Why Are There Hold Deposits $

This is a little lengthy, but I hope it sheds some light on why we sometimes do things the way we do…

I recently was involved in a discussion where someone felt a puppy had been “sold out from under them” because they were still deciding.  While I primarily am only involved in rescue transactions which are a little more slow paced,  recently I helped a breeder by listing 8 of her retirees and “brokering” their adoptions to get her numbers down as she is overwhelmed.  This is based on my my experience:

It gets very frustrating when you write out a detailed, yet concise description about a Pom only to be inundated with questions from a dozen or more people and only one or two of those people have questions that were not in your bio to begin with.  So now I am answering comments, some of them rather nasty, and in conversations with say half of the initial 12 that asked questions.

Of the 6 respondents I’m now in conversations with;

1 of them proceeds to tell me their life story and about every Pom they’ve ever owned, over the last 30 years,  but they aren’t ready for another one right now,

1 tells me how the Pom in the picture Iooks just like the one that died last year and spends an hour telling me about that Poms battle with cancer,

1 keeps me on the phone for a half an hour before she mentions that she is in California and asks if we deliver the dog from Virginia as part of the price;

We are now down to 3 interested families

Uh-oh.  1 family has a 2 year old and a new born.  That’s a no-go for a small Pom.

The remaining 2 seem like good prospects.  They both seem very interested, everyone says they want the Pom.

Both families are equally appropriate.  Family #1 is offered the Pom.  Family #1 says they will be there Saturday at 2:00 to pick up Pom.

Apologies are made to Family #2.

Saturday arrives.  Family #1 never shows up, never calls, doesn’t answer calls, texts, etc…  Contacts Family #2 and let’s them know that the Pom is available.  Family #2 has already located another Pom.

Two weeks have now elapsed…

Start the process all over again…

Now multiply this by just 3 dogs 3 times a year which is conservative for a very small breeder.

Asking for a deposit shows you are serious and not wasting their time.  Most breeders have regular full time jobs, families, and this is a hobby for them.