Dog Budget: Monthly-Yearly

Laurelin

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#21
My big expense is classes. I am taking 4 classes right now. And then buying training stuff like weaves, DVDs, etc.
 
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#22
To be honest, I don't even know what my expenses are. I'm in a place in my life where I have a general budget but I don't have to keep track super closely. If I actually sat down and figured it out, I would probably make a o_O face.

I will say that my husband went through a period of unemployment several years ago and we had to do some serious, serious belt tightening but never had to skimp on food and care. There are enough frivolous things both pet related and not pet related for us to cut back on that I don't worry about anyone going hungry or not getting necessary care. So with the amount of leeway you have, I think you'll be fine.
 

Laurelin

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#23
Yeah I can stop the classes if I need to. That is no problem. I probably spend around $70-80 a month for both and even then there are frivolous expenses. But they are my hobby so I spend more.
 
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#24
Yeah I can stop the classes if I need to. That is no problem. I probably spend around $70-80 a month for both and even then there are frivolous expenses. But they are my hobby so I spend more.
See, I kind of look at classes and mushing as part of my hobby/ entertainment budget, too. So I don't really strictly consider, say, replacing the brakes on the scooter as a dog-related expense even though I do it with the dogs.
 

Saeleofu

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#25
Oh, I forgot about Gavroche's Soloxine and prozac. I pay around $2 every other month for the Soloxine and $4 a month for the prozac. However, I'm planning on weaning him off the prozac for the summer and starting it up again in October to see if it prevents his teeth-grinding.
 

JacksonsMom

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#26
Well, on NECESSARY things, I don't really spend a lot, lol. But let's forget to count all the collars, harnesses, toys, shampoos, sprays, and everything else :p

Even so, it probably doesn't add up to $100 per month (at least most months).

I mean, like, Jackson had a dental on Monday and that ran me about $400 for pre-op bloodwork, the dental products I bought, the procedure itself, the anesthesia, etc. But obviously that's something that's only going to happen once every few years, if that (I SWEAR to keep on his teeth here on out!) and it wasn't even *totally* necessary at this point but it would've been by summer and I just had my tax money, so wanted to do it while it was easily affordable.

Anywho, one bag of food (I get the 5-6lb bags) is never more than $20. And it lasts me a little over a month. I buy a year supply of heartworm meds for $50 from drsfosterandsmith. So that's, what, like $4 a month technically speaking? I usually will buy a few cans - we just use one for a whole week, so at $2-ish a can, no more than $10 in canned food for the month. Ummm, yeah, that's only up to less than $40 in a month. So I probably on average only need to spend $50/month on him, or much less.
 

CaliTerp07

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#27
For bare necessities, I probably spend $1000/year. Food is pretty cheap for a 25 lb dog (a $45 bag of TOTW lasts a few months here), and the vet bills average around $700/year if I had to estimate. Heartworm pills and flea/tick are another couple hundred.

BUT...I've never only spent the "bare necessities". I pay $200 for 7 weeks of agility classes. $120 for a weekend of agility trials. $20 every time I walk into a pet store on treats. A random toy every time I see something cool that I think she'd like. $80 every 3 months for grooming. Heck, I bought a specific house and a specific type of car because I had the dog--otherwise I would have made cheaper decisions!!!

Someone got their NATCH (top title in NADAC agility) at the trial last weekend, and they held it up and cheered, "This is my $25,000 ribbon!" Sounds about right :p
 

Torch

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#28
I'm pretty sure I spend less than $100 a month on Henry. He's a very easy keeper. Just food, treats, and accessories. We don't take any professional classes and he's not on any meds.

He only goes to the vet a couple of times a year, maybe $200 total.

I think $1000 a year is a reasonable guess for us.
 

Julee

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#29
Breaking down what I'm remembering for expenses.

Food: $55/week. $220/mo.
Shadow's Proin: $47 every 3 months. Just under $16/mo.
Advantix: $117 every 3 months. $39/mo.
Heartgard: $75 every 3 months. $25/mo.


That's excluding any vet visits, any extra fun stuff... it's also for 5 dogs.

$300/month for 5 dogs. Breaks down to $60/month/dog.
 

