how much $ do you spend on your animals?

[ashleycat]

Hubby is complaining. As you can tell. He's not a pet person.

He thinks 500 is too much. Well, this all goes towards adoption fees, vet care, grooming, supplies etc.

In his country, dogs are outside for protection. Not companions. He thinks it's weird that I think of my fur babies as almost human.

I told him to think of how he felt when he cried as a little boy when his dog died. He said... yeah, but we didn't spend $500 on him. I saw a pic of the dog they have now... it looks like it's in a huge rabbit hutch outside.

He doesn't understand.

True.. dogs aren't as important as my human baby, but close. And no.. Charlie can't pay me back in money, but he can other ways.

We have the money to do it. He's just being selfish. There's more to it. Sorry for vent.

[wolfsoul]

I don't think that's expensive at all. That's about how much I spend a MONTH on Visa lol. Especially including the initial buying price, that's nothing at all. I would spend up to $1000 just on the initial price of a dog.

[Jessika]

I spend too much, that's for sure lol

But its worth it. The initial investment is always, always going to cost more at first. Once you get into the swing of things, routine costs are so much cheaper. Just tell hubby that times are different and if he doesn't like it than... oh well. He needs to stop being selfish ;)

Even if HJ (my fiance) didn't love animals, he would see how happy it makes me to make them happy and well he wouldn't let me go crazy but he would understand, in essence. But lucky for me he lovesssss them so much. He refers to them as "his kids" hehehe

[ashleycat]

Hey Jess. You are on my top 8 on myspace :) :p

[Glacier]

Your husband would keel over around here! I easily spend that much every month. Course I have a lot of animals. When I started mushing I was told to budget 500 dollars per dog annually for the basics--food, routine vet care, harnesses, ect. That amount is about right, but does not include emergency vet care. Last year we had a good year in terms of the vet bill, but it still topped five grand. It's been double that in a bad year, like when Hobo got attacked by the wolf. I have three who require daily medications for life. That's only the dogs' vet expenses. The 500 a year doesn't include big one-time expenses like fencing and the sled. Fortunately my hubby builds a great fence so I only pay for the material and a couple hundred bucks to get a bobcat in to dig the post holes.

The cats are cheaper in terms of medical care, but I still spend probably 200 a month on food, litter, treats, and toys for them. I have one cat with serious urinary tract problems. His vet bills are now over 5000. He's well travelled--he flew to the University of Saskatchewan for a surgery my vet couldn't do. My hubby says Pete is the world's most expense "free" kitten!

My hubby, Stuart, is great about the critters. He does very little of their actual day to day care, but he does love them. If I need a fence or a gate built, he gets it done and build them husky-proof! That's not easy! He built Kayleigh her own pen attached to his shop so she could sleep indoors and hang out with him while he's working. Kay has issues that make it impossible for her to be part of the pack. He sometimes tells me I'm neurotic about them, but my vet tells me the same thing! I'd rather be neurotic than sorry! Stuart never complains about the money or the time the critters take.

They are worth every dime and then some. I can't imagine what I'd do with all my free time and money if I didn't have them! I'd probably just get into trouble! :p

[Roxyluvsme13]

Oh gosh.
At least $200 a month, usually more.

[GoldenLuv]

I spend way too m uch money on all my dog's and they are worth every darn cent i spend on them

If i had to come close to an amount i would say about 600.00 if not more a month

[MomOf7]

The initial cost of a pet is the smallest amount you will spend throughout the years.
The last pup I bought was $1,200 dollars.:eek:

I spend somewhere near 10K a year or more on my dogs. But I also do competitions so its a little different for me then the average owner :)

[cali]

hmm pretty much all of it lol lets see I skimp on buying new clothing, any buying some when absolutly nessassary, then I pay my $24 a month for dance, $100 a month for room and board, about $60 a month to my mom for gas, $10 a month to my dad for gas, then I have my showdog and showcat subscriptions but those are only $5 a month and I pay in 3 month periods. once those are out of the way everything else goes to the pets. that toys, food, pick up bags(I use the dispensers as its easier when bikeriding), a water bottle and water bottle holder for my dogs so they have water when I bikeride with them, a backpack for Happy, all natural biodegradable litter for my rabbit, portraits of my dogs, frames for the portraits, a cardigan with a BC on the back, designer collars, a new huge cage for my birds, vet wrap for Mistys feet....the list goes on!

