Why pets cost so much (vets, rescue, horse, teeth)
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I hear ya' I have two dogs and it's not cheap to keep them- BUT I can help you with that $40 a month for heartworm meds. I mix my own by buying Ivomec and Propylene Glycol at Amazon, but the shelf life is only two years and unless you are going to dose up 1,000 dogs it's a waste of time to mix it yourself, so buy it here: HeartwormPrevention.com They even include a measuring syringe. I put it in raw hamburger and my dogs have been on it for 4 years and always test negative for heartworm. That site is legit, I know a number of breeders who buy from him. So, for $25 you will have enough to dose your two dogs for 2 years. My vet was on board with this, she said she does it this way with her dogs.
Excellent information. I will get that for my dog.
That actually never occurred to me ...not to mention the fact that I wouldn't have been overly keen on the thought of having to pay a vet fee of around $60.00 for the privilege of finding out.
As someone else noted, it's free.
Well, once again this never occurred to me. And, nor did the owners accuse me of having 'stolen' their cat when I eventually met them. They were real nice. It was actually something that we chuckled about. Apparently the cat would still visit them periodically (I hadn't known that they lived just around the corner until the microchip revealed this) and that he was obviously 'using' both of us for food. Smart cat!
Sounds like they didn't really consider their cat "missing"... Different strokes, I guess. If it were my cat (or dog), there would be fliers posted, listings on lost/found pet sites, etc. I guess all's well that ends well, in your case.
But a lot of families would be devastated if their pet were to just disappear. Years ago, we had a scare when a door had been left wide open (not by us), and we were unable to find one of our cats. It wasn't just the possible loss of the cat, but the heartbreak of my kid at the prospect of losing the cat. (The cat had just found a really good hiding place in the house, thankfully, but it was really painful as a mom to see my kid's panic and stress over it.)
Good for you ...and I genuinely mean that.
Thanks... I consider myself lucky to have ended up with him.
Same as others here who judge the poor for daring to own a pet.
Pets are a booming business because people now believe having a dog is the same thing as having a child.
Not necessarily; I certainly don't think so. But, the daycares around here are small and privately owned. So those that go are helping keep small businesses afloat in our community. The dog is exercised and socialized.
There's a very strong undercurrent in this thread of, "If you don't spend a lot
of money on it, you obviously don't love it or deserve it!"
I don't think anyone is saying that. I volunteered at an animal shelter for many years and have adopted dogs out to families that fed their dogs an organic raw diet and also to those that got the cheapest brand from the local feed store. All we really cared about is that the new owners were the kind who would take good care of the animals and love them. We recognized that people have different income levels and it was not a requirement that everyone spend a lot of money on the animals.
I think OP touched a nerve by complaining about the fee to adopt a shelter dog. I would hope that people know that shelters are NOT running a for profit business. They are charging a nominal fee to cover the cost of having the animal checked by a vet, making sure it has all the required vaccinations, is spayed/neutered, etc. I would not adopt out to someone if they complained about the fee because the way I see it is, if you are already crying about the costs of the animal, you have not given thought/are not prepared for all the costs (planned and unplanned) that will be incurred over the life of the animal. In my experience, these are the kinds of people who are the first to dump their animals back at the shelter.
Quote:
One person mentioned that pets are very big business, and this is totally true.
Such big business that the industry has convinced people that dogs need designer
clothing, a new toy every week and daycare to survive. I rather feel sorry for
the dogs sometimes. No longer are they workers, hunters, trackers, herders etc.
They're now cuddly baby dollies and automatic affection machines.
Dogs are still bred and trained to hunt, track and herd for the people who need them for those activities. But, since most of us nowadays are suburb/city dwelling, office workers, we don't need dogs that can do all of the above. In fact, dogs that have a high herding, hunting drive make poor suburban/city pets.
What have you got against "cuddly baby dollies" and "automatic affection machines"? I would think most of us need more of that in our lives to keep us sane in this increasingly stressful,crazy world!
I think OP touched a nerve by complaining about the fee to adopt a shelter dog. I would not adopt out to someone if they complained about the fee because the way I see it is, if you are already crying about the costs of the animal, you have not given thought/are not prepared for all the costs (planned and unplanned) that will be incurred over the life of the animal. In my experience, these are the kinds of people who are the first to dump their animals back at the shelter.
You might be wrong in your assumptions. I would not adopt from a rescue due to the price and the 45 page application package you have to fill out, I guess that is complaining. I have never had to pay a huge price for a dog but I am well aware of the costs involved having had more dogs than I can remember and I have never, ever dumped a dog. All but a few of the dogs I have had over my 30+ years were dogs dumped by others.
Im still not getting where if someone balks at paying 250 dollars for a dog that they can get for 100 dollars that automatically make them a bad pet owner that cant afford the necessities. While I like the idea of getting a shelter or rescue dog, I actually wanted a GSD and wanted to pick out a dog instead of the dog finding me. I paid 100 for a puppy from a "back yard breeder" as opposed to 250 for an older GSD, with conditions, from a rescue so I can see where the OP is coming from.
This is so very true. I have no issue saying i have a maximum amount I'll spend on my dog in the case of health issues, and that's it. I'm not going to jeopardize my family's financial security or kid's college funds to pay a $5,000 + vet bill. I've had to make that decision before, and I know I'll have to do it again. I understand that's not a popular viewpoint, but such is life.
I volunteer for a dog rescue and see the bad and the ugly. I have first experience in making the who lives and who dies decision. That's often based on financial resources and adoptability. The adoption fee rarely covers the expenses that the rescue has already spent on the dogs.
And this is EXACTLY why I advocate against allowing childed people to adopt animals. They never consider them part of the family and treat them as disposable the minute money needs to be spent on their care.
No the commitment I have made to all my pets was to keep them safe, fed, clean, dry and loved. Not to spend thousands upon thousands of dollars on them.
Location: Free State of Florida, Support our police
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 2sleepy
I hear ya' I have two dogs and it's not cheap to keep them- BUT I can help you with that $40 a month for heartworm meds. I mix my own by buying Ivomec and Propylene Glycol at Amazon, but the shelf life is only two years and unless you are going to dose up 1,000 dogs it's a waste of time to mix it yourself, so buy it here: HeartwormPrevention.com They even include a measuring syringe. I put it in raw hamburger and my dogs have been on it for 4 years and always test negative for heartworm. That site is legit, I know a number of breeders who buy from him. So, for $25 you will have enough to dose your two dogs for 2 years. My vet was on board with this, she said she does it this way with her dogs.
I hear ya' I have two dogs and it's not cheap to keep them- BUT I can help you with that $40 a month for heartworm meds. I mix my own by buying Ivomec and Propylene Glycol at Amazon, but the shelf life is only two years and unless you are going to dose up 1,000 dogs it's a waste of time to mix it yourself, so buy it here: HeartwormPrevention.com They even include a measuring syringe. I put it in raw hamburger and my dogs have been on it for 4 years and always test negative for heartworm. That site is legit, I know a number of breeders who buy from him. So, for $25 you will have enough to dose your two dogs for 2 years. My vet was on board with this, she said she does it this way with her dogs.
Dayum, thanks!
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