Budget tips for dog!

[disney144]

We are bringing home a new dog in a few days. What tips do you have for saving a few bucks when caring for a dog?

We don't want to cut corners that may harm the dog (feeding inferior food or skipping vet visits). We are looking for ways to provide the best for him and just spend a bit less.

What tips do you use? Where do you buy flea meds? Food? Treats? Any places run deals? Should I be signing up for any email lists? Where are the best prices usually?

Any advice or tips would be greatly appreciated. It figured out how to save on human stuff, but this is a whole new venture.

 

[kamik86]

Your vet office may run some deals on flea meds, mine do for cats and dogs. Generally its a buy X get X+Y type deal. With cats we sometimes don't need that many since our indoor cats don't need it all the time, just high flea seasons or when we are on vacation (their cat sitter has a outdoor dog and cat).

If your adopting petcos will give you a booklet of deals when you bring in your adoption paperwork. Had alot of deals on food and treats, etc.

I know this is true for cats so may be for dogs too. Don't spend too much on toys. Yes get a few but alot of things around your house can become toys too. I know our cats think empty boxes, my old hair ties, and the empty toilet paper roll make excellent toys.

 

[Teresa Pitman]

I buy my dog food at Costco. One of my dogs (I have three) does not do well on food with grains in it, so I was paying $100 a bag for a grain-free food. I found out Costco has a similar food under their Kirkland brand, that costs one-third of the price. The dogs are doing really well on it. I also buy my dog treats (dentastix, etc.) at Costco with similar savings.

 

[DisneyMandC]

We buy a high quality food for our dog online through chewy.com. You save money when you set up autoship for them to have the food come directly to your house on a schedule you set.

I buy Frontline for our pets from Costco.

Also, look for a low cost clinic in your area. We have one affiliated with the SPCA and PETA (even though I am NOT a fan of PETA), but they offer a lot of really low cost services as long as your animal is spayed or neutered. For example, we are getting ready to move and want to have our cat microchipped in case anything happens. It's only $22 through that clinic since she's spayed, as opposed to $50 through my regular vet's office (still not a bad price). I believe they also offer discounted heartworm and flea products.

 

[wilkeliza]

Water bottles! They make great toys. Just take off the cap and the plastic ring. You can even put them inside a sock and tie a whole at the top. We have spend thousands of dollars on fancy toys for our dogs and several hundred just on the 6 month old puppy. A "free" water bottle is still his favorite and he will go nuts over it.

If you buy in bulk make sure anything you buy is made in America (or for bully sticks Brazil and Portugal are okay as well). Sometimes the in bulk versions are not made in America, especially when bough from Amazon. Some items are safe when processed through an American facility but that same treat or food can be deadly if it is from somewhere else.

 

[LJSquishy]

We don't use flea treatment for our dogs so that saves money. We also choose not to vaccinate for everything (after the initial puppy vaccination schedule which we do follow) and only vaccinate for rabies which is required by law. Most dogs don't need to follow the vaccination schedule... Ask about a vaccine titre if you're interested in not over-vaccinating. If they were going to be going to the groomer regularly or boarded in a kennel I'd do bordatella.

We buy our pet food from Petflow.com ...no tax and I'll place a $100 order when they have an autoship promo and then I'll cancel it, then rinse and repeat. I feed Fromm Four Star grain free dry food and Natural Balance LID canned food. The NB canned food isn't as good as Fromm and some others but one of our dogs has a very sensitive tummy and it works best for her so we stick with it.

We clip their nails ourselves as well as bathe, dry, and give them haircuts. Not going to a groomer saves the most money.

 

[jesse8931]

Depending on where you live you may be able to not buy heartworm or flea meds.

I buy costco dog food and because my dogs have a very thick coat and spend 99% inside I do not give them heartworm meds.

 

[wilkeliza]

Oh just remembered a great way to get affordable toys is to buy holiday themed toys. We get baseball toys at the end of the season (and even for teams we don't like) and football team stuff as well. Also Pet Co and Petsmart have toys themed for all the major holidays and about a week after they will be 50%-75% off.

Get your dog use to clipping their nails as early as possible. Cut the puppies nails every 10 days even if you only snip a little off. After no time they will be okay with it. This will save you 15 bucks every month.

There is also the Pet Co and Petsmart cards where you can earn points for rewards.

We only spend about 150 on vaccines each year and we get the big ones (kennel cough, rabies, lyme and one other). Our dogs go to boarding and dog parks and play in the woods. That 150 a year saves us on heart ache later especially lyme and rabies. Rabies may be a 3 year now I would have to go check.

 

[bradiblue27]

When it comes to toys, literally most things can be used for enrichment. Someone mentioned water bottles, but if you invest maybe $15 in a good quality Kong, you can use that over and over as long as your dog doesn't turn out to be an extreme chewer. You can fill it with peanut butter, cheap treats, etc.

 

[wilkeliza]

When it comes to toys, literally most things can be used for enrichment. Someone mentioned water bottles, but if you invest maybe $15 in a good quality Kong, you can use that over and over as long as your dog doesn't turn out to be an extreme chewer. You can fill it with peanut butter, cheap treats, etc.

We use the kong and our guys love it. Just be careful filling it with peanut butter. Some peanut butters are now sweetened with a synthetic sweetener that even in small doses can kill a dog. It is the same stuff in sugar free gum that even one strip can kill a medium size dog. My friend made that mistake and gave his pup a table spoon of his low sugar peanut butter thinking it was no big deal. His poor pup was in doggy ICU for a week. We have a jar of regular organic peanut butter just for the pups for that very reason.

 

[hsmamato2]

ditto a few pp's..... you can spend a lot or a little on a dog...depends on preferences. I've got 2 dogs currently,and have had dogs my entire life. I get them their puppy shots,then after that they pretty much get just the basic rabies b/c of the law,not b/c I think they need it. All of my dogs have lived to 14 and far beyond. They get whatever dog food is on sale, plus whatever garbage they manage to snag off the road while we're out walking (dogs are little garbage pickers,they just love icky stuff,hence why I don't worry overly much about foods)
I bathe and groom my own pets,including nails and haircut for one(it's not rocket science,just a learning curve)
I get their meds from either the vet or an online site like petmeds. I use advantage on them for our major tick problems we get in our area-
we have a fenced area off of our deck where they spend a lot of time,hence the good bug protection.
They are crated when I'm not home to save my sanity,and they love their crates,it's their little 'homes'.
They love an occasional dentastix,or a squeaky dog toy, but since they destroy EVERYTHING I give them,I have found that a length of fleece fabric,tied in knots makes a great chew/play toy,and I toss later. A tennis ball is great fun too,and cheap to toss of lose as they play.
I cut fleece fabric into blankets for their crates (see above for they destroy things,so no fancy beds they will chew up) and when they get too grubby to wash I toss them and replace with a new one.
I am firmly in the camp of 'my dogs are beloved pets, not my kids'- so I don't stress much beyond basic pet needs.....what they mostly need and want is companionship,long walks and a warm bed.

 

[DisneyMandC]

We don't use flea treatment for our dogs so that saves money. We also choose not to vaccinate for everything (after the initial puppy vaccination schedule which we do follow) and only vaccinate for rabies which is required by law. Most dogs don't need to follow the vaccination schedule... Ask about a vaccine titre if you're interested in not over-vaccinating. If they were going to be going to the groomer regularly or boarded in a kennel I'd do bordatella.

We buy our pet food from Petflow.com ...no tax and I'll place a $100 order when they have an autoship promo and then I'll cancel it, then rinse and repeat. I feed Fromm Four Star grain free dry food and Natural Balance LID canned food. The NB canned food isn't as good as Fromm and some others but one of our dogs has a very sensitive tummy and it works best for her so we stick with it.

We clip their nails ourselves as well as bathe, dry, and give them haircuts. Not going to a groomer saves the most money.

I want to second the comment on not vaccinating for everything. Not only is it expensive to vaccinate your dog, but it simply is not necessary to vaccinate them every year. Pull titers if you're concerned that they may need updating, and certainly do their rabies shots when those come due (every 3 years in my state). We did all of the puppy vaccines and did shots when our dog was a year old, but we will not be vaccinating him this coming spring (he's almost 2).

 

[havaneselover]

I have two dogs (one with a lot of health issues). To save money, I:

1) buy healthy dog's food at Costco (other dog's food has to be purchased from the vet)

2) get their prescriptions filled at Costco

3) buy the largest dose of frontline plus (last purchase was from chewy.com because I had an Amex offer) and measure it out based on weight. This costs me about $3/month for two small dogs vs. about $24 if I bought based on weight and gave each dog one dose.

My one regret is not getting them used to brushing their teeth. Dental cleanings are super expensive and I've tried to brush but it never goes well.

 

[Kies99]

It figured out how to save on human stuff, but this is a whole new venture.

If you figured out how to do it for human stuff, you have figured it out for a dog. Almost all the same principals apply. I would just watch out for edible products made in China as well as watch out for artificial sweeteners as a lot of those are dangerous (among other things like chocolate and grapes, etc...).

Just shop around and for me personally, I avoid the major pet store chains unless they are running a great sale or I get a great coupon. I usually can get everything cheaper elsewhere.

Also check with your local grocery store pharmacy. A lot of ours have low cost prescriptions and a number of medicines for dogs are the same for people. I know a couple of ours fill vet prescriptions at the same low costs.

 

[DisMommyTX]

Be sure to consult with local vets before deciding to skip vaccinations. In some parts of the country, things like parvo and heart worms may not be be a problem, but other areas have massive epidemics.

 

[Cadiewampus]

I buy my dogs a 5 star rated food at my local feed and seed store for about $50 bucks for a 30 lb bag. Most everywhere else its close to $60. When I do get my dogs vaccines(other than rabies) I buy them there as well and do it myself. I can do both for less than $30 total. Probably only vaccinate them every 3 years or so. For heartworms I get ivermectin for about $30 and it last a couple years. I don't think you mentioned what kind of dog but there are several breeds like collies that ivermectin can kill if you use it on them so you have to be careful.

 

[DisneyMandC]

Be sure to consult with local vets before deciding to skip vaccinations. In some parts of the country, things like parvo and heart worms may not be be a problem, but other areas have massive epidemics.

When you pull titres, you don't "skip" vaccinations in the usual sense though. The test determines if your dog is still vaccinated. For example, when we pulled titres on one dog in the spring, it said he needed an update on distemper, but everything else was fine, so we gave him that vaccine and he was still covered by all the others. We will check him again this spring to ensure everything is still good, and if not give the necessary vaccines.

 

[wilkeliza]

When you pull titres, you don't "skip" vaccinations in the usual sense though. The test determines if your dog is still vaccinated. For example, when we pulled titres on one dog in the spring, it said he needed an update on distemper, but everything else was fine, so we gave him that vaccine and he was still covered by all the others. We will check him again this spring to ensure everything is still good, and if not give the necessary vaccines.

How much does a titres test normally cost? Thinking of starting this with our older pup.

 

[DisneyMandC]

How much does a titres test normally cost? Thinking of starting this with our older pup.

I can't remember the exact cost, my husband took the dog last year. I believe it's on a per vaccine basis though. We never do rabies though because it's required by law anyways and we keep up with our state's recommendation on that, particularly because we are out in the country and have seen rabid animals on our property before. I know it doesn't cost more than the vaccines though. I think ours was a little cheaper because we don't ever give bordatella since our dogs are never boarded or don't go to the groomer's, so we don't have to test for that.

 

[wilkeliza]

I can't remember the exact cost, my husband took the dog last year. I believe it's on a per vaccine basis though. We never do rabies though because it's required by law anyways and we keep up with our state's recommendation on that, particularly because we are out in the country and have seen rabid animals on our property before. I know it doesn't cost more than the vaccines though. I think ours was a little cheaper because we don't ever give bordatella since our dogs are never boarded or don't go to the groomer's, so we don't have to test for that.

I wonder if it would work for our dogs. They go to doggy day care and boarding. The places policy is up to date on vaccinations so I'm unsure if they will take the test as "up to date".