Costs of Keeping a Dog the OS Way

FrugalLina

It has been a long wish of mine to have a dog of my own sometime in the future, but I am concerned about the cost.

Please can dog owners give me an idea of how much having a medium-sized dog costs: food, vets, special equipment etc?

I won't have a dog unless I can provide responsibly for it and with my current work looking a bit bleak, I am having a reality check.

Luckily my very, very lovely neighbours let me borrow their dogs for walks and cuddles, but I still have the dream of one of my own...

Lina x

Pink.

Hi Frugalina,

You should get more help and lots of advice on the Pets board so I've moved your thread over there.

Pink

Bitsy_Beans

I've just got my first 10 week old puppy. So far (in addition to the cost of buying her....if you are having a rescue then its not as expensive obviously) I've spent £31 two weeks ago, a further £50 this week on vets bills alone, the cost of vaccinations and having her micro chipped. Then there was £15 today on a collar (been given a lead), an ID badge for her collar and a dog toy (which was cheapest item). Then there is the cost of worming and flea treatments which I haven't got around to buying yet.
Food....depends on what you feed them, dry food can cost from £10 in supermarket to a whopping £50 depending on the type and brand. Tinned foods. Have no idea of general cost other than a large tin of chappie which would feed one dog for two days maybe cost over £1 per tin.
Then there is pet insurance......which depends on what type of policy you have.

However the big question should be are your working hours condusive to having a dog? They are sociable creatures and as such don't do so well left on their own for long periods.

HTH

PixieDust

not an awful lot really, depending on whether you want to vaccinate or not, and whether you want to insure, or chip them, or not.

Spaying was our biggest expense, though I can't remember how much it cost now as it was a few years ago, and I seem to remember that we had a special deal if we chipped at the same time so we did.

Collars and leads from pound shops (depending on the dog - though our Boo wears a collar that's gone through two dogs before, so didn't cost us anything) and a name barrel, which aren't expensive (and I made Boo a collar out of felt and embroidered our phone number and her name on it - which cost hardly anything).

Somewhere to sleep...depending on the dog this can often be a cardboard box or an old quilt, with blankets as desired.

Something to eat and drink out of....these can often be bought in pound shops, or you can use old oddments of ceramic bowls etc

FrugalLina

Thank you for the great answers on the costs, that does give me some idea and is very helpful to me to come to a decision.

My working hours aren't the issue and I didn't ask for advice on that, but of course I have taken that into consideration (as I am not completely stupid, thanks).

rising_from_the_ashes

Apart from the initial costs others have mentioned above - things like food / cost of annual vaccines / vet treatment / insurance etc can vary hugely depending on where you live and the size/breed of dog.

I budgeted £60/month for Ben (labrador) - for everything.

£15 was his prescription meds bought online & the check-up/prescription from the vet every 6 months... however, that would've probably been what it would've cost to insure him.

Food - depends on what you want to feed but you tend to need to feed less of the better quality foods tend so although initially more expensive, they will last longer - you don't have to pay the earth for these, £18 can get a 15kg bag of wheat & gluten & dairy free hypoallergenic food. For wet food - I used to buy frozen meat and cook and then freeze with a mix of veg into individual portions - much cheaper than tinned and tbh I'd not feed tinned anyway as you really don't know what's in it.

HTH

elsien

Sometimes though (and you may not know till it's too late) cheaper food and bits and bobs don't suit the dog, or it can get ongoing expensive health problems.
So on the other end of the scale, mutt needs a specific food to stave off colitis - £40 a month, halti head collar - £9ish, tough toys as she can't have cheap ones, anything up to a tenner a time, flexi lead if the dog can't go offlead about the same. And they do last but they're not indestructable so will need replacing at some point.
Annual vaccinations about £40 if it's an expensive year. If you're getting insurance, which I personally wouldn't be without although that's a matter of opinion, monthly cost varies according to the dog breed, age etc, maybe start at a tenner a month rising with age. Vet consultation fees (again variable, mine charges £22 to walk through the door), plus £60 excess on a lot of insurance policies.

FrugalLina

Eep! £60 a month would be way too much on my pathetic income

I may have to become a dog-walker in my spare time for canine contact instead

Elsien, thanks you make a great point, I thought about allergies/behavioural issues etc that often don't crop up until months into dog ownership (and possibly more likely with a recue dog and maybe why they became rescue dogs in the first place).

I think I may have to wait a bit longer, I don't want to take on a dog if I cannot look after it properly and the way everything is going up in price lately and the way jobs/income are decreasing, the future doesn't look very dog-friendly for me.

Thanks so much for the advice, it has been very useful!

elsien

I feel bad now for putting you off.

I have a knack for choosing expensive unhealthy dogs which are the exception not the norm, so you may well find that you can keep a dog reasonably cheaply if all goes well. Lots of people do.
If you are on a low income and live near a PDSA you may also qualify for subsidised treatment if needed. It's just that there's been a few posts on here with people saying their dogs need operations or treatment and they can't afford it, so I just wanted to give the worst case scenario for you to consider.

Mara69

FrugalLina wrote: »

My working hours aren't the issue and I didn't ask for advice on that, but of course I have taken that into consideration (as I am not completely stupid, thanks).

Unnecessary and somewhat sharp.

My two seem to be costing a lot lately - my b1tch is having ongoing trouble with an ear infection and a pulled muscle. My lad had a pulled muscle a couple of months ago. Each vet visit has been about £50.

Food costs £35 for a bag of dried (every six weeks) and about £25 a month for wet. Biscuits cost about £2 a week. Insurance £20 a month. Collars, leads, toys, worming tablets. No idea but the last two collars were £12 each and the leads (flexi leads) were £25 each. Items that the naughty dogs have chewed - don't know. Lots. Cost of a cage £50. Cost of the pets £650 (pet shop) and £100 (rescue) respectively. Cost of spaying £80. Cost of eye operation on the b1tch £1,100 (thankfully picked up by the insurance). Cost of brushes, combs, special shampoos, cream for itchy skin about £50. Cost of the sofa that they have destroyed in about 3 years £1,000.

In other words - a lot of money. Worth every penny.

HelenYorkshire

It can be cheap, it can be pricey...

I feed raw, and spend about £8/week, plus some table scraps.

Collar was £15
Lead - one is a lead rope I already had, and one I found (only recycled it after it wasn't claimed for a few days in the spot!)
Bowls - tatty ones I already had
Nail clippers - about £7
Comb - my Grandad's old steel/bone one :eek:
Boosters last year were £30 I think, due in next few weeks so we'll see
Flashing collar light thingy - £3
Chew toy (ignored completely) £1
Microchipping - £30??
Blankets, bedding - all my old tatty things
DAP collar for scary times (Xmas with the family ) £15





Grass seed stuck in eye after one week of having her? £90 :eek::eek::eek: