Annual Costs of Pets

Here's another article for my on-going collection of "how expensive are your pets" posts. This one comes from a Money Central article on 10 easy ways to save $500 or more. Their thoughts:

Pawprints and Purrs, an animal adoption agency based in Keithville, La., tells its clients to expect to pay these annual costs of pet ownership:

• Cat - $640
• Small dog - $780
• Medium dog - $1,115
• Large dog - $1,500

Obviously, smaller is cheaper. The difference between a large dog and a small one is $720 per year -– and that's a lot of kibble.

You're telling me!

Now, let's say each of these pets lives 15 years. Here's the lifetime costs:

• Cat - $9,600
• Small dog - $11,700
• Medium dog - $16,725
• Large dog - $22,500

For those of you with four pets or more, don't be complaining that you can't afford college for your kid!!!!

One more thought: these costs don't include the high-priced health care options many pet owners face at the end of their pet's life. Want some examples of these? See the following links:

• Your Pet's (Costly) Life

• Sell Your House to Save Your Pet's Life

• How Much Would You be Willing to Spend to Save Your Pet's Life?

Comments

[Blaine Moore (Run to Win)]

My cat is definately worth the 10 grand or so just for the enjoyment and stress relief that she adds to our life. Up to this point, I don't know if I am paying that much per year (other than her first year when she needed extra shots and to get spade), but I am sure that as she gets older she'll get more expensive. She's also just a little kitty; her best friend (my mother's cat) weighs more than twice what she does.

[beloml]

I still don't get it. I have a big dog and a small dog, and they cost nowhere near this amount, even though they get premium food ($30 per month) and regular vet checkups (about $300 total yearly).

That's about a dollar a day even if you factor in the one-time cost of a leather collar ($16 each).

[Hawkmoon Nine]

I have 2 cats (large but not fat, 13 & 17 pounds each), and their annual cost is about $300 total. Annual vet visits $50 each, one large bag of cat food - $12/month, and litter - $6/month. I think where people over spend are the cat toys, or cat towers (they like cardboard boxes just as well), and other non-essential things. Like Blaine said above, there were extra costs when I first got them, but on going is nowhere near $640 per cat.

IIRC haven't there been studies that have shown people with pets are healthier and live longer? Would the savings in medical costs offset the cost of the pet?

[GHoosdum]

I think they're counting things like either:
A) obedience training, or
B) buying new shoes.

We've had to spend several hundred extra dollars this year to add to our home improvement projects to prevent our dog from doing things like destroying the garden or clawing holes in the screen of our porch.

[Stock Mama]

Smaller isn't always cheaper, if you commit to taking care of your pet's medical needs. Ever take a bird to the vet for just a checkup and routine lab work? Yikes! There goes one-third to one-half of the annual bill for the cat! Guinea pigs, chinchillas, ferrets, and other exotics can run up the bills real fast, too. Furthermore, small pets need to be seen by a vet who specializes in exotics. Before buying an exotic, call around to see who the local specialists are, and ask them what the typical office visit will cost. You may decide to go rescue a kitty from the animal shelter after all!

Of course, I didn't intend to be a guinea pig owner until I found a baby guinea pig, frightened and all alone, on a country road and took him home. But now that I have him, and adopted another from a shelter as a companion for him, both of my piggie boys will get proper care.

[Kira]

Yeah, I didn't intend to buy a pregnant guinea pig... =)

Even if the figures are somewhat off, I think it's really helpful for shelters to give out guidelines about how much an animal costs. A lot of people just assume that they can do it on the cheap and be lazy (ie buy the cheapest food, never change the aquarium water, keep the dog outside all the time) but this makes the animal sick and unhappy. If you balk at $600 a year for a cat, where else are you going to cut corners in its care? You are just as financially responsible for pets as you are for children, if not more so because the state or your relatives will take care of abandoned children, but abandoned dogs get put to sleep.

[Rebecca]

You raise a good point. And may I add, this is an especially good reason for indulgent grandparents to RESIST the urge to buy a pet. Please! What makes some people think it's okay to commit another family to this kind of obligation?

[L]

I think YMMV ... it costs me less than $500 a year to take care of 2 cats. But like humans, health care can be the real show-stopper.

[Lord]

Pricing medical costs and getting second opinions are the best way to control medical costs. An earlier commentor paid $1700 in diagnostic tests. Major problems are not that expensive to diagnose and minor ones aren't worth $1700. Finding someone less expensive or more knowledgable can save a lot.

What it costs is really a matter of what you are willing to spend. The less affluent spend nothing like that. The wealthy don't care about the cost.

[gt]

everytime i check out fmf there is a post scolding pet costs! people enjoy pets, obviously you dont. i think most people know, those that are reading fmf anyway, that it isnt cheap

[FMF]

GT -- Then you're not reading enough! It's been at least two days since I "scolded" pets. ;-)

[Debra]

To GHoosdum and others who don't understand these costs... if all you ever have to do for your pet is take them in for an annual exam, count yourself lucky. The costs quoted factor in:

shots and spay/neuter as a puppy; a lifetime worth of food, toys, obedience training, treats. AND the additional costs of medical for aging pets.

Heck, I rescued an abandoned puppy 9 years ago. She is just recovering from her FOURTH MAJOR SURGERY. Cost of each one? About $4000. Yet would you suggest I put her down because of a torn ligament or broken bone?

If you are not spending that projected cost for you pets (yet), save it away. As your pet ages, the costs will increase.

[Joy]

I have one toy breed dog, and don't spend anything approaching $780 annually. Unless one factors in future [expensive]vet care or long-term kenneling, I don't see how one could spend that much.

[Melissa]

I just got two new kitties and for the peace of mind I've purchased pet insurance. I never want to have to choose between a vet bill and my cats.

[melphie]

smaller is defintly cheaper but not always, i just took my parakeet to a check up and the cost was 50$!!!