OT: I love my pet

[higgyfan4]

I'm sorry to hear about your baby matty. Thoughts are with you..

 

[blindbaby]

My dogs pic went missing due to my incompetence, so, I'll post again...


oso by yamarolorg

 

[blindbaby]

wow Matt; so sad for the loss of your beloved pet.

 

[beantownmaniac]

Sorry to hear Matty. He was a handsome dog. RIP Luke.

 

[higgyfan4]

 

[DevilishWon]

Good news is...the anti-inflamatories the vet gave Buddy last night are working great. He's walking fine and is his usual food mooching self tonight.

 

[mattola]

Good news is...the anti-inflamatories the vet gave Buddy last night are working great. He's walking fine and is his usual food mooching self tonight.

good to hear... glad he is doing well.

 

[blindbaby]

Good news is...the anti-inflamatories the vet gave Buddy last night are working great. He's walking fine and is his usual food mooching self tonight.

That's good to hear. Nice to see him back to dogging.

 

[Darkstone42]

 

[BOSSMANPC]

Cost of raising your pet. Good points...

I love my dog, but whoever coined the phrase, “You can’t put a price on love” probably wasn’t a pet owner. Last year, between food, treats, toys, dog park memberships, vet bills, and medicine, my large dog cost me more than $900.

Dog and cat owners don’t pay the same amount for their four-legged family members. The ASPCA did a study on the average cost of owning a dog or a cat. Here’s a more detailed breakdown:

Small dog – $1,314 the first year, $580 per year after
Medium dog – $1,580 the first year, $695 per year after
Large dog – $1,843 the first year, $875 per year after
Cat – $1,035 the first year, $670 per year after

These totals include the following first-year costs: spay/neuter, other initial medical, collar/leash, litter box/scratching post for cats, cage/crate for large dogs, carrier bag for small dogs/cats, and training class for dogs. Annual expenses include food, recurring medical, litter for cats, licenses for dogs, toys/treats, health insurance, and miscellaneous.

Of course, those are averages – the ASPCA says, “You shouldn’t expect to pay less than this, and you should definitely be prepared to pay more. Don’t forget to factor in the costs of unexpected veterinary care, as well as boarding facilities, pet sitters and dog walkers, if you plan to use them.”

But what the ASPCA doesn’t mention is ways to trim expenses. For example…

More, It's worth the read.

Which Is Cheaper: Cats or Dogs? - Yahoo! Finance

 

[sabresfaninthesouth]

Cost of raising your pet. Good points...

I love my dog, but whoever coined the phrase, “You can’t put a price on love” probably wasn’t a pet owner. Last year, between food, treats, toys, dog park memberships, vet bills, and medicine, my large dog cost me more than $900.

Dog and cat owners don’t pay the same amount for their four-legged family members. The ASPCA did a study on the average cost of owning a dog or a cat. Here’s a more detailed breakdown:

Small dog – $1,314 the first year, $580 per year after
Medium dog – $1,580 the first year, $695 per year after
Large dog – $1,843 the first year, $875 per year after
Cat – $1,035 the first year, $670 per year after

These totals include the following first-year costs: spay/neuter, other initial medical, collar/leash, litter box/scratching post for cats, cage/crate for large dogs, carrier bag for small dogs/cats, and training class for dogs. Annual expenses include food, recurring medical, litter for cats, licenses for dogs, toys/treats, health insurance, and miscellaneous.

Of course, those are averages – the ASPCA says, “You shouldn’t expect to pay less than this, and you should definitely be prepared to pay more. Don’t forget to factor in the costs of unexpected veterinary care, as well as boarding facilities, pet sitters and dog walkers, if you plan to use them.”

But what the ASPCA doesn’t mention is ways to trim expenses. For example…

More, It's worth the read.

Which Is Cheaper: Cats or Dogs? - Yahoo! Finance

Really, that has to be factored in as a basic cost?

I get that food, cat litter, licenses (if you want to be legal), and toys can be considered necessities, but pet health insurance? No way that should be included in the base cost of owning a pet.

 

[mattola]

Health Insurance is the best thing I have ever spent on my dogs. I lost my girl in November to a Brain Tumour that cost me $3800 for the treatment to determine what it was and $500 for the sleep. I got over 80% back.

