What pets do you have and how do you save on costs assiciated with them?

[Laura2]

2 dogs - I buy their Frontline flea medication online from Dog.com which I have found to be the cheapest. I buy their Heartgard medicine from the local SPCA clinic. I like to buy them Canidae dry food which isn't cheap, but is good quality, then I mix in whatever free food I pick up with coupons. The one thing that I splurge on is treats. I like to give them high quality all meat treats that are not cheap.

3 hamsters - I buy a big bag of hamster food at Walmart, then mix in dog kibble, oatmeal, and cereal to stretch it out.

2 goldfish - I buy their food from Walmart which is only a couple of dollars, but lasts forever. Filters always get rinsed out at least once before they are replaced.

2 cats - I haven't bought cat food in at least a year because I stock up when I can get it free with coupons. I buy their Advantage flea medication from Dog.com also. The cheapest clumpable cat litter I have found is at Costco for $0.33/pound. I won't pay more than a couple of cents for treats - I always wait for a sale and use coupons.

What pets does everyone else have and how do you save money on their care?

[Laura2]

I forgot to add: the cats and dogs get all their checkups and shots at the SPCA clinic which I have found to have wonderful vets and the best prices.

[nodmicks]

We have 6 indoor pets~ for flea and tick we use an herbal product. There are never coupons for the kitty food but I often have a $1 off coupon for the dog food. We use walmarts, scoop able in 1 litter box (pickey cat!) and the cheap pourable for the other box.
We use our country vet who always gives us a cheaper option if it is there and never has us come for something unnecessary as it pulls him in off farm calls.

We had outdoor animals and we gave the livestock their shots and hoof trimmings. We re homed them all recentlyand now only have indoor pets.

[Russ]

oh boy, a rant thread!! for me anyway.

MY WIFE, ok we have 4 dogs. We were down to one and the wife wanted another and I made the STUPID suggestion to get 2 thinking that when they go, (close to the same time) we could take a nice vacation from dogs. WRONG! No sooner than the eldest died she wanted another. Back up to 3 dogs! Dammit. FF 5 years and the VET calls. They have a Pit bull mix rescue that they can not adopt out and we are it's last hope. So now we are up to 4 dogs.
These dogs have it made, the best of the best. Supplements, prescription dog food, treats galore, and if they fart excessively, off to the vet we go.

I'll watch this thread for better ideas, but she spends a lot a Foster/Smith or care-a-lot pets online.

Bottom line, frugal is not in her vocabulary when it comes to her animals.

[danni]

We have a lab husky X and so far we have only found one type of pedigree he can eat without upsetting his system. He has ibs.

We also have 3 cats, which are all indoor animals and they only eat whiskas. The oldest is 17 yrs old this yr and can't handle us changing the diet at all.

We have never had a problem with fleas(knock on wood) but we would use a natural remedy if we needed it due to having small kids in the house.

To save money we watch for sales and coupons. We also keep up on shots and checkups and we have a really good vet.

[ilovechocolate]

We have used Science Diet food for our 2 big dogs and our 5 cats for years. They are all very healthy and we feel that the extra money we pay for their food is offset by the number of vet trips we HAVEN"T had to make with them.

[MirandaK]

I've found that 'cooking' for my cats is cheaper and healthier for them. Slightly cooked egg yolks, bread soaked in chicken broth, whatever meat we are eating slightly undercooked. I supplement that with a very high end dry food that doesn't use 'chicken meal'. It keeps them from having stomach upset issues because it's essentially un-dyed and un-processed.

[nancycg56]

I don't really try and save money with mine ~ we adopt special needs dogs knowing we are going to spend money. That said, once we get their problems under control, we don't have many vet visits. I just make sure they eat well, take medication, if needed, get their shots, and have a wellness visit once a year.

I call my vet first and talk to her before I bring them in and most times she'll tell me what to do over the phone ~ no money spent Also, when I go in, I tell her that I have x amount to spend and to please only do what is necessary and she fully understands

My Mom always says that the hurting animals always come to us because we'll take care of them no matter what

[Persimmon Lace]

I know not everyone can do this but we barter computer work straight for vet work. He has a network system for the office, 4 laptops for the college kids in the family plus a couple of pc's at the house.

We have 2 dogs and a cat + a neighborhood cat that we share the cost of with the neighbors, I pay for his care if it's my turn to take him and my dvet gives me a discount for him.

We buy a brand of dog food called Meat Lover's for the dogs that is preservative free and Bella's itching has gone away. It is 21.00 for 50 lbs, is made within 100 miles of home and my vet approved it for Bob the dog to help with his nutritional needs as he gets over dermadectic mange.

When we use Frontline it is only used in the spring through the summer and I use only 1/2 the dosage on both, that's all that's needed for them and I hate putting the stuff on them anyway.

[iida]

We have a big dog and a small cat. I cook for them often and in addition they eat the cheap supermarket animal food.
We use the cheapest cat litter, which is also the best for us.

Our cat has always been healthy. The dog has been to a vet once a year for the last three years. The bill has been around 200€ each time, including medication. There is nothing we can do to lower those bills, since even our Helsinki university animal hospital is quite expensive.

This spring was the first time our dog had lice. Flees and tics she has never had. The louse medicine was about 16€, and I just hope we don´t have to buy it too often.

So far, our animals have not been very expensive, but they are getting older. The dog, Ulla, is 8½ and the cat, Takku (Tangle in English) is 6. They are both mixed breed.

[tammy88]

i have 3 indoors, 2 yorkies male and female and 1 yorkie pom mix and outside i have 1 golden retriever named butterball

im also a breeder of the yorkies so i save my money in doing alot my self,..vacines i order them and do them my self..so for around $5 or less i can vaccinated them instead of the $60 for and exam and vaccine for example i got 10 vaccines shipped 2 day air on ice for $49..i can get free exams at banfield if i feel they need it..puppy exams are done at dr taylors for $35.00

food purina or pedigree sometimes alpo..used to be a big bag would last forever but with the golden its like 1 week so bout 35 a month on food. if that much when i have puppies i get wonderful coupons for free food and $$ off

rabies i can get at the clinics they host for $7.00

[MTS04]

Well, I would love to say that we are able to cut costs, but it's just not possible. I have 3 dogs, who are by standards, considered seniors.
We feed raw. So, as the price of meat goes up, so does the cost of their food. For vet visits, our vet gives us discounts when she can. I really love my vet. She knows we can do a lot of home care for our dogs, so when something needs to be monitored, she knows that we can usually do it. Bandaging etc. - we do it.
Frontline plus I get online at epecially for pets. Heartworm meds, through the vet. Most people groan when i tell them the HW meds are from the vet, but...Novartis paid for worming and testing all 3 when 1 got roundworm while on interceptor. All because I had purchased through the vet and give it year round.
I will say, eventhough 2 of my dogs are special needs, our vet visits are minimal. We go quarterly/or semi annually for exams and bloodwork. Yearly for shots.

[frugalandsimple]

I don't keep track of how much I spend on my pets

I buy Purina One for the dogs and Purina Cat Chow for the cats. They rarely ever go to the vet.

[Missy]

We're lucky in that our dogs LOVE Ol' Roy Dog food brand food and treats, so that helps tremendously. Plus our area is not a flea friendly area. In fact I can't think of a single person here who has mentioned fleas. Maybe out in the more rural area perhaps. But not here in town. So that helps a great deal too.

[jamie79]

We have 4 indoor only cats. Fleas are not an issue.
We feed them only Purina brand foods such as Friskies.
We take them for thier wellness checks once a yr for their shots and for all 4 it cost right at $100.