Pete the Vet: Are you spending too much on your pet?

puppy portrait purse money table gold bokeh

As Christmas approaches, with the ongoing cost of living crisis, we’re all more aware than ever of the expenditure involved in keeping pets. 

From the set-up costs at the start of a pet’s life, to the ongoing maintenance costs, to the challenge of paying for pets when they’re unwell, it all adds up to many thousands of euro. 

The question I want to answer this week is simple: how can these costs be kept to a minimum. Are there safe financial corners that can be cut when looking after a pet?

Significant savings can be made right at the beginning of pet ownership. 

There’s no need to spend hundreds of euro (up to several thousand euro during COVID when there was a shortage of supply) on a finely bred puppy, putting cash into the pockets of puppy farmers. The simple maxim: “adopt don’t shop” is the answer. 

Dog rescue centres across Ireland are overflowing with dogs that need new homes. Most charities ask you to make a donation when you take on one of their charges, but for that sum of money (up to €150), not only are you giving to a good cause, but you’re often taking on an animal that has been vaccinated, microchipped and spay/neutered. 

As stand-alone expenses, these aspects of pet care would normally cost you over €300. By adopting instead of shopping, you’ll make significant savings. The same applies for kittens as it does for puppies.

The next step as a new pet owner is to consider taking out pet insurance. While this may not seem to save you money at first (you’ll have to pay out upwards of €20 per month), it does allow you to budget for your pet’s health care. There’s no free health care for pets: if you cannot afford the treatment that’s needed, your pet won’t get it. 

It’s very likely that pet insurance will indeed end up saving you money: over 30% of pet insurance policy holders submit claims each year, compared to only 15% of household policies and 22% of motor policies. If your pet has an accident or develops a serious illness of any kind, vets’ bills rapidly mount up. 

Pet insurance smooths over this difficult financial challenge, and avoids the dreaded risk of “economic euthanasia”, where pets have to be euthanased because the treatment is too expensive for owners to afford.

You may also want to consider a regular payment plan for preventive health care for your pet. Many vets now offer “pet health plans”, which involve adding up the annual cost of health checks, vaccinations and parasite treatments, giving you a discount off the total, then splitting this into twelve monthly payments by direct debit. 

This can be the most cost effective way of ensuring that your pet is properly protected from common threats to their health.

Vets now carry out individualised assessments of pets’ needs when it comes to vaccinations and parasite control. A small dog that lives in an apartment, doing minimal dog to dog socialising, will have different requirements to a suburban terrier who runs through parks and ditches, meeting other dogs. The preventive approach for each dog will be different, and your vet will guide you accordingly.

Be aware that parasite control products (for fleas, ticks and worms) sold via pet shops and supermarkets are often not as comprehensive as the prescription-only versions. For example, there are no over-the-counter wormers that effectively prevent lungworm, which can be a fatal disease. The vet-only versions may seem pricier, but they tend to do the job better.

The next area to save money is on pet food: if you can find a more affordable way to feed your pet, the daily savings soon add up. 

This doesn’t mean just buying the cheapest bag of pet food that you can find. There’s no point in buying inexpensive food that contains less nutritious ingredients, with cheap fillers to bulk it out. Your pet won’t enjoy eating it, and they won’t thrive. 

It makes more sense to source a mid-range pet food that’s nutritionally balanced, with high quality, highly digestible ingredients, that your pet enjoys eating, and that they thrive on. Read the label: look for specific named ingredients (such as chicken meal and brown rice) rather than generic catch-all terms (like “meat and animal derivatives”). 

You should also look at the most economical way of buying your pet food: bags of dry biscuits are safe to store for long periods, so buying a bigger bag makes sense. You may also come across loyalty or subscription schemes (similar to coffee shops) such as getting one free bag after buying six bags.

Another area where you can save money on costs is when you have to have your pet cared for by someone else. Professional dog walkers, boarding kennels and catteries can be costly, and the internet has led to some money-saving alternatives. 

Borrow My Doggy links you up with a wannabee dog owner in your own area who walks your dog for you, free of change. 

Trusted House Sitters finds you someone to mind your home and your pets without charging you a fee, because they have the benefit of using your home as a base for their holidays. 

Online pet sitter services such as GuDog enable you to have your dog minded in someone else’s home, rather than needing to send them to boarding kennels.

Lastly, save money at Christmas. You don’t need to buy expensive gifts to make pets happy.

My cats adore cardboard boxes and empty toilet rolls, while my dogs would prefer just my undivided attention over any fancily gift wrapped paraphernalia. Happy Christmas everyone.