Incredibly busy lately. I have about two posts in me for September, and this is one, already way later than usual.
This is my fourth year of tracking pet finances at the House of Two Bows. This is an ongoing effort to get a practical sense of what it costs to keep two 20 ~ 30 pound adult dogs in an area of the US with relatively high costs of living. Previous posts in this series can be found under the category of finances.
The Cost of (Pet) Things for August 2014:
- Food: $211 [previous month, $30]
- Treats: $49 [previous, $31]
- Grooming: $16 [previous, $5]
- Vet & Medical: -$35 [previous, $411]
- Accessories and misc: $50 [previous, $0]
- TOTAL: $291 [running average for 2014: ~$200/month]
Crazy high food total included a 15 lb. bag of Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream, one more 4 lb box of Honest Kitchen Embark, and an unanticipated, large order from Creston Valley Meats. I decided to buy another two large boxes of ground turkey, as well as an order of lamb bones. It may be a while before my schedule frees up so I can make their delivery times, so I decided to restock while I could. I did not anticipate over 20 pounds of lamb bones in my order, which I’ve been trying to disperse generously amongst my dog friends. Apparently, I need to know more raw feeders, because an extra freezer is really not in my budget. Yet it was hard to pass up lamb bones at 55 cents a pound!
I loaded up on buy 3 get 1 treats at the local Pet Food Express, and dehydrated a whole bunch more chicken hearts, in order to appease the Bows when I left them with a housesitter back in August. I went overboard, so plenty of treats remain.
In grooming, I finally got my act together to order a bulk box of poop bags from Amazon. 700 poop bags for $16, with Prime shipping? Can’t really argue with that deal.
Bowdu’s major veterinary appointment was postponed for this month, September. It already happened, and I’ll have more to say about that later. What I did receive last month was my $35 Elanco rebate, slightly more than what is normally offered as a “loyalty rewards” customer. I honestly was not expecting to receive the check so efficiently. I was even notified by e-mail when the check was on its way — overall resulting in my most positive experience yet with the company that manufactures Comfortis/Trifexis.
Finally, I tacked on a somewhat arbitrary $50 fee to Miscellaneous, which includes a rare expense category for the House of Two Bows: boarding and pet care by an outside helper. The only reason I could go to Denmark was because I roped a dog-savvy friend into watching the house and the Bows, all in exchange for a free place to stay and unlimited access to all food and drink in the house. I did lug back some Danish beer as payment, so that and some miscellaneous extras are included in the $50.
Under normal circumstances, in-home pet sitting would cost way, way more — like $50 for each night, let alone seven. All the more reason that friendships with dog-friends must be carefully cultivated, with the expectation that we’re always paying it forward, and that the winning personalities of your canine charges will help balance out the karmic scales.