# Puppy Deposits Done Right: Amounts, Terms, and Refunds

> How much to charge, when to collect, what your deposit terms should say, and how to handle refunds without burning bridges — a working policy you can adapt.

- Source: https://whelpify.com/blog/puppy-deposits-done-right
- Publisher: Whelpify (https://whelpify.com)
- Author: The Whelpify Team
- Category: Running Your Business
- Tags: Deposits, Payments, Policies
- Published: 2026-06-17

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Deposits are where breeding stops being a passion and briefly becomes a business — and it's the place where unclear expectations do the most damage. A good deposit system does three jobs: it filters for serious families, it holds a commitment on both sides, and it prevents the hard conversation later because the terms were written down at the start.

## How much should a deposit be?

Most programs land between **$200 and $500**, or roughly 10–25% of the puppy's price. The exact number matters less than what it signals:

- **Too low** (under ~$100) and it doesn't filter — families put down deposits at three programs and ghost two of them.
- **Too high** (half the price or more) and serious families hesitate, because they're being asked for real money before a puppy exists.

A useful rule: the deposit should be enough that walking away stings, and small enough that paying it feels reasonable before the litter is on the ground.

## When to collect

There are two common models, and both work — pick one and be consistent.

### Deposit to join the waitlist

The family pays when they're approved onto the list for a planned or expected litter. This gives you the strongest read on demand before a breeding, but it means holding money (and expectations) for months. Your terms need to say clearly what happens if the litter doesn't happen.

### Deposit to reserve a specific puppy

The family pays when they pick (or you match them to) a puppy that exists. Cleaner emotionally — everyone knows exactly what the money is attached to — but you carry more uncertainty pre-litter.

Many programs blend the two: a smaller list deposit, with the balance schedule starting once a specific puppy is reserved.

## What your terms must cover

Write these five things down and share them *before* anyone pays:

1. **What the deposit reserves** — a place in line, a pick position, or a specific puppy.
2. **Whether it's refundable, and when.** The most defensible middle ground: refundable if *you* can't deliver (no litter, no suitable puppy), transferable to a future litter if the *family's* situation changes, non-refundable if they simply change their minds.
3. **How it applies to the final price.**
4. **The payment schedule for the balance** — commonly due before or at pickup.
5. **What happens on a timeline slip** — litters come when they come; say how long a deposit carries forward.

> A deposit policy isn't legal armor — it's a shared memory. Its real job is making sure both sides remember the same agreement six months later.

## Handling refunds without burning bridges

When a family asks for a refund your terms don't require, you have a judgment call. Two things are worth weighing: a reluctantly-honored refund almost always costs less than a public dispute, and a family treated generously in a hard moment often comes back — or sends friends. Enforce your terms with people gaming you; be human with people whose lives changed.

## Take deposits like a business

However you set the terms, collect the money in a way that timestamps it: a card payment with a receipt, or a documented Zelle/Venmo transfer recorded against the reservation. "She said she'd mail a check" is not a reservation. On Whelpify, [deposits and payments](/features/deposits-balances) attach to the puppy and the family automatically, with receipts on both sides — but whatever you use, the principle stands: **written terms, documented money, no exceptions you didn't choose deliberately.**