Guide

Taking a puppy deposit properly: amount, agreement, hold length, and applying it to the sale

A hold deposit works when four things are true: the amount and the hold length are agreed in writing, the animal is marked as held so nobody else sells it, the deposit shows up on the final ticket by itself, and a refund or forfeit is recorded against the same animal. Petlovin' does all four: a signed hold-deposit agreement, a hold on the pet with a double-booking guard, automatic application at checkout, and refunds that put the pet back on the floor.

Decide the policy once

Amount: a fixed figure or a percentage of the price. Many stores use a round figure that is large enough to mean it.
Hold length: how many days the animal is held for this family. Print it in the agreement.
Refundable or not, and under what conditions. Say it plainly and get a signature under it.
What happens if the hold lapses: the animal goes back on the floor, and the deposit is refunded, forfeited or credited, per the agreement.

At the counter

Pick the animal and the family. If the animal is already held for someone else, stop; a second deposit on the same puppy is a manager's decision, not a default.
Take the money and record how: cash into the drawer, card, check.
Print or sign the hold-deposit agreement with the amount, the hold length and the animal's details filled in from its record.
Mark the animal as reserved so the storefront and every register show it that way.

At the final sale

When the family comes back, the deposit should already be sitting on the ticket as a payment, with the buyer's name filled in from the deposit. The balance is what is left. If the deposit lives in a separate ledger, this is where it gets forgotten, and the family pays twice or the store loses the deposit.

Refunds and lapses

A refund goes back the way it came, is recorded against the same animal, and puts the animal back on the floor if nothing else holds it. Cash refunds should count as a paid-out on the drawer so the night count balances.

In Petlovin', deposits, holds, the signed agreement, application at checkout and refunds are all part of the register, and the deposit total shows in the day's report as money held, not revenue.

Questions, answered

How much should a puppy deposit be?

Enough to mean it and be agreed in writing. Stores commonly use a fixed round figure or a percentage of the price. What matters more is that the amount, the hold length and the refund terms are in the signed agreement.

Can two families put a deposit on the same puppy?

Only on purpose. Petlovin' blocks a second deposit on a held pet unless a manager overrides it, so a backup buyer is a decision and not an accident.

Is a deposit revenue?

Not until the sale closes. Petlovin' reports deposits as money held and applies them to the final ticket, where the full price becomes the sale.