Sorry if this has been discussed before, I had a quick peak and couldnt see owt...

On Monday I am hoping (fingers crossed!) to adopt two little ladies from the Sheffield Cat Shelter.

I have had pets before, but never really thought about it (how can you price love for a little furry member of the family ! haha) but my partner was just interested in the cost over an average yr (not that it affects the adoption) ... any one worked it out before?

Thanks !

E x

p.s. any recommendations of cat insurance?

for me its round about £280. the break down of cost for me £3.00 per week on food, pisces eats whiskers pouches, one twice a day mixed with dry food & he always has a bowl of dry food down aswell £3.00 x 52 weeks a year = £156.00

then vet checkups & booster vac's £60.00 for the year.

£60 on frontline flea & tick control £15 for 3 months

i also have pisces insured with morethan but havent included that in the figure above because ins not really a necessity its just something i wanted to do just in case. i chose morethan because they insure for life where as some pet insurers only insure them for up to 10 years with cats. also the monthly cost was quite cheap & they cover for the most money on vet fees etc. they also gave a 15% online discount & you get 15%discount for insuring more than one pet.

you can compaire their price on their website just click on the pet bit & why choose us.

Hi,

I have 3 rescue cats and a rescue doggie. I've realised it costs me alot more to feed the cats than the dog! :o I, like you have never sat down and worked it out before but here are a few of my costs.
Ok, my average costs are:

£4 per month for insurance (found tesco is really good)
£26 for a pack of frontline which has 6 pipettes in to be used every 5 weeks
£2.00 ish for drontal wormer tablets. One to be given every 3 months

£30 per month on cat food:
I buy whatever wet cat food is on offer eg. Morrisons own 'my cat' £1.88 for a 6 pack of tins and they have 2 tins a day between 3 and i buy a big bag of Iams (roughly £15 every 8 weeks) which they have down to nibble on.

Then there's all the extras i buy them, like deluxe cat scratch posts (:blush: ) toys, tuna and catnip :) but these are optional.

Cattery expenses also need to be taken into account but i have lovely neighbours so luckily i don't need these.

The other expense for me is the bloomin catflap magnets they wear on their collars....there forever loosing them so i have to buy new collar (£3) new identity tag (£1.50) and new magnet (£4.50)

I darn't add all that up to a yearly cost!! :gag:

Good luck with you new pussy cats xxx

There's cat litter to consider too... our two jsut hate 'going' outside... they demand to be let back in to use the litter tray!!! :rant:

I have 2 cats and on average approx £320 each a year.

Includes food, flea treatment, wormer, vacs & insurance.

Oh and then there is all the damage they do - ours so far have cost us around £200 in damage the little so and so's. Apparently I love them to bits... they love my furniture...to bits aswell :(

Oh and then there is all the damage they do - ours so far have cost us around £200 in damage the little so and so's. Apparently I love them to bits... they love my furniture...to bits aswell :(

and your plants... :(

My lot cost me a horrific amount, but then 3 out of my 4 are getting pretty elderly and one of them is on 3 heart drugs and sees a cardiologist every 4 months or so. She's insured, but as the cats get older the excess increases, so I pay the first £100 and 25% of the remaining bill, because of her age.


I'll go and do some sums and report back.
Plus she's on prescription food, and only one of mine goes out regularly so there's 4 cats' worth of cat litter to be bought too.

OK- here goes.

This is a scary total:
(all figures per year)

£200 Merlin's prescription food
£180 other food
£180 vaccinations
£360 insurance
£100 insurance excess on Merlin's treatment
£144 Merlin's pills
£150 extra for 3 visits to cardiologist
£36 wormer
£168 flea treatments
£357 cat litter
____
£1875 per year (for 4 cats, assuming no other illnesses amongst them)

for me its round about £280. the break down of cost for me £3.00 per week on food, pisces eats whiskers pouches, one twice a day mixed with dry food & he always has a bowl of dry food down aswell £3.00 x 52 weeks a year = £156.00

then vet checkups & booster vac's £60.00 for the year.

£60 on frontline flea & tick control £15 for 3 months

i also have pisces insured with morethan but havent included that in the figure above because ins not really a necessity its just something i wanted to do just in case. i chose morethan because they insure for life where as some pet insurers only insure them for up to 10 years with cats. also the monthly cost was quite cheap & they cover for the most money on vet fees etc. they also gave a 15% online discount & you get 15%discount for insuring more than one pet.

you can compaire their price on their website just click on the pet bit & why choose us.

