Q for the pet owners here....do you ever thought about....

[Dancing Fire]

how much your pets cost you each month?

 

[Amandine]

Nope.

Because I would probably freak out!

The rawhides alone...but seriously, it doesn''t matter. What Edgar gives in return is priceless to me.

 

[CJ2008]

Cat basic essentials (food, water, litter, treats): ~$40 per month. Oh, and the scratchy pads add about another $5 per month. So total, ~$45 per month.

Taking into account vet bills, medical, etc., ETA: and grooming, too (he cries and screams and squirms like if I'm trying to KILL him if I try to trim his nails) it's a lot more though...

A LOT more...

But I'm with Amandine - I love this cat...so as much as I feel some of the expenses (especially during the years where he's had problems that were expensive to treat) I am thankful that I can afford to do whatever it is that he needs. Because I am pretty certain I would go w/o some of my own necessities in order to take care of him if I had to.

 

[LaraOnline]

take home lesson.... if you truly love your pet... insure it! lol

 

[movie zombie]

we''ve had nine cats at one time, two on chemo that later died [vet bills in the $40k zone during a 6 month period] and are down to 5 now also on various meds and needing to see vets. no, i don''t figure out on a monthly basis: the love and joy i receive from them is priceless.

movie zombie

 

[CJ2008]

Date: 8/21/2008 11:11:24 AM
Author: movie zombie
we''ve had nine cats at one time, two on chemo that later died [vet bills in the $40k zone during a 6 month period] and are down to 5 now also on various meds and needing to see vets. no, i don''t figure out on a monthly basis: the love and joy i receive from them is priceless.

movie zombie

 

[CrookedRock]

We have (and it''s a lot) but it''s all worth it! We actually used to joke tht our chocolate lab was the $10,000 dog. The first month we had him he ate a berry that tied up his intestines and almost killed him... Between the surgey and the food, etc, that year it''s about what we spent! BUt we love him death and would do it all over again!

Now don''t even get me started on the Savannah cat we have!

 

[Irishgrrrl]

HA hahahaha!!! Oh, don''t even ask!!!

We have three fish tanks (two freshwater, one saltwater), a horse (Thoroughbred gelding) and three large dogs (a black lab/mutt mix, a black lab/pit bull mix, and a purebred Great Dane).

Fish food is pretty cheap ~ probably less than $5.00 per month. (Fish monthly total = @$5.00)

Dog food and supplements is probably somewhere around $70.00 per month, and dog grooming is $40.00 per month. (Dog monthly total = @$110.00)

Board for my horse is $325.00 per month. His supplements are around $50.00 per month, and the farrier bill is about $20.00 per month. (Horse monthly total = @$395.00)

So, grand total, we probably spend about $510.00 per month on our pets!!!

 

[Miranda]

What timing!!! Just yesterday I was at the vet with my dog. $200 to diagnose and treat a UTI. And I still have the $65 follow up urinalysis in two weeks in addition to his rabies vac and thyroid level check. He has hypothyroidism and is on a twice daily dose of Soloxine. I was paying $90 for a two month supply, but, recently purchased the drug at Petmeds. It''s sooo much cheaper! I think we''re down to $30 for 3 months now. Between food, vet bills, etc. I''m guessing we average a few thousand every year. There''s nothing I''d rather spend my money on. I adore my dog!

He is the sweetest most loving dog I''ve ever had or known. *sniff sniff* I''m getting a wee bit weepy because he''s 9 now and his breed typically lives to be 12. Thanks to the internet I had myself in a complete dither yesterday while trying to figure out what was wrong with him. Thank goodness it is just a UTI. The alternatives are much worse. It was a bit of a reality check that he is getting up there in years.

My cat is fairly low maintenance in the money dept...Well, after buying him. He''s only 2 so we haven''t had any major health issues yet. He just needs his Nutro food and he''s good to go!

 

[musey]

Date: 8/21/2008 10:49:59 AM
Author:Dancing Fire
how much your pets cost you each month?

Oh yes. We did a great deal of research before having our pup join our family, to make sure we'd be able to afford him.

Luckily he's uber-cheap. His costs average out to about $25/month, including scheduled vet needs (boosters, etc.) in the budget... and that's eating top-notch best-of-the-best food! There's much to be said for very small dogs, he hardly eats anything... even though he free-feeds. A 5 lb. bag (the small size at the store) of his food lasts him 1½-2 months!

He of course costs about $100-200 whenever he travels with us (plane tickets for him cost between $50-100 each way), but that's rolled into our 'revised' travel budget, not his own budget.

There are the random 'scares' (sickness, accident, etc.) but insurance takes care of that

ETA: We want to get him a little kitty pal, because he LOOOOVES kitties (they warm up to him eventually), but they're a lot more expensive than he is

 

[tenfour]

no, i don''t think about it much at all. i''ll have to start thinking about it soon because i just adopted a rescue dog and his food is different than what i feed my dog.

