How much money do dog breeders make? A Comprehensive Guide

How Much Does it Cost to Start a Dog Breeding Business?

While some sources are trying to tell you breeding a dog is possible for as little as $500, that’s definitely not true.

Responsible breeding is not possible with an initial investment as low as a couple hundred bucks.

That’s not even enough to get a healthy female dog with breeding rights.

How much money do dog breeders make?

Apart from that, training and bonding with the dog you’re planning to breed with should be the absolute number one thing on your list.

Don’t breed for the money. I repeat, do not breed for the money.

There are far more lucrative business ideas out there that also don’t happen to harm an entire species if done wrong.

However, I’ve actually compiled a little list of what you’ll have to initially invest before you can start breeding.

  • Health testing (hip/shoulder, x-ray, heart, blood work, etc.): $750-$1,500
  • Stud fee: $500-$2,500
  • Whelping box, kit, etc.: $150-$500
  • Prenatal, birth, and postnatal care: $250-$1,000
  • Complications during birth like c-section: $0-$1,500
  • Puppy shots, deworming, collars: $200-$800
  • Puppy food: $100-$500
  • Enrichment for puppies: $150-$1,000
  • Socialization trips: $100-$250
  • New owner starter kits: $0-$250
  • Show titles (trips, grooming, training lessons, etc.): $0-$2,000
  • In total, breeding one dog responsibly can cost around $8,500 in the first year alone.

    Every breed will incur different costs associated with the business and I’m always talking about responsible breeding.

    The lower end of $2,000 is already the bare minimum to keep an ethical operation going.

    If you think you can get the neighbor’s dog as stud for $50, please don’t.

    Of course, some costs like show titles or a c-section are non-existing costs for many breeders but if you actually include these too, breeding can cost as much as $12,000 or more in the first year.

    As mentioned above, multiple dogs will mean a more costly operation (along with more profit).

    While the cost in the second and third year will probably be lower, if you intend to be a breeder for the long-term, you’ll encounter very unexpected costs from time to time.

    How Much Dog Breeders Actually Make

    Most breeders with a small breeding program of two female dogs usually make between $8,000-$20,000 for small breeds and between $20,000-$36,000 for larger dog breeds in revenue.

    Professional dogs breeders with four female breeding dogs can make between $16,000-$40,000 and $40,000-$72,000 for small and large breeds respectively.

    That being said, your breeder pay could be significantly higher or lower, depending on your selling price and litter sizes.

    But it could also be lower or even negative if you’re just breeding with your own dog and still incur the cost for health testing, socialization, etc. in the first year (which I strongly advise doing).

    So what exactly does the average dog breeder salary depend on?

  • Dog breed (small or big)
  • Price per puppy
  • Number of females for breeding
  • Smaller dogs get smaller litters, averaging around 1-4 puppies per litter while large dogs often have 5-10 puppies per litter.

    Exceptions naturally apply and your large dog could turn out to only have one litter this year, so keep that in mind.

    How much money do dog breeders make?

    Price per puppy largely depends on what breed you’re planning to advance, what you’re planning to do with the puppies, and lastly, what your geographic location is.

    The number of females is often scaled up as you get more and more experience if you’re trying to go for full-time breeding.

    However, most breeders are probably just starting out with 1 or 2 females and have 4 at the very maximum.

    Breeding is feasible once a year for one female (unless the breeder uses back-to-back breeding).

    Here’s a little table that illustrates the possible pay in relation to the number of pups per litter and the price a breeder might ask for:

    Number of puppies per litter & Price per puppy

    Puppies per litter/ Price per puppy $1,000 $2,000 $3,000
    1 $1,000 $2,000 $3,000
    2 $2,000 $4,000 $6,000
    3 $3,000 $6,000 $9,000
    4 $4,000 $8,000 $12,000
    5 $5,000 $10,000 $15,000
    6 $6,000 $12,000 $18,000
    7 $7,000 $14,000 $21,000
    8 $8,000 $16,000 $24,000
    9 $9,000 $18,000 $27,000

    The table above only applies to one female dog, so you can multiply that by two, three, or even four if you’re serious and knowledgeable enough to scale a breeding program.

    Of course, dog breeders do have to pay taxes.

    Also, this is just the revenue before any costs associated with breeding.

    As a mental exercise, let’s calculate the hourly pay of a dog breeder.

    With the breeding program of 2 females mentioned above, you’ll have to be around the pups for 8 weeks straight, twice a year.

    Plus, you’ll have to take care of the female before, during, and after birth.

    You’re easily looking at 200 hours per litter, so 400 hours total in our example.

    That’s $20-$50/hour if you’re breeding small dogs and $50-$90/hour for large breed dogs.

    Well, that’s just the immediate puppy care but there’s also pre-birth care.

    Furthermore, while breeding may not be the 24/7 job we’ve laid out here, it requires a whole lot of knowledge and effort if done right.

    All the training that went into this isn’t counted and you haven’t yet subtracted the business costs.

    What animal can you breed and make money?

    Raising just a few heads of cattle each year can provide you with a good bonus income since beef and dairy products are always in demand.

  • 1 – Cattle. With a massive market for beef in the U.S. and Canada, raising cattle is at the top of the list for livestock. …
  • 2 – Chickens. …
  • 3 – Goats. …
  • 4 – Bees. …
  • 5 – Rabbits.
  • HOW MUCH MONEY BREEDERS MAKE? Home Based Business Ideas

    After normal business expenses and ongoing costs, a dog breeder can get an average monthly compensation of about $4000 – $16,000 depending on experience and domain knowledge. Dog Breeders can get an average wage of $35,700 per year.