[lv4dogs]

I would say that just for food, litter, treats, pretty much necessities only I spend about $250/month.
Just the routine vet bills (not including emergencies or "extra" treatments) average out to be about $1500/year (vaccines, flea & heartworm meds).
The non routine vet bills probably run about $10,000 a year, give or take a few thousand or so. Then possibly about $5,000 more for strays/rescues/fosters that I take in/help out.

Like others said, the initial cost of a new pet is considerably more than the annual costs you will experience later. Kaige cost me $600 alone, then his crate, new dishes, leashes, toys, collars, etc.... It all adds up fast. I think I spent about $1,000-$1,500 on Kaige's supplies before he even came home.

[Zippy]

Oh gosh.I don't know and if my dad know really he would pass out.

[chocolatepuppy]

My vet bills so far this year are $2,083.94! :eek: The cats haven't been to the vet yet this year. :rolleyes: I wouldn't even try to add up food, treats, and toys for the dogs and cats. Never mind fish food, bowls, tanks, filters,light bulbs... ;)

[catnapper]

IS $500 a month, year, week?

I spent $500 on pouncer just for one broken foot this past fall. Then another $500 on crystals he developed from the stress of the break. I now spend $60 a month just in prescription cat food for him plus the $28 a month is urine rechecks. Now I have to add in the treats, litter, toys I have for the other 4 in additiona to him and I'm well over a couple hundred.

I can't forget Miss Nicki either. She's pretty easy but I also spend good money for good food, toys, treats, etc for her. She just got a new collar, and of course it wasn't a $10 collar :rolleyes:

I make enough money in one month to pay for the two car loans and to feed the monsters.

[Chilli]

I'm not even certain on how much we spend! :o
I know that last month, when we bought 2 months or so of frontline for all the dogs and cats, it cost well over $100.
A few months ago, when Skylar first came, he kept coming up will illness to show, and the vet bills were getting pretty high. He had some type of worms, intestinal infection, and mange... and a few other things.
Not to mention five rats that LOVE food, I need to find food that is still good for them but in a bigger bag, I get tired of going to the petstore every two weeks just for rat food! Hmm.. and I'm about to spend $100+ on a new cage for the boy ratties.
In the past few months here is a few things I, myself, have bought for my pets:
$80 rat cage
$30+ on rats and rat supplies
$25 for getting an abcess removed from a rat
$40+ on guinea pigs and supplies
$25+ on parakeet toys and food
$30+ on goldfish and tank setup.
$20+ on cat supplies
$30+ on dog supplies
And that adds up to 280+, and its not even including the vet bills and food for the dogs and cats..... good thing I have alot of money saved!
Plus I'm going to Petco in a few days to pick up a few more things!
I'm not old enough to have an actual job, but I do pay for everything that goes toward all the pets except the dogs. And once I am able to get a job, the dogs will be my full responsibility, also. :)

[wolfsoul]

This is all of the money I've spent on my pets this month:

Dog:
~$200 on food/supplements (she's on a raw diet and I buy her all the best)
~$200 for hip and elbow X-rays
~$20 on treats
~$30 for herding
~$130 for agility
~$20 for CGN test
~$30 on cream (she cut her hock)

Foster kitten:
~$20 on food
~$50 on medications and Lysine supplement

Rats:
They eat the dog's food so that's included in the $200 above
~$25 for shampoo
~$10 for parasite shampoo (they had lice)

Mice:
~$50 initial cost

Betta:
~$6 on food

[ashleycat]

Actually it's probably more around 700.

Thats

vet
grooming
adoption fee
crate
doggie dooley
a few toys
grooming supplies for at home
I've gotten 2 big bags of food.

That price is just what so far. But after this it will be just grooming every now and then, food and health care.

[Zippy]

I have a feeling this topic was best left unposted LOL.I try to get the sales at the petstores for Zippy's treat and Sweet P.'s toys.Zippy needs some new toys as a lot of her's got lost in the move.Today we got Sweet P.some great toys for 2 dollars 3 nice ones :)

[dogzr#1]

Around $200/month. That's only on dogs. Let's see. Here are my other expenses:

Fish:
Food-$25( includes pellets, flakes, and bloodworms)
Betta Food- $7

Birds:
Toys: $10
Food- $20
Accessories- $15

Hermit Crabs:
Sponge: $5
New Shells: $7

Dogs:
Food- $50
Grooming Supplies- $20
Toys- $15
Treats- $10
Other Necessities(sp?)- $30

That's only for about a month. Now add all that together and multiply it by 12 and add around $200 for vet bills and medication(ie. frontline and heartguard) and you will have how much I spend on my pets.