 

[sumbride]

We joke that anytime there is a little bit extra in checking, one of the cats gets sick. It always seems to work out that way. "Oh, you thought you could spend that $500 on something fun? Ha... we''ll see about that. BARF... there you go... I need bloodwork to find out I have a cold."

yeah, I try not to think about the daily costs. Food costs keep rising for our brood, but still, they''re cheaper than kids. I keep reminding DH of that everytime he complains.

 

[Dancing Fire]

Date: 8/21/2008 11:32:10 AM
Author: Irishgrrrl
HA hahahaha!!! Oh, don''t even ask!!!

We have three fish tanks (two freshwater, one saltwater), a horse (Thoroughbred gelding) and three large dogs (a black lab/mutt mix, a black lab/pit bull mix, and a purebred Great Dane).

Fish food is pretty cheap ~ probably less than $5.00 per month. (Fish monthly total = @$5.00)

Dog food and supplements is probably somewhere around $70.00 per month, and dog grooming is $40.00 per month. (Dog monthly total = @$110.00)

Board for my horse is $325.00 per month. His supplements are around $50.00 per month, and the farrier bill is about $20.00 per month. (Horse monthly total = @$395.00)

So, grand total, we probably spend about $510.00 per month on our pets!!!

the horses used to cost me a lot more than $395 per month.

 

[Irishgrrrl]

Date: 8/21/2008 11:43:46 AM
Author: Dancing Fire

Date: 8/21/2008 11:32:10 AM
Author: Irishgrrrl
HA hahahaha!!! Oh, don''t even ask!!!

We have three fish tanks (two freshwater, one saltwater), a horse (Thoroughbred gelding) and three large dogs (a black lab/mutt mix, a black lab/pit bull mix, and a purebred Great Dane).

Fish food is pretty cheap ~ probably less than $5.00 per month. (Fish monthly total = @$5.00)

Dog food and supplements is probably somewhere around $70.00 per month, and dog grooming is $40.00 per month. (Dog monthly total = @$110.00)

Board for my horse is $325.00 per month. His supplements are around $50.00 per month, and the farrier bill is about $20.00 per month. (Horse monthly total = @$395.00)

So, grand total, we probably spend about $510.00 per month on our pets!!!

the horses used to cost me a lot more than $395 per month.

Oh, DF, you used to have horses? What kind and did you keep them at home or board them?

I''m pretty lucky . . . I found a GREAT boarding barn about half an hour from my house, and they only charge $325 per month. They have a brand new barn with a brand new (and HUGE!) indoor arena attached, and also a very large outdoor arena. There are a lot of barns in our area that aren''t nearly as nice and charge a good bit more per month.

 

[Linda W]

Mazie, our Lhasa Apso only costs dog food a month right now, plus flea and heart guard. In February she had one of her eyes removed and that was $800.00. She doesn''t cost us very much, but we wouldn''t care if she did. We absolutely love and adore that little dog.

Linda

 

[Linda W]

Oh and good grief, I forgot to add my little Indian Ringneck parrot Taco. He eats his birdseed, plus our fruits and veggies. He is my sweetie pie and such a little talker.

 

[purrfectpear]

Nope, because 1. Trooper is healthy, and 2. I wouldn''t really notice unless it was over $500/mo ?

Frankly, Trooper is my little soul mate and he will be cared for and loved even if his upkeep ran in the thousands. He is my

 

[Pandora II]

Pythons:
- $300 for complete vivarium/heating set-up.

Cost per year:
- Rats @ $2 each = $40
- Heating = $60
- Sundries = $20
- Vets bills = $80

Total per year = $200 for the two of them. I suppose over their lifetime they will cost me $10k but it''s worth it to me (they live about 50 years).

Hedgehogs
- $150 for cage/wheels etc

Cost per year:
- Food = $50
- Bedding = $30
- Sundries = $40
- Vets bills = $80

Total per year = $200 for the two of them

So pretty cheap all in all. If I had a dog or cat I would take out pet insurance, but with mine it''s not that expensive. I have hugely cut my vets bills as I get discounts for teaching them about python care

, my first ever vet taught me how to do a lot of the diagnostics (fecal floats etc) at home so I can just go and order 1 Panacur tablet if I need it for worming.

 

[Maisie]

We pick our puppy up tomorrow!! I don't know how much her food will be till I see how much she eats! Her insurance is going to be £10 ($19.00 approx) per month.

 

[MonkeyPie]

We just got adopted by another kitten (yes, got adopted, kitties do that) and so it has gone up a bit, but we split it with my dad since the third kitty is his. So it costs as little as $20 a month. Our kitties are cheap

 

[angel_nieves]

I don’t pay that much per mouth on my fur-baby, just food heartgard and flea preventive. My last adopted fur-baby ran up quite a few bills to treat his heart problems, but my hubby and I never though about the money. We loved him so much and would have done anything in our power to get him better.

 

[gemgirl]

I''ve thought about it, but it doesn''t matter. They are irreplacable little additions to our family!

