Following our conversation on how expensive pet health care can be, I found this piece from MS Money that asks if your pet will bankrupt you. The article covers many of the same issues we discussed, and I'm not going to re-hash them here. But the post does offer some good "think before you get a pet" advice that I think is worth sharing. The highlights:
Before you seek out or agree to adopt a pet, make sure you understand the setup and continuing costs in both money and time. This chart from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals outlines the first-year expenses you can expect for various types of animals, ranging from $235 for a fish to more than $1,800 for a large dog. Rescue groups and discussions with other owners of your type of pet can help you understand the time commitment involved. Also, check with your homeowner’s insurance company to find out if it blacklists any dog breeds. If so, consider other breeds or shop around, since insurers differ considerably in what they will and won't cover.
Great advice IMO.
My experience is that many people do not fully consider the time, energy, and costs of getting a pet before doing so. And if they do, many drastically underestimate all these factors. So my advice would be to become as informed as possible, check out the cost chart above, and then decide if a pet (or which pet) is good for you.
In addition to pre-purchase consideration, I always advise people that if they get a pet, they need to increase their emergency fund to account for potential pet health issues that may arise unexpectedly. And this amount should be in addition to your six months of living expenses (so if your six months of living expenses is $5,000 and you want an extra $2,000 for potential pet emergencies, you now need $7,000 in emergency funds.)
For the most part, you should NOT simply say, "I already have an emergency fund and it can cover any pet-related health issues." (I admit that the larger your emergency fund is, the more leeway you have to not add extra amounts when you get a pet.) Why? Because a pet emergency can then drain a good portion (or all) of your emergency fund, leaving you with no back-up in case something else happens. Here's an example:
Last week, I mentioned that my cat just died. Not only was his passing heartbreaking, it was expensive. But as I said in that post, I was very happy to be able to write a check from my emergency fund and not worry about where the money would come from.
Since I’m still paying off debt, that $800 check represented most of my meager emergency fund. I’ll rebuild it over the next few months, but in the meantime I don’t have much of a cash cushion. I have to just hope there won’t be any subsequent emergencies.
The writer then goes on to say that unfortunately some extra unexpected emergencies have already popped up. The details:
Two weeks after my cat’s death, I developed a nerve problem that temporarily crippled my hands. The cause is unclear, but my neurologist recommended some changes to my work routine while he runs tests looking for the root problem.
Suddenly, I was facing medical bills, expensive new equipment, and software to enable me to work, plus a vastly reduced workload while I waited for my hands to heal. How was I going to cover this with only $200 left in my emergency fund? Especially the week before Christmas?
The past few weeks have seen me at a doctor’s appointment almost every day. Even my small $15 to $25 copays add up to big bucks when I see so many doctors. In addition, I’ve had to pay for medications and a few pieces of equipment, like protective foam pads for my elbows. That all quickly drained the $200 left in my emergency fund.
To me, these two pieces put together illustrate a couple things:
1. You need to have an adequate emergency fund in the first place. The writer above is working at paying off debt (yet another data point showing how debt can hinder people financially), so she had a lower than needed balance. But many people have lower than needed emergency fund balances and it isn't because they are paying off debt. Don't get caught with too little money saved!!!!
2. If you get a pet, you'll need to bump up your emergency fund at least a bit (if not a good amount) to account for potential health-related costs of pet care. Or you could get pet insurance, though I've heard mixed results on how well that actually works.
As you know, I tend to be on the conservative side of things when it comes to money, so "more money saved" is hardly ever a bad idea. And if you get a pet, it's an especially good idea IMO.
At first I thought that was saying the annual costs and I was wondering why those fish were so expensive!
/it lists annual cost for the fish at $35 which seems more reasonable.
Posted by: Sarah | January 26, 2011 at 05:04 PM
The annual cost for a large dog is fairly in line. I adopted a Golden Retriever about 5 months ago and the start up cost was about 1k. This includes the $350 I paid to the rescue group to help cover their costs. I expect that when next September rolls around I'll probably have spent around 1800 total if not more.
Posted by: Jeff | January 26, 2011 at 05:25 PM
People who can not afford it should not have pets. In my opinion, people do not treat the decision to get a pet in the same light they treat having a child (and many underestimate the cost of children when it comes to that decision!) Any addition to the family incurs costs. These costs need to planned and budgetted. As these items show, pets cost a lot.
Also, much like problems are caused when parents do not dicsuss parenting philosophies before they have children, an important discussion to have before you get a pet is how far you will go if the pet has an injury or illness. Key discussion as this will also influence the money you set aside.
Despite all my negativity, we do have a pet, a beagle puppy (from a rescue shelter) and she is in the budget!
Posted by: Arimack | January 27, 2011 at 09:57 AM
Our current dog has cost WAY more money than I ever could have anticipated - much more than any previous pet I've had. I would be lying if I said I never thought about what else we could have done wiht the money we've spent on him. But, he is our responsibility and so we allocate money monthly for his care. Our e-fund includes some amount for him as well.
I couldn't agree more with the statement that getting a pet (of any kind) is not something to be entered into lightly. As a kid I used to wonder why getting a pet always had to entail several serious (read: boring) discussions lead by our parents about responsibility, expectations, etc. Now I get it! ;-)
Posted by: Walden | January 27, 2011 at 11:30 AM
My wife brought home a stray that showed up where she works. A coworker's daughter worked at the animal shelter and said the dog escaped just before it was going to be put down (unclaimed). We (she) decided we needed to take in this totally free dog.
We took him to the vet and found that he was heartworm positive. Treatment, with office visits - $700.
A few months later, some possibly cancerous lumps removed, $300.
About a month after that, teeth cleaning $100.
8 months later, the dog develops impacted anal glands and needs a glandectomy. This was done on a week of vacation while we boarded him for 7 days. $750. Plus a few for one of those ridiculous cone shaped eCollars to keep him from pulling the stiches out.
When you count all the food, snacks, flea, tick, and subsequent heartworm preventatives, that FREE dog easily cost us north of $2000 the first year we've had him. I told him he had better live to be an old, old dog.
He certainly hurt the emergency fund in 2010.
Posted by: Swamproot | January 27, 2011 at 05:53 PM
Smaller dogs are definitely much more cost effective for kibble and they tend to live longer. Also unlikely to be blacklisted by insurance.
You're absolutely right to mention the time cost, though. We really want a dog, and can afford the dollar costs, but right now too tapped out time-wise with our child and business.
Posted by: Shelly | January 29, 2011 at 05:27 PM