[.sarah]

Food - about $200 per month, about $2400 per year
Obedience classes - $325 per year
Toys - about $100 per year
Annual checkups - $15 per dog, $60 total
The occasional emergency vet visit - $200+ per visit

We don't vaccinate, give heartworm, or give flea preventative, so those costs don't apply to us. I will do titer tests so that they can continue to attend obedience classes, but I haven't asked my vet how much that costs.

So all in all, they cost us close to $3000 a year, probably more. We probably buy more than that in toys and I just don't want to admit it :p

[Pembroke_Corgi]

Well I'm not the best check-book balancer so I couldn't tell you to the dollar how much I spend. On dog food & cat food, I spend about $60 a month, plus maybe another $25 on treats. I like to buy them toys and stuff a lot, and I guess that adds up quite a bit too. Luckily they are all quite healthy and usually only see the vet rarely (well, at least once a year of course!), but Vallis had a $300 emergency vet bill in April, and I bought all of their flea and heartworm preventative last month too which was around $250.

In terms of initial cost, they were quite expensive! Marta cost $650, and she was a puppy so I had to pay for all her shots, and getting her spayed. Adele was a puppy too, her adoption fee was $150, plus those costs, and Seine's adoption fee was $90, plus spaying, etc. Vallis's adoption fee was $250, but he had all but one of his vaccinations.

I'm guessing I spend around $150-200 per month on them overall on care, but who cares, really? As long as I have enough money, they are what I like to spend it on. :)

[lute]

hmmm....anywhere between $20 and $50 a week.

i understand your frustration. my mom is not an animal person. she thinks all these trips to the vet for the kittens is a waist of time and money. i've heard her say on multiple occations that "cats are disposable. they are something you get for free out of the newspaper." i love my mom to death, but we have have more argumens about this than anything else.

[IRescue452]

Dog: $40/year vet bill, $15/month food, maybe, $5/month toys, treats, other
my philosophy is "if it costs less than a dollar it doesn't count, so I spend lots of money on walmart's 88 cent toys and on dollar tree toys"

Cat: $2.50/month litter, $5/month food, a few replacement toys and sleeping baskets a year

Fish: Filter media and test kits $30/year, Decoration budget $50/year, Food $10/year, + camera batteries, extra tanks, nets, treatments, conditioners, water

I probably spend more on my fish than any other pets. I get a LOT of clearence items so I tend to spend more than I think.

[cyber-sibes]

I've never stopped to add it up, but I'm sure it's quite a bit more than $500/yr. each for food, heartworm & flea preventative, liscences, shots, grooming, etc., plus emergency vet trips for things like hot spots and broken toes :rolleyes: ! It's not too bad spread out, but I know if something major happened that was going to be thousands of dollars at once, my hubby would probably not go along with it. At least, that's what he says now, he might feel different if his Star-girl had an emergency.

[ashleycat]

I probably would spend about 60 a month tho. That 500 was start up supplies, vet etc.

[Suki Wingy]

If I had my way, try $750 a month on a horse! + $160 on lessons
But since I don't have a horse, My rabbit costs:
$45- innitial cost of buying
30- a year on rabbit shows
65- cage
40-toys, etc
5- supplies
15- show rabbit feed 25lbs. (lasts about 6 months)

Dog
$55 innitial cost of adopting
40- food per month
about 600 vet per year, he's pretty healthy
50- dog park registration
treats, toys- 30 per month
misc. medical and grooming supplies- 5 a month

[buttercup132]

All of my pay cheques go straight to them. My mom gets so mad, saying "why dont you ever spend money on yourself it always goes to your animals" :rolleyes: (normies are so annoying)I get paid like one fifty every 2 weeks

[king2005]

ummm maybe 100.00/year.. I usually only need to buy food 2-3 times a year

[cyber-sibes]

plus emergency vet trips for things like hot spots and broken toes :rolleyes: ! And bites--- Like today; vet bill $76.00. Excuse me, I have to go back to work now...

