To sell a puppy through a listing, prepare fresh photos, an honest description with the birth date and deworming information, and a price compared with similar offers in your area. Meet the buyer in a public place, sign a contract, and hand over the puppy only after receiving the full amount.
This guide is for private individuals and small breeders who want to sell a puppy without wasting weeks on pointless conversations and without falling into the traps of fake buyers. Selling a dog is not the same as selling a phone. The buyer asks about pedigree, vaccinations, parents, and home conditions. Your listing must answer most of these before anyone writes. The fewer unknowns you leave, the fewer basic questions you get and the faster you find the right person. In this text you will find the order of steps: from pricing, through photos and description, to safely handing over the dog and responding to fraud attempts.
- The price comes from comparing several similar listings, not from how much you spent on food and vet care.
- Take photos during the day, in natural light, at the dog's height, without filters.
- The description includes birth date, sex, vaccinations, deworming, pedigree or lack thereof, and reason for sale.
- Meet in a public place, payment on pickup, written contract.
How to set a price so you can sell a puppy without undervaluing it
Price is the first filter for buyers. Set it before you write the listing. Open several listings for dogs of the same breed, similar age, within 100 kilometers of your city, and note three numbers: the lowest, the highest, and the one that repeats most often. The third is your starting point.
Several things affect the price that buyers check first. Pedigree and a registered kennel raise the rate. Lack of papers lowers it, though a dog without papers can cost just as much if it has current vaccinations and good origins. Age matters too: a puppy in its eighth week finds a buyer faster than a dog in its fifth month, because that is what people are looking for.
What really differentiates prices
| Option | When to choose | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quick sale below average | A deadline is coming, you have a litter and limited time | The phone rings within one or two days | Less money, risk of attracting a dealer |
| Market price | You have time for several meetings and want to choose the home | Fair amount, calm conversations | The sale may take two or three weeks |
| Exchange or rehoming for cost reimbursement | You care about a specific home, not the money | The dog goes to a vetted person | No income, requires trust |
Do not write "price negotiable" if you do not intend to negotiate. That is an invitation to dozens of messages that lead nowhere. Better to state the amount and add one sentence about what is included: deworming, first vaccination, starter kit.
Before you answer the first inquiry, check the buyer's history on the platform where you post the listing. An account created the same day with one profile photo is a signal to meet only in a public place and not send any data before pickup.
How to write a listing that sells a puppy
A listing sells when it answers the questions the buyer does not want to ask. Breed, age, sex, city, price, and health status must be visible without expanding the content. The rest is details that build trust.
Photos
Take at least six photos. One from the front, one from the side, one in motion, one with littermates or the mother, one with documents, one showing the environment where the dog stays. Photograph during the day, by a window or in the yard. Turn off flash and filters. Buyers immediately spot photos with unnatural coat color and move on.
Do not frame the dog against a pile of clothes or halfway out of a crate. If you do not have a decent photo, ask someone with a better phone camera. Photos from the last week are more credible than those from the day of birth.
Description
Write briefly and specifically. Give the birth date, sex, pedigree number if there is one, vaccination and deworming dates, information about the parents, and the reason for sale. If the dog has a flaw, write about it. A hidden flaw will come back as a complaint, and sometimes as a demand for a refund.
List three character traits you see every day. "Calm with children," "afraid of the vacuum cleaner," "puts everything in its mouth." Such sentences help the buyer assess whether the dog fits their home and reduce the number of unnecessary meetings.
Does selling a puppy fast mean selling cheaper?
Not always. Speed depends mainly on the reach of the listing and the quality of photos, not on the price alone. A listing with one photo and the sentence "free to a good home" sits for weeks even after a price cut. A complete description with six photos and a clear price gets inquiries within the first days.
If time matters, narrow the audience. Post the listing in several cities where you can realistically meet, and in the pets category. On EX & GO listings go through moderation, and phone numbers are verified, so buyers less often treat the offer as fake. You will find the publication rules in the site terms.
A price cut makes sense only after two weeks of silence. Then it is better to change the main photo than to halve the price. A price that is too low attracts dealers who buy cheap and resell, often without checking the home.
How to answer buyers and filter out scammers
The first message usually asks about price and availability. Reply within a few hours, briefly, with one question back about where the buyer lives and whether they already have conditions for a dog. That is a natural filter.
Warning signs
- The buyer wants to pay in advance but asks for card details or a BLIK code.
- They send a screenshot of a transfer confirmation that is not in your account.
- They propose a courier they order and pay for themselves and ask you to cover transport.
- They write only in English or Russian, avoid questions about the dog, and ask only for the account number.
- They insist on fast shipping without a meeting and without seeing the animal.
A fake transfer confirmation is the most common trick. A bank payment receipt can be generated in minutes. Check the balance in your bank app, not a screenshot. If someone offers to pay for a courier and asks you to refund the overpayment, that is a scam. There is no overpayment, only your transfer to them.