MericoX

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#30
Normal months I buy a bag or two of food a month + treats. So $33-55 a month. Not sure if heart worm/tick meds have gone up in price this year as we haven't had to buy any yet.
 

ihartgonzo

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#31
$5/lb is a LOT for raw... maybe not for a tiny toy dog, but a dog who is 10+ lbs is going to be eating hundreds of dollars a month! When I buy raw, it's very very cheap stuff. Either in bulk or creepy things that no one buys but are great for dogs (feet, necks, tripe, organs, etc). Nothing more than $1/lb. You can supplement a premium kibble with raw and give your dogs a lot of variety, without worrying about whether or not their diet is balanced.

There are plenty of premium foods that are inexpensive. I rotate Merrick GF and Taste of the Wild. Both are just $2/lb. I spend about $50/month on food for two 50 pound dogs.

Other expenses are up to you & your ability to bargain hunt. I buy flea/tick/heartworm medication only in the summer, so I only end up spending $50 per year on that. I buy Pet Armor (which is half the cost of Frontline with the same ingredients) for x-large dogs, then split each application between my 2 dogs. I buy them about 1-2 toys a month, never spending more than $10. I make their treats using organs and meat in the dehydrator, and save a lot on chews by feeding raw bones.

I feel like the majority of spending is when you first get the dog, getting a nice collection of toys, kongs, a crate, leash and collars, etc. Vet costs vary, but I get limited vaccinations so it's not too costly.
 

PWCorgi

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#32
Heh.

I could spend very little every month on the dogs if I wanted to. If I was smart and not obsessed with feeding my dogs raw/new foods every other day, my cost would be next to nothing. I could get enough free kibble to feed probably 3 large dogs a month. I choose to get fun stuff instead (cans!) and pay for raw meat. Because racecar.

As for what I actually spend on them....not telling :p
I am getting much better though!
 

Southpaw

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#33
I hardly spend anything on my dogs.

Food is really the biggest expense. A bag of food for Happy is like $25 and lasts her... I don't know... a month? I have to buy a bag tomorrow so I'll ask them when was the last time I bought it lol. I haven't quite figured out how much it costs me to feed Juno Sojos, but it looks like it's running me more than I want to spend so I might just put her back on kibble. She's probably $50 a month at the moment. At least.

Fluoxetine for Juno is about $3 a month. I could get it cheaper at work, but I'd rather not switch manufacturers since I know she's doing well on the stuff she's on.

I get a year's supply of Heartgard free, and since I only use it seasonally I end up having a bunch saved up. Happy's the only one on it year-round, so that's not really an expense for me.

I luck out on veterinary care. Not only do my pets pretty much never need to go in, when they do, it's either free or really cheap. Like, Lucy's dental was $30. This enables me to do things that I normally wouldn't, if I had to pay full price (pretty sure both Juno & Happy will be getting CBC/chems run this spring, just for curiosity's sake).

I rarely buy toys/treats/chews so I don't feel like I need to account for that.

So anyway. At worst I probably spend $100 a month. Can't imagine spending double or triple that, not regularly at least (obviously one vet visit alone can blow that price out of the water, but hopefully those aren't a monthly thing!).
 

SpringerLover

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#34
Heh.

I could spend very little every month on the dogs if I wanted to. If I was smart and not obsessed with feeding my dogs raw/new foods every other day, my cost would be next to nothing. I could get enough free kibble to feed probably 3 large dogs a month. I choose to get fun stuff instead (cans!) and pay for raw meat. Because racecar.

As for what I actually spend on them....not telling :p
I am getting much better though!
Considering I don't really spend money on treats/toys/gear like I used to... I feel like I'm also doing pretty well.

All things considered, I've really reduced the "unnecessary" spending.
 

JessLough

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#36
$5/lb is a LOT for raw... maybe not for a tiny toy dog, but a dog who is 10+ lbs is going to be eating hundreds of dollars a month! When I buy raw, it's very very cheap stuff. Either in bulk or creepy things that no one buys but are great for dogs (feet, necks, tripe, organs, etc). Nothing more than $1/lb. You can supplement a premium kibble with raw and give your dogs a lot of variety, without worrying about whether or not their diet is balanced.
Um... to feed a 10lb dog raw at $5/lb, it would be like $30 for a month. You'd have to be feeding the dog way more than it needs to be costing hundreds of dollars a month.
 

Saeleofu

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#38
Haha, I have massive quantities of Heartgard saved up as well, and I just got two more 12-packs.
 

Southpaw

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#40
Haha, I have massive quantities of Heartgard saved up as well, and I just got two more 12-packs.
They went cheap on us this year and we're only allowed to get 1 12-pack. Last year we got 2. :(
I think I should be allowed another 12 pack of Heartgard, since I'm not getting any Frontline lol.
 

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