[lv4dogs]

We don't give heartworm

You don't do ANY heartworm preventative? Not even ivermectin which can be bought over the counter in some states? (PLEASE unexperienced people do NOT just go out & give this to your dogs without having the dog tested and an ok from your vet. Giving your pet a heartworm preventative if the dog is positive may cause death) Do you at least get them tested every year or two?

[.sarah]

You don't do ANY heartworm preventative? Not even ivermectin which can be bought over the counter in some states? (PLEASE unexperienced people do NOT just go out & give this to your dogs without having the dog tested and an ok from your vet. Giving your pet a heartworm preventative if the dog is positive may cause death) Do you at least get them tested every year or two?
Nope, none. They are tested twice a year :)

[critter crazy]

I would have to say between vet bills, feed, toys and supplies i have to spend around 1,000.00 a month!

[joycenalex]

alex has epilepsy, he gets daily meds, and he gets valium after the seizures. peanut just had a bout of squirty diarrhea last week (i came home to a covered dog, covered crate and well, let's just say the smell was strong). she saw the vet the next day, and i spent 60, includes the antibiotic and fecal test. the heartworm meds, bloodtest for both dogs and thyroid med refill for alex the weekend before was 150. alex eats raw food, so maybe 40 a month for food. peanut eats nutro, about 20 a month. the cats are cheaper, litter, 20 a month, food, eukaneuba, 30 month, canned 15 a month. whatever i spend, it's worth it to see their happy faces when i get home. :D

[RobiLee]

It's not too bad spread out, but I know if something major happened that was going to be thousands of dollars at once, my hubby would probably not go along with it. At least, that's what he says now, he might feel different if his Star-girl had an emergency.

I bet he would ;). Katie broke her ankle and had to have surgery and 3 pins put in and the ligaments reconstructed. Since she had to have that surgery we went ahead and had her knee fixed also. The total cost was almost $2000 :eek: ! I don't regret spending that money on her at all. She was there for me through the cancer crap and I will always be there for her;). Funny thing is that right before she broke her ankle we were involved in a car accident. The insurance sent us a check for the damage which turned out to be $2000 :eek: . We handed that money right over to the vet hospital. To this day the car has not been repaired and normally something like that would bother me, but when I see it I always smile because I know it was meant to be.

I don't know how much money I spend on my dogs and I would probably go into shock if I ever took the time to add it up...LOL. :p

[binka_nugget]

Mice:
~$50 initial cost


That's cause you just HAD to buy the expensive mice LOL.


For initial costs, $500 is extremely cheap. Kai alone was $500 (breeder). Then there was neutering, vaccinations, grooming supplies, crate, leashes, collars, food, etc.


This is what I've paid in the past month for just the dogs:
$150 -- Food and Supplements
$80 -- Vet
$90 -- Agility Class
$120 -- Obedience Class
$25 -- Leash
$30 -- Treats
$50 -- Herding

Sooo.. $545 this month. Next month will be another set of Agility class and agility club fees, obedience class, even more food (I've just located Rabbit which is a HUUUUGE dent in the wallet) and CKC fees.

[cloverfdx]

Too much hehe just kidding. We leave on a roadtrip next week to take the dogs interstate for a Flyball comp, it is a 24 hour drive + wee/ exercise stops. With the price of petrol/ gas at the moment it could end up costing quite a bit just to get there ;).... hows that for commitment.

I guess i would spend about $200 a month on the dogs, possibly $250 - $300 if we have trips away for flyball, herding etc. The cat eats about $20 of food a fortnight so thats not too bad. Lets just say there is very little left over for me at the end hehe... but i dont care.

[mruffruff]

Cats, $28.00 a week for food, treats and litter. (12 cats) Dogs, $19.00 a week for food and treats. About $500.00 a year for vet bills for all of them and about the same for Revolution.

And then there's the lumber, etc. for cat trees, the cat pen improvements, doggy door replacements.........

I must be nuts





about my pets! :D

[Aspen and Misty]

For the Month of May my budget for the pets looks like this:

Dogs:
Food - $50
Vet - $100 (Foster pup Luka got his Shots twice)

Cats:
Grooming - $35 (Hossie got shaved!)

