Bella was $800 and the males in the litter were $700. Ripley was $39.00 and we got $20.00 back from the state because we got him neutered - bottom line for Ripley $19.00.

Ripley is the only dog that I have had in my adult life who didn't come from a breeder. Personally I feel that if people would rather get a dog from a breeder that is their option. After all, pedigree dogs need homes too. I understand all about back yard breeders and puppy mills and, while I certainly am not condoning them, they are producing animals in need of homes. I would love to see legislation to shut down every puppy mill in existence but until that is done there will be puppies born, through no fault of their own, in these horrid places and they will also need homes so they are in need of "rescue" too.

I think most dogs are in shelters due to ignorance on the part of the public in general about spaying and neutering and there are always those crazy people out there who want their female to have a litter of "cute" puppies, forgetting that they will grow up and someone will need to be responsible for them.

Having said all this, I am happy to have rescued Ripley and would do it again in a heartbeat. To find a poodle like him at a shelter was nothing short of amazing, because I had been looking for ages and there just weren't any around. Then again if I was looking for another standard poodle in the future I wouldn't hesitate for a minute to go back to the breeder where we got Bella.