is an activist estimate, not an official count.

A law is only as strong as its enforcement: compare what the rule says with how often it is checked.

Sources: Federal Register, Animal Welfare; Retail Pet Stores (Sept. 18, 2013); USDA APHIS, Animal Welfare Act
Xboxrocker84 · Wikimedia Commons
Checklist

What a responsible breeder does

economics

A responsible breeder health-tests both parents for the breed's known problems and shows the results, lets you meet the mother where the puppies live, never sells puppies younger than 8 weeks (in Florida that is the law), asks you as many questions as you ask, gives a written contract, and promises to take the animal back at any age if you cannot keep it.

Good breeders usually have a waiting list. A seller who always has puppies ready, ships anywhere and will meet you in a parking lot is a warning sign.

Sources: AKC, how to find a responsible breeder; Humane World for Animals, how to find a responsible breeder
zanerudovica · Wikimedia Commons
Fla. Stat. 828.29

Florida's pet lemon law

economicstrade & commercialization

Florida law says dogs and cats sold in the state must be at least 8 weeks old, vaccinated, dewormed and examined by a veterinarian, with an official health certificate given to the buyer. Pet dealers (those selling more than two litters or 20 animals a year) must offer a remedy if, within 14 days, the buyer's vet certifies the animal was sick at sale, or if, within one year, a vet finds a congenital or hereditary disorder or the breed, sex or health was misrepresented. The buyer may return the animal for a refund or an exchange plus reasonable vet costs, or keep it and be repaid for treatment, capped at the purchase price.

A "lemon law" exists because the seller knows more about the animal than the buyer: economists call this asymmetric information.

Sources: Florida Statutes, 828.29
Oliver Dixon · Wikimedia Commons
2017 to today

Pet stores that may not sell puppies

economicshistorytrade & commercialization

California passed the first statewide ban on pet stores selling dogs and cats from commercial breeders in 2017; stores may offer shelter animals instead. Maryland, Maine, Washington, Illinois, Oregon and New York (in force since December 2024) followed, and by October 2025 Reason magazine counted eight states and hundreds of cities and counties. Florida has no statewide ban, but a number of Florida cities and counties have their own, among them Pasco County (2020), Martin and Leon counties, and Dunedin near Tampa Bay. Supporters say bans cut the market for puppy mills; critics say buyers move online, where scams and unregulated breeders are harder to police.

Predict two effects of a ban, one intended and one not, then look for evidence.

Sources: Stateline, movement to ban puppy-mill dogs in pet stores (2021); NPR, New York bans pet store sales of cats, dogs and rabbits (2022); Reason, states are banning retail sales of dogs and cats (Oct. 2025); Tampa Bay Times, Pasco to end retail pet store sales of dogs and cats (2020); Pet Advocacy Network, Florida local ordinances
Strebski · Wikimedia Commons
Estimates

What a pet really costs

economics

The price tag is the smallest part. An older ASPCA estimate put the first year of owning a small dog at about $1,314, a medium dog $1,580, a large dog $1,843 and a cat $1,035, then $580 to $875 a year for dogs and $670 for cats; prices have risen since. Shelter adoption fees usually run from nothing to a few hundred dollars and often include shots, a microchip and spaying. A purebred puppy from a breeder commonly costs $1,000 to several thousand dollars; French Bulldogs cost more partly because most are born by C-section.

Total cost of ownership is a real economics idea: compare the price of a pet over ten or fifteen years, not just on day one.

Sources: ASPCA pet care costs (older table, reproduced by the Michigan VMA)
Brocken Inaglory. · Wikimedia Commons
2024

Inside the shelters

economics

In 2024, U.S. shelters reported about 5.2 million live outcomes for dogs and cats (adoptions, returns to owners and transfers) and about 748,000 non-live outcomes. The euthanasia rate fell to 8%, down from 13% in 2019. Adoption rates were 57% for dogs and 64% for cats, and intake fell 1.4% from 2023. These figures come from shelters that report to Shelter Animals Count and are scaled to the nation, so they are estimates.

Fewer animals die in shelters than a few years ago, but dogs now wait longer for homes.

Sources: Shelter Animals Count, 2024 year-end report
Nhandler · Wikimedia Commons
Lens

The economics of a puppy

economicstrade & commercialization

Follow the supply chain: breeder, broker, truck, store or website, buyer. Prices are signals: when a breed appears in a hit film or on social media, demand and prices jump, and breeders rush to supply it, sometimes badly. There are externalities, costs paid by people outside the sale: taxpayers fund shelters for abandoned animals, and owners pay for inherited diseases nobody disclosed. Economist George Akerlof's "market for lemons" (1970) explains why: when sellers know more than buyers, bad sellers can crowd out good ones unless warranties, reputation or laws step in.