Rat:
Vet- $50 (she is being PTS)

Bunnies:
Food - $40
Vet - $700 (Jaxom got very ill)

So total cots comes to $935. Nope, $500 isn't alot :D

That doesn't include heartworm and flee prevention and shots for the dogs and cats. Treats and toys. Right now I get a 15% discount because I work at Petsmart so I tend to buy more toys and a treats then if I didn't get the discount :rolleyes:

Ashley

[Zippy]

600 a year it's a guess
Bandit:flea and heart worm,food,vet check,shampoo,treats,toys,ect...(we still handle all of Bandit's costs even thought he lives with my grand parents)
Zippy:vet check,food,treats,litter,toys,ect...
Sweet P.:Food,dried veggies/fruits,toys,cleaners,ect...
it is going to go up a little when i get my betta

[Kfamr]

Lets see...

Dog food for three 47-75lb dogs: $50 for ever 35lbs of food.
I haven't really payed attention how much a 35lb bag lasts us.

I've spent atleast $150 on crap they don't need while on vacation.
About $20 just on my aunt's puppy that we're staying with.
Their shampoo and conditioner is originally $10 a bottle - we pay $3 something though.
New collars every few months - anywhere from $10-$40 on collars for all three.
New toys can range from $1-$50.
New treats (because they have to try every treat on the market) $2-$50

Everytime we go to the vets it's usually $200 min. PER dog for each visit.


Gosh I could go on and on!


The fact is. We can buy the bare minimum but the joy my dogs bring in our lives they deserve the best they can get. If that includes driving 20+ miles just to purchase the more expensive, healthier food compared to up the corner buying Kibbles & Bits - SO BE IT!

I adopted them promising to take care of them

There are just so many people stuck back in the days when it comes to many thing, not just pets.


With internet, computers, cameras, televisions, good vehicles, etc.. those would be the first things to go if we needed money to pay for an emergency. A living being comes before ANYTHING in my heart.

I would sell the clothes off my back if I had to.

[shihtzulover850]

Well with snuggles it is not that bad. for one thing my grandparents bought her for me as a christmas present from a reputable breeder they know that gave them a discount. Once when she had flees we spent $100 dollars trying to get rid of the pesky critters. She got them from another dog!!! :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: She doesn't eat or drink a lot. mostly grooming $35 buying things from the way overly priced petsmart $20 food $20-30 toys $1-10. Vet visits $50-100 heartworm preventative $15-18 depending on which vet we get it from.

I guess it pays having just one small dog!!!

[My Peanuts]

Your husband would faint if he knew what we spend on our dogs. They eat expensive food and Jimmy is on VERY expensive prescription food. I've had Jimmy since later August of 2005 and we've spent over $2,000 on him alone. We have 4 dogs total and none of there care is scrimped on. Spaying, neutering, micro chipping, shots, heartworm tests and pill, food, and toys. It all adds up.

[Logan]

Just regular things like heartworm preventative, flea and tick preventative, food and annual checkups/shots for the number of dogs/cats we have had and their size (all big dogs) can add up substantially. Then you get a sick one or two and it adds up even more. And my vet gives me such breaks! I would probably cringe at the total if I really added up what we had spent per year in the last couple of years.

Butter has to be at the vet every 4-6 weeks to have a shot, but thankfully, she has been very generous in not charging office visits, just the cost of the shots (Butter goes to a different vet now than the others because her schedule is much more flexible than Dr. Robinson's and he understands that). Murphy and Zipper's recent illnesses (in the last six months), plus the cost of the medications associated with those illnesses and then their cremation charges :( are astronomical, but I also know they would probably be double had he charged me full price or had I gone to another vet.

Still wouldn't trade any of that for the world. We do without in other areas to make it work and our vet also works with us and allows us to pay a little at a time (which we have never done) or delay payment for as long as necessary. But, I know that isn't common with most veterinarians. I've just been with him for so long and see him so often that he knows that I will always pay him, even if I don't make a payment to him at every visit. He told me a couple of weeks ago that if I paid him 50 cents a week for the rest of my life that would be ok with him. He's a gem and I do hope he doesn't retire for a long, long time.

Logan

[lv4dogs]

Just regular things like heartworm preventative, flea and tick preventative, food and annual checkups/shots for the number of dogs/cats we have had and their size (all big dogs) can add up substantially.

Tell me about it, I think I pay about $600/year just for heartworm & flea treatments/preventatives and the like.