Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 1, 2011 10:37:19 GMT -5
I think I figured it out once for the old board and our expenses came out to $200-250 a month for an 11 year old husky/shepherd mix, depending on how bad the medical expenses were. $50 a month for food, flea, and heartworm. $65 every three months for grooming $200-400 a year for boarding during vacations (1-2 weeks) $500 a year for pet insurance (covers two full exams, dental cleaning, and vaxes) That's around $138 a month before new pads for her crate and stuff like that. That's also before any major medical expenses like surgery. She's basically had something go wrong and cost 1-2k almost every year.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 14:26:32 GMT -5
Posts: 47,267
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Mar 1, 2011 11:54:02 GMT -5
I forgot to add our lab originally cost $150 at the pet store (NEVER let your husband go into a pet store alone, they come out with a puppy!).
Our Aussie showed up under my car one day and never left so she was free. I joke that we got what we pay for and now call her the "$800 dog" after her surgery.
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kgb18
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 18, 2010 8:15:23 GMT -5
Posts: 4,904
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Post by kgb18 on Mar 1, 2011 16:19:20 GMT -5
My cat isn't very expensive. About $20 a month for food, litter and treats, and around $65 a year for his annual checkup. The dog, on the other hand, is much more expensive. His annual vet bill is usually around $200, and he eats about $40 worth of food a month. And if you would start to factor in all the damage he's done to our house and our yard the total would easily be into the thousands.
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Post by kristi28 on Mar 1, 2011 18:54:15 GMT -5
1 kitty, indoor only. He costs about $20/month in food and litter. His yearly checkup is $100, and boarding him for a long vacation is about $100 (in the years we do this). We would just leave him home, but he gets lonely without us, so he goes to the "spa". He has only been sick 2x in 10 years, each time under $100.
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sunshinegal1981
Established Member
Joined: Jan 2, 2011 12:40:31 GMT -5
Posts: 373
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Post by sunshinegal1981 on Mar 1, 2011 20:21:50 GMT -5
Startup costs will be uncharacteristically high, as others have pointed out. (Vet checkup, vaccines, startup equipment like bedding, kennels, leashes, etc.)
Month-to-month costs are all well and good, but keep in mind....
One single random 'emergency' can mean a HUGE, unexpected expenditure. These things aren't always preventable. -Random severe illness -Gets in a 'scrap' with another dog, and requires care -Accident: steps on glass and slices paw open, gets hit by car (god forbid), etc etc.
Our 'family dog' made it to age 9 without major incident (save for a few $250 vet visits over the years for stitches, if some other neighbourhood mutt bit him) but right around his 9th birthday, he developed an illness that nearly killed him. It took a month for the vets to do all the tests and figure out exactly what it was, and by the time all was said and done, they told us there was nothing they could do - we could have him euthanized right then and there, or take him home to die, which would take a couple of days at the most. We opted for the latter, and started contemplating how on earth we'd dig a hole in the back yard in the dead of winter.
Well, pupster never got the memo. ;-) Instead of dying, he slowly (very slowly) got better. He is still with us, and celebrated his 11th birthday last fall. He is in really great shape: when I take him out, people ask how many months old my 'puppy' is. I love that! ;-)
Total cost: About $7k. If not for that expenditure, for 'supportive care' (emergency vet, blood transfusion, bone marrow biopsy, etc), there is NO WAY he'd have made it through. And we'd pay it all over again, and then some. He has brought us THAT much joy. :-)
Without starting the 'pets-are-just-like-children' argument, it has to be said that a dog or cat (or bird, or fish, or hamster) is more than just a line in a balance sheet. There ARE emotions involved. If your pet unexpectedly goes 'over budget', would you have the heart to just.... euthanize?
***(And PLEASE.... don't buy your pets in a pet store!)
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Cookies Galore
Senior Associate
I don't need no instructions to know how to rock
Joined: Dec 19, 2010 18:08:13 GMT -5
Posts: 10,739
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Post by Cookies Galore on Mar 1, 2011 21:01:09 GMT -5
I had a young male who had the same urinary tract issues as my first cat and I wanted to put him down. Vet wouldn't do it, but she did let me relinquish him to her, she did the surgery and found him a new home. Thank god your vet has a heart.
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