As regular readers know, I have a long history of posting about the costs of pets and how people need to calculate the true cost before getting a pet.
My most recent post on this subject was titled How Much Would You be Willing to Spend to Save Your Pet's Life? and featured a re-cap of an owner's attempt to save her pet's life and how much it cost her (a lot). At the end of that piece, I asked readers how much they would be willing to spend to save their pet's life and I received several responses. I'd like to share those with you today.
We begin with a comment I myself could have made:
I would be willing to invest $0.00. (I don't own any pets) I'm sure that makes me fairly unpopular with everyone, including my veterinarian family member.
I would spend every last cent I have to help my children though.
Next is our first answer from a pet owner:
That's a tough one. I never had a dog growing up, but as soon as I was on my own I adopted one and couldn't be happier. I never would have imagined how much happiness my big boy has brought to our family. With that being said, I'm also realistic about what I would spend to cure any ailments. I have heard horror stories from other pet owners about spending thousands on care. Even though my dog has several years (hopefully) before this begins to be a concern, I have given some thought on a dollar amount. At this point I think I would cap it at $3k. Even that seems high to me, but not sure what I would really do if I was in that situation.
Yes, it's hard to tell what you'd do in that situation.
Here's another reader struggling with the question:
oh boy. tough call.
If you have a pet and you love 'em.. placing monetary value on anything (and living thing for that matter) that you love is a tough cookie.
I don't have a pet, but I do spend enough time with my girlfriend's dog that I'll help financially if the dog gets sick.
I think $2,000 or $3,000 would be the ball park for me. Doesn't seem right to put a figure to it though. I know a friend who spent thousands trying to save her dog. It didn't end so well too...and this was a time when my friend was cash strapped too.
Why is it always the cash-strapped people who spend thousands on pet care? (FYI, this was the case in the article I originally discussed -- the author was in debt but chose to try and save her dog anyway).
Next is a comment that shows the reader is thinking about this (expensive) issue:
I love pets, but the major reason I don't have one right now is that I don't feel I'm financially secure enough to pay for anything that could happen to one.
I don't think it's right to buy or adopt a pet, and not have enough money available to help it if it got sick or hurt.
There is a limit to how much I would spend, but I would guess that would depend very much on my financial situation at the time. I would say $2000 would probably be an upper limit for me, and I would take that amount out of my emergency fund in a heartbeat if I needed to. It would probably be higher if I felt more financially stable.
And while most of us are probably thinking of saving a cat or dog, there are other animals (and probably even bigger expenses):
Tough one too... My wife and I own horses. We had a 12 year old arab mare that was very sweet. She was just off a breeding lease (unsuccessful) and her previous owner had finally gotten her financial house in order and was about to start paying us to buy her back. 10 days after the insurance policy attached to the breeding lease lapsed she colic'd. The vet came out and took a look at her, gave her some meds and was off. My wife and the girl who was buying her took turns walking her around for 1/2 the day. In the afternoon when she was no better, they called the vet who said she should immediately be taken to Michigan State. They loaded her up and took off on the 2 hour drive.
Once there, they opened her up and found that her intestine had wrapped around a fist sized fatty tumor and died. They removed about 5 ft of intestine, cleaned her up best they could and sewed her up. She survived the surgery ok but ended up with laminitis (infection in her feet). We supported her for a week and a half but she wasn't recovering and her prospects were not good (< 25% chance). So we decided to put her down.
Total cost: $5000 for a horse we originally paid $2500 for... At least she made a nice baby for us... :)
The next comment is from a reader who is dealing with this issue right now:
That's something that I think about every other day. I have an 18 yr old cat. So far, I've been able to get away with the basics that promote his health - he's been fixed, has his shots, fed well, watered, clean litter box, treat any scratches and abcesses that come up. I've been lucky but I've been observant with him and know his habits. We've had a couple of scares every three years or so, but nothing that cost more than $500.
Since he has lasted for a long time, I'm not interested in heroic measures to save his life, but only procedures that would keep him comfortable. I've been told by other cat owners that when an old cat starts to really go, he'll go fast.
Bottom line, I've budgeted about $2500 for him. It should provide for some primo-medicinal grade catnip.
