Budgeting help please

snugglepet20

More cat advice lol! Science plan 10kg is £44.99 at Zooplus. It lasts nearly 6 months for my cat. Also 5% cashback and a free toy. I use this flea collar that stops the eggs from hatching can't remember what it's called but you can buy it anywhere. It lasts 6 months and is about 3 or 4 pounds. No fleas on my cat so it must work and a lot cheaper than drops.
Definitely start cooking, spaghetti bolognaise is an easy one to start with and children like it. Make sure your lodgers aren't nicking your food because you are spending enough to feed about 6 people!

whyowhy_2

Hannah_10 wrote: »

He might be, he might not, it's hard to know isn't it, that's the trouble when business and healthcare mix (thank God for not being born American). If frontline is ineffective it'll be because there are fleas who have developed a resistance to it, in which case any other drug that is different could work. So in your shoes I'd actually try the cheapest option first and go for the Bob Martin again to see if it works this time.

I have a dog and a cat. The dog has a flea allergy and of course they live together so both pets will be on a flea preventative for life and in all honesty I find the dirt cheap stuff is good enough nearly all the time.

For wormer a good name is panacur, I get that from the Farmers suppliers too. For your local farmers suppliers ask anyone with a horse, it'll likely be where they get tack (stuff for horses) from too.

That's good advice. I think I will try sticking to one Advocate treatment every two months - if that continues to work and I can wrangle a prescription off my vet for not too much then I will stick that should cost less than £3pm.

Running_On_Empty

For my cat, I buy cheap fresh chicken legs from supermarket and microwave them all using microwave cook bag. Cat doesn't have the bones, obviously. Sometimes I boil up the bones as stock for soup base for humans. After cooking I pour off the liquid into a mug, allow to cool, remove and discard fat. Cat loves the remaining jelly. They keep well in fridge, last quite a few days. Cat eats the chicken with the jelly with a bit of skin and loves it.

HappyMJ

snugglepet20 wrote: »

More cat advice lol! Science plan 10kg is £44.99 at Zooplus. It lasts nearly 6 months for my cat. Also 5% cashback and a free toy.

So that's about 24p per day then. Thanks...

slummymummyof3

Is your mortgage on a fixed rate? You are paying a massively high rate on it!!!!!!! Are you tied in or could you change to a better rate?
Any chance you could up the lodgers rent? Even a tenner each per month will help.

I will second using petmeds for flea and worming stuff.

Where do you do your grocery shopping? Have you tried Aldi/Lidl???? Amazing price difference. Do you take packed lunches to work or are you buying food at work? Packed lunches will save a lot.

I note you say you have your little boy 3 days per week......who gets the family allowance? Maintenance seems high when you a re having him nearly half the time.

whyowhy_2

snugglepet20 wrote: »

More cat advice lol! Science plan 10kg is £44.99 at Zooplus. It lasts nearly 6 months for my cat. Also 5% cashback and a free toy. I use this flea collar that stops the eggs from hatching can't remember what it's called but you can buy it anywhere. It lasts 6 months and is about 3 or 4 pounds. No fleas on my cat so it must work and a lot cheaper than drops.
Definitely start cooking, spaghetti bolognaise is an easy one to start with and children like it. Make sure your lodgers aren't nicking your food because you are spending enough to feed about 6 people!

We had spagbol tonight. My son loved it and I have enough left in the freezer for another dinner.

Good point about the lodgers. I shall dust for fingerprints in the morning

whyowhy_2

slummymummyof3 wrote: »

Is your mortgage on a fixed rate? You are paying a massively high rate on it!!!!!!! Are you tied in or could you change to a better rate?
Any chance you could up the lodgers rent? Even a tenner each per month will help.

I will second using petmeds for flea and worming stuff.

Where do you do your grocery shopping? Have you tried Aldi/Lidl???? Amazing price difference. Do you take packed lunches to work or are you buying food at work? Packed lunches will save a lot.

I note you say you have your little boy 3 days per week......who gets the family allowance? Maintenance seems high when you a re having him nearly half the time.

It is a very high rate - 6.85% and I am tied in for another 3 years & 2 months. I really didn't have any choice. I needed to get my ex's name off the mortgage fast, it is for a very large amount relative to my income and I took it out at the height of the banking crisis.

As for the maintenance - after 4 court appearances over 16 months to get access I really don't have the strength to deal with the CSA. I used the CSA's formula and made an offer which they accepted. My ex gets the child benefit and tax credits - and there appears to be nothing I can do about it. Don't get me started on family law :mad:

I shop in Sainsbury's generally. I'll try Lidl!

slummymummyof3

Your ex seems like she has her head screwed on well - very savvy!

What is your redemption penalty on the mortgage? What is your LTV? It may be worth your while swapping....although it will cost you! But obviously once your credit cards are dealt with. HSBC were doing a 5 year fixed at 3.95% a couple of weeks ago but I think LTV had to be les than 60% (could be wrong there though!)

Ditch Sainsburys and definately try Lidl - just the fruit/veg, ham, milk etc will save you a small fortune.

whyowhy_2

slummymummyof3 wrote: »

Your ex seems like she has her head screwed on well - very savvy!

What is your redemption penalty on the mortgage? What is your LTV? It may be worth your while swapping....although it will cost you! But obviously once your credit cards are dealt with. HSBC were doing a 5 year fixed at 3.95% a couple of weeks ago but I think LTV had to be les than 60% (could be wrong there though!)

Ditch Sainsburys and definately try Lidl - just the fruit/veg, ham, milk etc will save you a small fortune.

LTV is about 70-75% (although it is difficult to value a house these days) and therein lies the problem, along with the fact that it is over 5x my income (they don't take income from lodgers into account). The redemption penalties are horrific - don't even go there. Let's just say that the big winners from our separation have been the lawyers and the Bank of Ireland - worthy recipients indeed!

Lidl it is.

pennypusher

Hi Go payg for your mobile phone. Get rid of satellite and repay that money to your parents each month. Cut your groceries down you should be able to go to £150 per month easily thus freeing up another £250 for your parents. Do you only spend £25 per month on petrol, it seems very low? Look at everything you spend on and see if you can get the same thing but cheaper from different providers.

Go to car boot sales and you will find new toys suitable for your son being sold cheaply.

Sell any clothes, CDs toys etc that you no longer want and free up some more cash. Hope these ideas help.