When I adopted Storm from the Humane Society he was $60 and I thought that was very high. This was back in Jan. of 1997. He was vaccinated for FVRCP and neutered but he still needed his rabies shot and I also had to test him for FELV/FIV. He was sick when I adopted him and I didn't realize this until almost a week later. He had fleas, ear mites, internal parasites and an URI. I had to spend a little over $250 to get him well again. After this bad experience with the Humane Society, I didn't adopt from them again for many years until I eventually adopted Sky.

Sky's adoption fee was $125 back in June of 2003 and he was microchipped, neutered, FELV/FIV tested, and he had his shots. He had also been treated for an URI while he was at the Humane Society and he was also treated for fleas. He wasn't,however, treated for any internal parasites and I later found out that he had tapeworm.

I just looked up the Humane Society online and this is a list of their adoption fees:
$175 for cats, kittens, dogs, and puppies
$70 for rabbits
$30 for a guinea pig
$20 for hamsters or rats
$10 for mice

Twice the love (adopted at the same time)
$275 pair of cats, kittens, dogs, or puppies
$110 pair of rabbits
$40 pair of guinea pigs

Included in our Adoption Fee:
Spay/Neuter surgery
Vaccinations and Intestinal De-worming
Feline Leukemia testing for all felines
Identification tag
Home Again Microchip with life-time registration
Two weeks of sponsored veterinary care
Reference material on pet care and training
Post Adoption Support
All of our animals have been examined by a veterinarian and assessed for temperament.

Both Pearl and Ziggy Stardust didn't have adoption fees because I got them from another Pet Talker who rescued them. I did have to fly to Arizona and I did have to purchase a spot on the plane for them. Pearl was spayed, FELV/FIV tested, microchipped,dewormed, had some of her kitten shots, and her rabies shot. Ziggy Stardust was too small to spay so I had it done later. She was also FELV/FIV tested,microchipped, dewormed, and had some of her kitten shots. She was too young for a rabies shot. Neither one of them had any fleas.

I saw Alani & Blaze on petfinder and they were from a rescue group,Humanimal Connection, and they had to be adopted together. I paid $225 total for both of them so I did get a slight discount but not much. Now I think they're charging a bit less than they did before. Here's their information about cats:
Why would you pay for a kitten?

Humanimal Connection charges an adoption fee to cover the costs incurred for the kitten/cat you will be adopting. This adoption fee covers more than most rescue groups and at a greater discount than you could receive as an individual pet owner. We receive discounts because we are a non-profit organization that has teamed up with local vets to keep costs down for our adopting families.

What are the rates?

Humanimal Connection Kitten OR Cat:

Cost of Kitten: $115 (Discount for adopting 2 together: $20 total) OR Cost of Cat: $100
Spay/Neuter: Included
Wellness Examination: Included
FIV Test: Included
FeLV Test: Included
FVRCP Vaccinations (to-date): Included
De-worming (to-date): Included
Microchip Implantation: Included
Microchip Registration: $9.99 (paid to HomeAgain Recovery Services; also includes 30-days pet health insurance up to $500 and lost pet insurance up to $1000)

Total Cost for Humanimal Connection Kitten: $124.99 OR Total Cost for Humanimal Connection Cat: $109.99

"Free" Kitten:

Cost of Kitten: "Free"
Spay/Neuter (at a local clinic): $35/$50 (at vet): $300/$500
Wellness Examination: $50
FIV Test: $15
FeLV Test: $15
FVRCP Vaccinations (at vaccination clinic): $15/vaccination x3 (at vet): $50/vaccination x3
De-Worming (at vaccination clinic): $10/vaccination x2 (at vet): $50/de-worming x2
Microchip Implant: $15
Microchip Registration $9.99


Total Cost for "Free Kitten": $204.99 to $854.99

Additionally...

Adopting a cat or kitten for "free" from a neighbor or friend means bringing a kitten into your home when you are not sure the kitten is entirely healthy. This entails allowing your family and children to become emotionally attached to a kitten that may be severely ill. Humanimal Connection tests for FIV and Feline Leukemia to ensure the kitten you are bringing into your home is both healthy and happy. Please, think twice before bringing a "free" kitten into your home!