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I don't recommend cutting too many corner with the pets. To save money, we tried switching from a good quality dog food to Walmart's Old Roy brand at least temporarily. Our dog developed high alkaline urine. The vet suggested it's likely due to diet. Won't try that again. Can save money by giving the dog his vaccinations ourselves (he's a lab) but not the rabies shot. Don't want to even try giving shots to the two cats so that's an annual vet bill. We save money by bathing the dog ourselves but have to pay to have his nails clipped and anal glands expressed. Can save money by not getting too carried away with the Drs Foster & Smith pet catalog ;-)
We save a lot of money buying the best quality food. Why? Because they eat a lot less of it. So, changing from Purina or Eukanuba to Orijen and Weruva has saved us over $100 a month. Plus, we don't have any animals with allergies anymore like we used to. It took forever for them to be healthy enough to go back to the shelter which cost a lot more food-wise. Not anymore. We do the three year rabies which saves us the cost of office visits and get a years worth of Frontline and Heartguard Plus which saves us a lot as well. You can live frugally and still provide quality care for your pets or in our case, our pets and fosters.
There are at cost vets in many cities and most shots (except for rabies) if you prefer to give your animals shots yearly are cheap and don't require a prescription. They are very easy to do by yourself and you don't have to pay for a vet office fee.
The key is checking with all the stores in your area to see who has the best prices, Orijen has a promotion like most quality foods where you buy a certain number of bags and you get the same size of bag free. I have no idea if my animals will live longer on this food than Purina, but they sure do better on it!
I guess I started this thread with the idea that a pet is an expensive luxury, that could be relinquished in the interest of the frugal objective of reducing one's cost of living.
We see people on here who have given up their car to reduce costs. Has anyone ever given up a pet as a cost-saving measure? Or does everyone regard their pet as a life necessity, like food and shelter?
I would never dream in giving up my pet, I would opt to give up the cell phone or cable before that. We go to a Holistic Vet and we barter here, she gets her Rabies shot every 3 yrs. and regular checkups yearly and I make h/m Italian food for the office, on birthdays & Holidays. Our Vet does not believe in any shots other than Rabies after your dog is 3, he has waived the other shots, believing that giving them will shorten her life. Teeth cleaned once a year. She has been on Solid Gold Holistic Blendz food since birth (she is now 6), and as others have said, she eats less. No corn, wheat or rye in the food--promotes allergies. Vitamins 2x a day for Arthritis (which she developed after dislocating her kneecap), 6 mos. of Acupuncture after that happened, still less expensive than the $3,000 operation. Grooming every 6-8 wks. $40 + $20 tip, and yes, lots of toys at Christmas & her birthday, when she sees us walking in the house with a bag & tissue paper she assumes it is a new present for her, and she is usually right. She had an out of the house trainer when she was 6 mos. old for 6 weeks.
The unconditional love that she gives us is priceless. The house would be sold before she was given away.
I would never dream in giving up my pet, I would opt to give up the cell phone or cable before that. We go to a Holistic Vet and we barter here, she gets her Rabies shot every 3 yrs. and regular checkups yearly and I make h/m Italian food for the office, on birthdays & Holidays. Our Vet does not believe in any shots other than Rabies after your dog is 3, he has waived the other shots, believing that giving them will shorten her life. Teeth cleaned once a year. She has been on Solid Gold Holistic Blendz food since birth (she is now 6), and as others have said, she eats less. No corn, wheat or rye in the food--promotes allergies. Vitamins 2x a day for Arthritis (which she developed after dislocating her kneecap), 6 mos. of Acupuncture after that happened, still less expensive than the $3,000 operation. Grooming every 6-8 wks. $40 + $20 tip, and yes, lots of toys at Christmas & her birthday, when she sees us walking in the house with a bag & tissue paper she assumes it is a new present for her, and she is usually right. She had an out of the house trainer when she was 6 mos. old for 6 weeks. The unconditional love that she gives us is priceless. The house would be sold before she was given away.
This is totally beyond my comprehension, but I'm glad it makes you happy.
The only cost that my pet incurs is food - which runs probably about $25 per month and the occasional cat nip or cat toy which is a negligible expense.
My girl cat DID incur a medical bill in 2005 of $1500, but it was emergency surgery and a one time shot. She has since provided at least that much love and enjoyment to me, so I consider us square now.
The joy that my cats bring me cannot be measured in monetary value. But as part of my "family" I am more than happy to pay for and provide their care. My life would be infinitely less enjoyable without them.
I'm with kelsie and wannalive in Greenville! For me, asking if my pet is "essential" is just like asking a new mother if her newborn is "essential". It's true love to the depth of your being and there is no pricetag you can attach to one's love for their children...whether they have 2 legs or 4 with fur.
No frugalness with Caesar except getting his heartworm meds cheaper through the mail. He gets Wellness Core dog food, sees the vet for anything (last week had to get a benign cyst taken off his tail, one stitch). He has a variety of chew items, no soft toy animals, he tears them apart. He's the light of our life, is covered with kisses and hugs every day....
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, still less expensive than the $3,000 operation. Grooming every 6-8 wks. $40 + $20 tip, and yes, lots of toys at Christmas & her birthday, when she sees us walking in the house with a bag & tissue paper she assumes it is a new present for her, and she is usually right.