 

[Babyblue033]

Date: 8/21/2008 10:49:59 AM
Author:Dancing Fire
how much your pets cost you each month?

In a nutshell, hell of a lot more than a FI!

Cat Food: $110-120
Litter: $22-24
Special Litter for Roxy (non-stick since she falls into it): $8-9
Cat toys/treats: anywhere from $10-50
Bird food: $20
Bird treats/toyd: anywhere from $10-50

So monthly basic cost is about $180-250 or so depending on how much "fun" stuff I buy for them that month. Plus any random things I''m always picking up, scratching posts, beds, catnip toys they lose within 2 minutes...

Cats'' yearly check up alone costs $750 for a single visit, and god forbid if someone actually gets sick. But this is why both my FI and I work, so we can afford our kitties!

 

[dragonfly411]

pig - 30 in feed, water unsure
horses - around 150 a month including feed, water and hay
dog - around 40

 

[bee*]

Amber''s food costs me roughly €40 per month, Manolo''s costs me roughly €15. My horse is on free livery as I used to work at the stables so they said that he could retire there for free and they cover all his food. I pay roughly €500 per year for his farrier fees, rugs and vaccines etc. Amber''s and Manolo''s vaccines cost me under €50 as I get discount at work and flea treatment, worming, neutering is done for free also.

 

[Tuckins1]

Ummm... Yeah. Last year my dog was attacked by a raccoon. It was a "de-gloving"- where all of the flesh from her armpit to her paw was torn away from the bone. I was so lucky that my parents love her, because she had to have surgeries and visits with the surgeon and meds... It ended up costing them about $13,000!!! I would have had to put her to sleep, or at least amputate her leg. So, the cost of food, treats, etc... It's totally do-able!
BTW- Did I mention that this happened 3 weeks before my wedding?!? She had to be babysat 24 ours a day because she would chew/rub her leg and she was in EXTREME pain... We had to feed her with a turkey baster for a while just to get liquids into her and we had to carry her out to go potty and back in. It was awful!!!! But, a year later she is doing wonderfully. She has full use of her leg, just a gnarley scar!!

 

[Irishgrrrl]

Date: 8/21/2008 3:55:36 PM
Author: Tuckins1
Ummm... Yeah. Last year my dog was attacked by a raccoon. It was a ''de-gloving''- where all of the flesh from her armpit to her paw was torn away from the bone. I was so lucky that my parents love her, because she had to have surgeries and visits with the surgeon and meds... It ended up costing them about $13,000!!! I would have had to put her to sleep, or at least amputate her leg. So, the cost of food, treats, etc... It''s totally do-able!
BTW- Did I mention that this happened 3 weeks before my wedding?!? She had to be babysat 24 ours a day because she would chew/rub her leg and she was in EXTREME pain... We had to feed her with a turkey baster for a while just to get liquids into her and we had to carry her out to go potty and back in. It was awful!!!! But, a year later she is doing wonderfully. She has full use of her leg, just a gnarley scar!!

Oh, Tuckins, your poor baby!!!

I''m so glad she''s OK now. Who knew raccoons could be so nasty?!?! What a nightmare!!!

 

[Tuckins1]

Date: 8/21/2008 3:59:18 PM
Author: Irishgrrrl

Date: 8/21/2008 3:55:36 PM

Author: Tuckins1

Ummm... Yeah. Last year my dog was attacked by a raccoon. It was a ''de-gloving''- where all of the flesh from her armpit to her paw was torn away from the bone. I was so lucky that my parents love her, because she had to have surgeries and visits with the surgeon and meds... It ended up costing them about $13,000!!! I would have had to put her to sleep, or at least amputate her leg. So, the cost of food, treats, etc... It''s totally do-able!

BTW- Did I mention that this happened 3 weeks before my wedding?!? She had to be babysat 24 ours a day because she would chew/rub her leg and she was in EXTREME pain... We had to feed her with a turkey baster for a while just to get liquids into her and we had to carry her out to go potty and back in. It was awful!!!! But, a year later she is doing wonderfully. She has full use of her leg, just a gnarley scar!!

Oh, Tuckins, your poor baby!!!

I''m so glad she''s OK now. Who knew raccoons could be so nasty?!?! What a nightmare!!!

Thank you! I guess it was a momma raccoon and my dog Suzy accidentally came up on them in the woods by our house. She is definitely more wary when roaming the woods now!!

 

[Sabine]

I''m actually surprised by how little we spend on our pooch Brandy! We buy her a large back of food that lasts over a month for about $20, she doesn''t really like manufactured treats except for one kind that is $2 for a 2 week supply, we usually end up taking her to the vet about twice a year, and there''s the heartworm/flea medication, and that''s it!

 

[goldenstar]

Yes and its not that much. Food, grooming and health insurance. Occasionally toys and clothes.

Health insurance has saved us a bundle. Both of our dogs have needed costly surgery in the past and the insurance reimbursed us 90% of the cost. Insurance is the best decision I ever made.