I voted I would Not. I do think it depends on the kind of pet though. Horses and birds are expensive and if people want those kinds of pets, they will have to pay more. For cats and dogs, however, I think some of those prices can just be outrageous! I can't imagine spending that much on a cat or dog, and nor would I ever. Working at the hospital has really opened my eyes to the world of purebreeds, and paying so much money for an animal with potentially so many problems is just incredulous. Although, most of the animals with problems that come in are "purebred" dogs from puppymills. Aka pet store dogs. I swear, everytime I answer the phone and a person says "I just bought a new puppy and it is coughing and has bloody diarrhea"....I know right away where that puppy came from. The petstores put these insane prices on these dogs and *most* of them have so many problems. I can't believe that people actually pay $1500 and up for puppymill dogs around here, when they can get the same kind of animal from rescue for a couple hundred dollars!! Man, do I have some interesting stories from the hospital! LOL
Just seeing the amount of purebred animals that come into our hospital with problems has really lessened my taste for them. When I first started working at the hospital, I was amazed at how many purebred animals I saw coming in. Primarily because I've not seen many purebred dogs "in person". So, it was kinda neat at first, until I realized that at least 98% of the animals that come in there are purebred with problems! The only time I see "mutt" cats and dogs come in is for shots and routine checkups or spay/neuter surgeries. Very rarely is it that these are the ones with major problems and other surgeries. It's the purebreeds that have all the health issues and major surgeries. Strange, isn't it? For me, I will always go to the shelter first, or a rescue if I get the hankering for a purebred animal, but right now, mixed breeds are right for me. Less health issues too!