3 weeks ago I lost my youngest to another brain tumour that didnt give us time to go through treatment and we let him sleep and that cost $500 and we get 80% back.

now we lost our oldest boy 2 days ago to DM that will be another $500 and we get 80% back. this doenst count all the vet treatments for the DM and other issues small tumours removed off legs, backs etc... which all come with 80% back. I have saved well over $10K easy on that but then I have had up to 5 boxers at once and 6 over the last year.

its well worth to have when you have a breed like Boxers. I cant speak fully for other breeds but pure bred dogs generally have a tougher go of medical needs. its the mixes I find tend to have stronger systems.

Cost of raising your pet. Good points...

I love my dog, but whoever coined the phrase, “You can’t put a price on love” probably wasn’t a pet owner. Last year, between food, treats, toys, dog park memberships, vet bills, and medicine, my large dog cost me more than $900.

Dog and cat owners don’t pay the same amount for their four-legged family members. The ASPCA did a study on the average cost of owning a dog or a cat. Here’s a more detailed breakdown:

Small dog – $1,314 the first year, $580 per year after
Medium dog – $1,580 the first year, $695 per year after
Large dog – $1,843 the first year, $875 per year after
Cat – $1,035 the first year, $670 per year after

These totals include the following first-year costs: spay/neuter, other initial medical, collar/leash, litter box/scratching post for cats, cage/crate for large dogs, carrier bag for small dogs/cats, and training class for dogs. Annual expenses include food, recurring medical, litter for cats, licenses for dogs, toys/treats, health insurance, and miscellaneous.

Of course, those are averages – the ASPCA says, “You shouldn’t expect to pay less than this, and you should definitely be prepared to pay more. Don’t forget to factor in the costs of unexpected veterinary care, as well as boarding facilities, pet sitters and dog walkers, if you plan to use them.”

But what the ASPCA doesn’t mention is ways to trim expenses. For example…

More, It's worth the read.

Which Is Cheaper: Cats or Dogs? - Yahoo! Finance

 

[pixburgher66]

Sorry to hear about your pups Matt. Never easy to handle. I'll be praying for you and the fam.

 

[mattola]

thanks pix...

 

[BOSSMANPC]

Really, that has to be factored in as a basic cost?

I get that food, cat litter, licenses (if you want to be legal), and toys can be considered necessities, but pet health insurance? No way that should be included in the base cost of owning a pet.

I thought the article was pretty interesting and just passed it along.

 

[sabresfaninthesouth]

I thought the article was pretty interesting and just passed it along.

Yeah, sorry, didn't mean to seem like I was taking issue with you.

Was taking issue with the SPCA calculations.

 

[beantownmaniac]

Health Insurance is the best thing I have ever spent on my dogs. I lost my girl in November to a Brain Tumour that cost me $3800 for the treatment to determine what it was and $500 for the sleep. I got over 80% back.

3 weeks ago I lost my youngest to another brain tumour that didnt give us time to go through treatment and we let him sleep and that cost $500 and we get 80% back.

now we lost our oldest boy 2 days ago to DM that will be another $500 and we get 80% back. this doenst count all the vet treatments for the DM and other issues small tumours removed off legs, backs etc... which all come with 80% back. I have saved well over $10K easy on that but then I have had up to 5 boxers at once and 6 over the last year.

its well worth to have when you have a breed like Boxers. I cant speak fully for other breeds but pure bred dogs generally have a tougher go of medical needs. its the mixes I find tend to have stronger systems.

Pet insurance is definitely worth it, especially if your pets go outside where they have more of a chance at some pricy injury. I don't have any for my cats at the moment (they're indoor cats), but I will in a few years. Hopefully nothing serious happens before then. The quote I got per cat was between $300-$400 per year/per cat.

 

[flyersfan4706]

Matty, sorry about Luke. Awesome picture. He is in a better place now.

I gotta stay up to date with the pets in here. You guys are sharing some great stuff.

 

[mattola]

Pet insurance is definitely worth it, especially if your pets go outside where they have more of a chance at some pricy injury. I don't have any for my cats at the moment (they're indoor cats), but I will in a few years. Hopefully nothing serious happens before then. The quote I got per cat was between $300-$400 per year/per cat.

if you keep them indoors then you control their environment it helps alot.

 

[higgyfan4]

I was finally able to get Sparky's pics from my phone...

That's my cute, sweet baby.