Finally, here's a comment from someone who clearly doesn't have children:
I look at pets almost at the same level as a having a child. If you don't want to do everything you can for an animal that is essentially a full member of the family for a good portion of your life, than you shouldn't have one. My last dog lived to be 12, and the last 3 years of his life were full of constant medical problems. Pneumonia, Hip problems, Addisons disease, a non-cancerous tumor that had to be surgically removed, 4 full days spent in the intensive care unit of a hospital, and in the end, a non-stop nose bleed/sinus problem that lead to him no longer being able to comfortably breathe. I did everything I possibly could for him and brought him to multiple doctors and specialists. In the end I would guess that just in the medical problems over the last 3 or 4 years of his life I spent in the range of $15,000.
Which is the exact reason I haven't gotten a new dog after he passed away. I just can't afford it at the moment, and don't feel its right to get a dog and then just put him/her to sleep at the first sign of a problem. Of course this is a more extreme example, but I still think the $15,000 was worth the 12 years of happiness he gave me. I haven't gotten that kind of return out of anything else you can put a dollar figure on....
I can't leave this last one without commenting:
Kids versus pets is not even close. I think almost everyone who has both kids and pets would say that while they may spend a few thousand dollars to save a pet, they would give their lives if it would save their child(ren).
How about you? Do you have a figure you'd be willing to pay to save your pet's life? Leave a comment and add your 2 cents to the conversation.
I have never been tested for great amounts, but I think it would be a lot. I have two dogs and you cant deny their loyalty.
They are worth their investment, they provide so much joy and it is not dependant on their mood. As long as you feed them and show them love, nothing else matters.
Posted by: Steve | November 01, 2006 at 08:49 PM
I think what is more important is to save the lives of your pets the amount does not matter so much because what is more important is to save their lives. We have two pet dogs - a Chiuaua and a poodle. One time our poodle pet dog started to vomit and she could not eat so we sent her to a veterinarian and was confined in a pet's hospital and we paid P400.00 @ day, after two days she was back and very much alive. Our pet dogs are really therapeutic, they provide us with joys and they are very glad to see us every time we arrive from office. Indeed, they are really men's best friend, they make you happy when you are sad and melancholy. Before we had our chiuaua stud and she gave birth to four siblings but only three survive and we were able to sell them and provide us with extra income. However, for our poodle sad to say she did not become pregnant after the stud but the veterinarian said that she is willing to stud our pet dog for free because we have to pay P 1,500.00 per stud. What I really like from pet dogs is that their love is unconditional, they love you for what you are and they are a great pals too and companion if you are alone in your house. Money is not a question as long as you can save the lives of your pets.
Posted by: DR. ARTFREDO C. ABELLA , Ph.D. (Management), - UNIVERSITY OF THE CORDILLERAS, Baguio City, PHILIPPIN | November 26, 2006 at 10:26 PM
I'm with you, FMF. I have 4 cats, and I love 'em and all, but elevating them to the level of actual human children? Give me a break. I mean, the life of a pet is precious and all, but if it's my kid or my cat, sorry kitty! Assigning a dollar limit is...I don't know...a little strange. It's not the point really. Some people may feel they need their pet to survive (lowering stress and whatnot) but if that's true, a new, healthy pet will actually be preferable. And it's not like you're running a zoo to prevent cats or dogs from going extinct. We already have zoos for that sort of thing; contribute to them instead! I care about saving my pets...but spending thousands to extend their life another year or so while the poor things suffer on in pain? Blech. Each case is different, but when it gets beyond a few hundred bucks, you should consider if you're just delaying the inevitable. They only live so long, you know. If you have a pet, you sign up for getting attached to something that dies long before you do. If you can't handle putting it to sleep when it gets heartworm then maybe you shouldn't have got a pet in the first place.
Posted by: Anonymous Coward | August 25, 2008 at 01:57 PM
I'm also realistic about what I would spend to cure any ailments. I have heard horror stories from other pet owners about spending thousands on care. Even though my dog has several years (hopefully) before this begins to be a concern,
Posted by: Anthony | June 29, 2012 at 12:18 PM