NoTrespassing
Elite Member
I realize a lot of people value their pets much more than our family. I guess it's just the way I was raised. My wife, being Filipino and raised poor, was raised in a similar way with regard to animals. In our family budget, people come first and that includes retirement savings. At the present time we have 2 large outside dogs as pets and guard dogs. I take them both to the vet at least once a year for about $120 each including heart worm medicine and flea and tick treatment. Their food costs about $20/50# bag. I buy a bale of straw each fall for bedding in their houses. We also maintain an invisible fence and collars for them. I'd say we spend a total of about $800/year for 2 dogs.
If heaven forbid, one of them were to get sick I would consider spending up to $1000 per dog depending on the prognosis, but that would be my limit. Anything more than that or if it wouldn't buy them much time and I would have them put down. That's just reality at our house.
I have a coworker that spent over $5000 to save his daughter's cat. Their family doesn't have much money and he had to take out a loan to pay the bill. He has 2 mortgages on his house and drives a van worth about $1000. To me, he could have used the cat situation to teach his daughter a valuable lesson about money. I guess he valued his daughters immediate happiness more than her future.
How do you handle pet expenses? Do you put a limit on them and if so, how do you determine it?
Kevin
If heaven forbid, one of them were to get sick I would consider spending up to $1000 per dog depending on the prognosis, but that would be my limit. Anything more than that or if it wouldn't buy them much time and I would have them put down. That's just reality at our house.
I have a coworker that spent over $5000 to save his daughter's cat. Their family doesn't have much money and he had to take out a loan to pay the bill. He has 2 mortgages on his house and drives a van worth about $1000. To me, he could have used the cat situation to teach his daughter a valuable lesson about money. I guess he valued his daughters immediate happiness more than her future.
How do you handle pet expenses? Do you put a limit on them and if so, how do you determine it?
Kevin