Fraud in animal sales is described by the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection in consumer materials UOKiK. It is also worth knowing the rules on animal sales and breeder obligations published by gov.pl.
Where and how to safely hand over the dog
Meet in a public, busy place: at a park entrance, in a shopping center parking lot, in front of a veterinary clinic. Do not invite a stranger home if you are alone. Bring another person with you.
The buyer should see the dog in motion, pet it, check ears, eyes, and skin. If they come with children, ask the child to sit and wait until the dog comes to them on its own. This shows how the dog reacts to new people and protects both sides from stress.
Payment on pickup, in cash or by transfer visible in your account before handing over the dog. Plus a contract in two copies: details of both parties, dog description, pedigree number, amount, date, and signatures. A contract is not required for every sale, but in a dispute it is the only document that means anything.
Checklist before publishing the listing
- Photos from the last week, at least six, without filters.
- Birth date, sex, breed, city, and price written in the content, not only in the form fields.
- Information about vaccinations, deworming, and pedigree, including when there is no pedigree.
- Reason for sale given in one sentence.
- Phone number and preferred contact time.
- Set price and negotiation range, if any.
- Ready contract text and meeting place.
We see in our catalog that listings with a complete description and six photos get clearly more inquiries than those with one photo, and moderation rejects offers without information about the animal's age and health status. If you want to compare prices of similar dogs in your area, browse the offers in the pets category on EX & GO and check the history of sellers who already have reviews add a listing.
Questions about account operation, reporting listings, and phone number verification are handled by technical support. The service does not mediate payments; the entire transaction takes place directly between the seller and the buyer puppies and dogs.
What not to do when selling a dog
Do not ship the dog by courier to someone you have not seen in person. Do not accept a deposit if you are not ready to return it if they back out. Do not promise that the dog will have a specific temperament, because you do not know that. Do not sell a puppy younger than eight weeks, because such a dog still needs its mother.
Do not write in the listing that the dog is "perfect for everyone." Such a sentence means nothing and sounds like an ad. Better to describe how the dog behaves in the morning, in the car, and on a walk. Specifics sell, generalities repel.
How long it takes to sell a puppy
At a good price and with a complete description, first inquiries come within two to three days. The meeting and handover usually take another week. The sale drags on when photos are poor, the price is detached from the market, or the description says nothing about health and origin.
Before you post the listing, check whether your breed is popular in your region. Demand for shepherds and small toy breeds looks different, and prices in a big city and a smaller town can differ by several hundred zlotys. Comparing a few offers from your region gives you a real reference point.
Most common questions about selling a puppy
Can I sell a puppy without pedigree papers?
Yes. Selling a dog without pedigree papers is legal if the dog does not come from a registered kennel and is not subject to breed restrictions. State clearly in the listing that there are no papers. The buyer has the right to know before meeting. Lack of pedigree lowers the price but does not block the sale. Just make sure the puppy has current vaccinations and a health record.
At what age can a puppy be sold?
Safest after the eighth week of life, when the puppy eats on its own and has had its first deworming. Earlier separation from the mother increases the risk of feeding and behavioral problems. If you are selling a whole litter, set one pickup date for all and stick to it. Buyers often ask for an earlier pickup, but there is no reason to agree.
How do I check if a buyer is trustworthy?
Ask three questions: where the dog will live, who cares for it during the day, and whether there are small children at home. Ask to meet in a public place and to talk on the phone beforehand. Someone who avoids a voice call and only asks for your account number is not a buyer. Also check whether the account on the site has history and reviews from other sellers.
Do I have to sign a dog sale contract?
The law does not require a contract for every sale, but it is worth having one. A simple contract with the parties' details, dog description, amount, and date protects both sides. In a dispute over the dog's health or origin, it is the only document that settles anything. Include the pedigree number if the dog has one, and information about vaccinations given.
What if the buyer does not pay or backs out after the meeting?
Do not hand over the dog before receiving the full amount. If the buyer backs out, go back to other inquiries, do not lower the price right away. A deposit is voluntary, and its return depends on your agreement. Only accept it if you are ready to return it without dispute. Confirm all arrangements in a message so you have a record.
How long does it take to sell a puppy?
At a market price and with good photos, first inquiries come within two to three days, and the sale closes within one to two weeks. Listings without photos and with a price above local rates wait much longer. If there is no inquiry after two weeks, change the main photo and check whether the description includes all information about the dog's health.
Summary
The hardest part of selling a puppy is not the listing itself. The hard part is filtering out people who waste your time and describing the dog so it goes to a home that suits it. Start with a price based on comparing several local offers, then take honest photos and write a description with birth date, vaccinations, and reason for sale.
Answer messages the same day, check your bank balance instead of screenshots, and meet in a public place. A contract and payment on pickup close the topic of misunderstandings. If you do all this step by step, you will sell the dog faster and with less stress, and the buyer will remember you as someone who takes the animal seriously.