Use this card in a business class: who captures the profit, and who pays the hidden costs.

Sources: Akerlof, The Market for Lemons, Quarterly Journal of Economics (1970)
Mahdikarimi70 · Wikimedia Commons
Since the 1990s

Microchips

biologyeconomics

A microchip is a tiny glass capsule, about the size of a grain of rice, placed under the skin between the shoulders. It is not a GPS tracker: a shelter or vet scans it to read a number, then looks up the owner in a registry, so the chip only works if the owner registers and updates it. In a study of U.S. shelters, chipped dogs were returned to owners about 52% of the time versus 22% for dogs without chips, and chipped cats 38% versus under 2%.

A chip costs little; an unregistered chip is worth almost nothing.

Sources: Lord et al., Characteristics of dogs and cats with microchips in shelters, JAVMA (2009); AVMA, microchips FAQ
Turkish delight2 · Wikimedia Commons
The supply chain

How a commercial puppy reaches a buyer

Supply chain of a commercial puppy: breeder, broker, transport, store or website, buyer; side doors: shelter and responsible breeder sell directly; costs spill over to taxpayers and ownersBreederhome or commercialBrokerbuys litters in bulkTransporttruck or planePet store or websiteretail priceBuyerpays the priceDirect: responsible breeder or shelter to buyerExternalities: shelters paid by taxpayers · inherited disease paid by owners · strays and wildlife harm paid by communities
Before you buy

Questions to ask a breeder

  1. May I meet the mother, and the father if he is here, where the puppies or kittens live?
  2. Which health tests have the parents had for this breed, and may I see the results (OFA, genetic tests, eye and heart exams)?
  3. How old will the animal be when it comes home? (Florida law: at least 8 weeks.)
  4. What vaccines, deworming and veterinary exam has it had, and will I get the official health certificate?
  5. How many litters do you raise a year, and how many breeds?
  6. How are the young animals socialized: handled, house noises, other animals, children?
  7. What does the contract say, and will you take the animal back at any age if I cannot keep it?
  8. What problems is this breed known for, and what do you do to avoid them?
  9. Can you give me references from a veterinarian and from earlier buyers?
  10. Why do you breed? (Listen for health and temperament, not color, size or price.)

Warning signs: always has animals ready, several breeds at once, will ship anywhere or meet in a parking lot, will not show the mother, asks you nothing, pressure to pay a deposit by gift card or wire. Puppy-sale scams online are common; the Better Business Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission publish warnings.

Compare

Buy or adopt: what each door costs

DoorPrice paidUsually includedRisks to weigh
Shelter or rescueabout $0 to a few hundred dollars (estimate)Vaccines, microchip, spay or neuter, a vet checkUnknown history; many adult animals
Responsible breedercommonly $1,000 to several thousand dollars (estimate)Health-tested parents, contract, take-back promiseWaiting list; price
Pet store (where still legal) or websiteoften $1,000 or more (estimate)Florida health certificate and lemon-law rights from dealersCommercial or broker sources; online scams
Backyard breeder or classified advariesOften littleNo health testing; parents unknown

Prices vary widely by breed and place and are marked as estimates. First-year and yearly care costs are on the wall card above.

Watch and look

Picture gallery

Tap a picture to enlarge it. Every picture is public domain or openly licensed, credited below, and kept on our own server.

AWeith · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
AWeith · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Strebski · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Nhandler · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.5
Turkish delight2 · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 4.0
Mahdikarimi70 · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Oliver Dixon · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
Stacyable · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Wasir kasab · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 4.0
zanerudovica · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0
Xboxrocker84 · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Brocken Inaglory. · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Jan-Mallander · Wikimedia Commons · CC0
For classes

Lessons, drawer and quiz

Lessons on newSchoolWorks.com

The Price: What the price omitsPreviewThe Price: The signal, statedPreviewThe Division of Labour: The supply chain of breakfastPreviewThe Market and the Customer: Truth in advertisingPreviewThe Petition: Take the other sidePreview

Drawer: Friendly Beasts: The pet market

Quiz: Take the quiz (8 questions)

Game: The market game

Also see: Florida Statutes 828.29 · The market game · Bred, sold, kept, adopted, killed · What is money? (newSchoolWorks.com)

Read beside this room

Fiction

Black Beauty
Anna Sewell, 1877 · grades 3-5 and up
A horse tells its own life; the book helped change animal-welfare laws.
Shiloh
Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, 1991 · grades 3-5 and up
A boy hides a beagle from its cruel owner and has to decide what is right. At your library.

Free classics link to Project Gutenberg or the Tall Museum; books in copyright are named so you can find them at a library.

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