How we chose our Corgi, how much the puppy costs, and what to look out for – I’m going to tell you about that today.
Introduction: Our Corgi’s name is Asti, and she’s 5 years old now.
Before buying a Corgi, I had heard that it’s better to buy a pedigree dog from a kennel rather than through OLX. But the price difference was huge—kennels were more expensive, depending on the titles of the parents.
OLX is an online classifieds platform where users can buy and sell goods locally, similar to Craigslist in the U.S. It covers a wide range of categories, from electronics to pets. For example, you might find someone selling a used car or a puppy in your area.
So, I started looking for a dog on Instagram (I’m not sure how this idea popped into my head), and, oh miracle – I found a Corgi exactly where I was looking in Odessa. I want to mention that I didn’t just find a Corgi owner, but a whole page dedicated to the dog! 🙂 I contacted the owner, got information about the male dog that would father the puppies (they sent me pictures and documents), and there were no doubts left.
I reserved a puppy while the dog was still pregnant.
Puppy Cost Without a Kennel: 700 USD
Reservation Fee: 150 USD
Before sending any prepayment, make sure the person is legitimate—there are a lot of scammers on OLX.
A month later, the puppies were born—6 in total. A girl with a purple ribbon turned out to be ours. We were overjoyed, but the next day, I received terrible news—our girl passed away. She was too small and weak. Only 3 puppies survived from the litter, and we weren’t lucky.
After this, I learned what to watch out for when choosing a puppy remotely:
- Low weight (under 150 grams) – risky.
- First-time birth for the dog – this was the case for us, and only half of the puppies survived.
- Ask about the father – his health, appearance, etc.
Then fate intervened—my husband persuaded me to look for a puppy on OLX. I wrote to a woman from Odessa, and while she didn’t have any puppies, she gave me the contact of another breeder from Lviv.
And this is where the coincidences, which I call destiny, began. In Lviv, beautiful puppies were born on the same day as our first little girl.
The breeder sent me pictures of the pups, which didn’t look much like Corgis (they don’t resemble Corgis until about 2 months old). You can see their growth photos here.
We chose the smallest one with a white spot on her neck, just like her mother’s.
You can also choose based on coat tone—some are darker, some lighter. A darker brown means the puppy will be more red, while lighter brown means light red or beige.
We specifically chose a girl. We asked for photos of the father and details about his titles and awards. We also requested the breeder’s passport and registration information before making the prepayment.
Puppy Price:
The Corgi from OLX cost us the same as the previous one—700 USD, plus 40 USD for delivery from Lviv to Odessa, and we had to chip her right away for international travel, though I don’t remember the exact cost.
We picked up our Corgi at 3 months old. This is the safe age to take a puppy from its mother.
The puppy’s passport, tattoo, and vaccinations were included in the cost.
For today’s reality, I consider a price of 700-900 USD to be reasonable (it depends on whether you care about the parents’ awards). Otherwise, I realized that buying from a kennel doesn’t guarantee a healthy dog (I mean genetic diseases that might not show up in the first few years).
Finally, I want to say that I don’t regret buying a puppy not from a kennel.
Wishing everyone happy tails!