About Adoption Fees
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
February 2026
KLAWS, like every other animal rescue charity, rehomes cats and dogs for a set adoption fee. The amount varies from rescue to rescue but nobody (at least no registered charity) rehomes animals for free.
Sometimes, we get asked questions about the need for or the size of the adoption fees, and that’s fair enough. In this blog post, we’d like to explain what the adoption fees are for, how they are used, and how much does it actually cost to rescue and rehome a dog or a cat in Ireland today.
*So, what’s the adoption fee for?
In general, the adoption fee is there to help cover the cost of food, vet care, microchip (currently just for dogs, but soon also for cats), transport, unexpected costs (usually vet bills, or medication or special dietary foods, or specialist training), and neutering (if applicable).
-Let’s take an example: say we have a dog in a foster home for 2 months. The dog will need about 300 g of food per day, which means 18 kg over 2 months. That costs about €65 - €80. Dogs also need to be microchipped, which costs about €20. Dogs will need exercise and training, physical and mental stimulation, which often requires transport, which adds the price of fuel to the costs, and it can vary from quite a little to quite a lot, of course, but let’s say it’s about €30 - €50 per 2 months. Dogs also need to get vaccinated, which will add about €40 - €70. They also need to be treated for parasites, which will add another €20 or so, depending on the drug, etc.
And just like that we’ve just about reached the adoption fee that we charge for a dog – €250.
Of course, it’s a lucky dog who gets to stay in foster care for only 2 months, some of our dogs have to wait a lot longer than that, which means that all those costs will go up. And yet, every dog’s adoption fee is still the same.
And lest we forget – if the dog is of the proper age and healthy enough, we will have them neutered, too, before they leave for their forever home, which will of course raise the costs quite considerably. And yet, you guessed it, the adoption fee remains the same.
-Or, as another example, there may be times when we have a healthy kitten in a foster home for just a week, which means that the costs for its upkeep would be relatively low. However, in another foster home (or at a vet clinic) we might have a cat who’s suffering from serious health problems and therefore needs a lot of help, both medically and financially. So, whatever feels like ‘extra’ or ‘a bit much’ as one kitten’s adoption fee, might actually be a very welcome and much needed donation towards another animal’s road to recovery.
When you see an adoption fee mentioned somewhere, please remember that it is not simply meant to cover the particular costs of rescuing and rehoming that particular dog/cat. In most cases, the adoption fee is there to help us continue to rescue and care for as many dogs and cats as we possibly can.
Adoption fees (and other donations) also go towards helping us in our TNR efforts in the community (trapping, neutering and releasing feral cats) to control and reduce feline population.
In other words, adoption fee is never a matter of simple, straightforward payment for one animal, it’s a set donation we ask from adopters in order to be able to continue our mission.
*Adoption fees vs actual costs
To give you an idea of the difference between our adoption fees and the actual costs of rescuing and rehoming dogs and cats, here are our figures from 2024:
-Cat adoption fee was set at €100. Rehoming a cat actually cost us €186 on average.
-Dog adoption fee was set at €250 (it’s more for adoptions outside Ireland). Rehoming a dog actually cost us €471 on average.
The discrepancies are quite stark, as you can see.
So, when you see us asking for donations, or inviting you to visit our shop at 23 Main Street in Kenmare, or organising fundraising events, shaking a collection box, or trying to raise money at Christmas markets and so on, it’s all because the actual costs of animal rescue and rehoming are much higher than it seems.
We have also been receiving a grant from the DAFM for a number of years now, which is a great help, and we are truly appreciative of that!
And we are eternally thankful to everyone who has adopted from KLAWS, or is thinking about adopting a pet or two – your contribution goes so much further than you can imagine😊
If you’d like to make a donation to our furry rescues, please click here
If you’d like to join our ranks as a volunteer, please click here
Thank you on behalf of all the cats and dogs in our care, past, present and future😊