I think I checked Morethan when I switched from Petplan (they are excellent at paying out but WAY too expensive if like me you have 5 cats). Moretahn was OK at the time but not as good value as M&S. Went with Marks and Spencer in the end and I'm sure mine i for life cover...- M&S give discount if you have more than one pet insured and I've had no trouble making claims so far- my NFC had to have major dental surgery in Oct costing about £250-300 and the barmy Bengal decided he didn't want to miss out so injured his back leg around the same time (£90) - and then just to make up the trio, the Doberman got a stomach bug (another £90). Great stuff.

Whatever the costs, I wouldn't part with my lot and would go without a decent meal if I had to buy pet food instead or buy worming tablets instead- how sad is that? Which reminds me- try the UK online vets store Canine Chemists http://www.hyperdrug.com or Vet-Medic for your worming tablets - they are much cheaper than the vets if you have more than one cat.

To keep costs down, we buy cat food in bulk and we get out Cat litter from Pets at Home (Sophisticat- it's very similar to Tesco's granular litter but bigger granules). Being indoor cats, they go through a fair amount of the stuff.

Once a year, we treat ourselves by visiting the Supreme Cat Show at the NEC Birmingham - its a great way of seeing different cat breeds and moggies and there are lots of stalls giving free samples or selling good quality cat food at discount prices. Usually, we aim to spend about £100 on good stuff (Burns, Royal Canin, James Wellbeloved etc) which will keep us going for a few months - if we bought it elsewhere it would probably be 2-3 times that amount to buy! We take a fold-up trolley with us (we are not the only ones) and wheel our goodies around the show.

Good luck with your new babies, anyway.

Oh Good God. I wish I hadn't thought about it!

Here goes for two cats...
£360 food Nature's Best plus occassional pouches
£60 litter
£408 insurance
£120 vet bills (annual jabs)
£96 frontline
£96 collars/magnets
-------
£1,140

That's £570 per cat! Little rats... no wonder I have no money! Not forgetting three unexpected visits to the vet at £50 a time (ALL of them because their "playing" got out of hand, twice little girl beat up little boy... siblings... pah.)

They ARE fluffy and cute though... :hihi:

Oh Good God. I wish I hadn't thought about it!

Here goes for two cats...
£360 food Nature's Best plus occassional pouches
£60 litter
£408 insurance
£120 vet bills (annual jabs)
£96 frontline
£96 collars/magnets
-------
£1,140

That's £570 per cat! Little rats... no wonder I have no money! Not forgetting three unexpected visits to the vet at £50 a time (ALL of them because their "playing" got out of hand, twice little girl beat up little boy... siblings... pah.)

They ARE fluffy and cute though... :hihi:

It's funny that, I used to have money before we got the doberman and the mogs...

Actually, I've found a good way to supplement my income and cover my pet insurance costs each month- I sell our used books n music videos/ whatever on Amazon and usually earn enough to pay for all the insurance - result!

It's good feng shui too- or so I've convinced the other half who used to be anal about his books- now, we get some bookshelf space back and every so often we can buy new books then flog em back on amazon when we've read them. Now that's recycling for you!

Thanks everybody for your responses...

... sorry to those who I depressed with working out the figures - they are def worth it tho eh ?! :0)

E x

(and thanks for the insurance advice too)

Thanks everybody for your responses ... sorry to those who I depressed with working out the figures - they are def worth it tho eh ?! :0)

They're worth every penny - it's like the credit card advert - "having a cat in your life - priceless" even if it does eat the beautiful little robin in your garden and then vomit it up again down the side of your TV (still having problems coming to terms with this particular episode :-()

I'm sorry- I know I'm not meant to laugh at these things, but my glass of port did go down the wrong way whilst reading your post irenewilde.

That's kind of like the absolute mortification I felt when one of my cats brought in a neighbour's guinea pig out of their hutch. The situation was saved by another one of my furries, who took the poor thing off her, washed it and gave it back to me, unharmed, wet and utterly traumatised. Boy, did I have some grovelling to do with my neighbours.

For £104 a year you could own a healthy staffi.

For £104 a year you could own a healthy staffi.

I refuse to believe that you could feed a Staffie, and pay for vaccinations and the like for £104 a year.

just food for £104, £2 a week well just under, a few bones from butchers for free etc.

No you cant you need frontline for fleas worming powder they need biscuit mixer and dog food they need boosters and a responsible owner will always insure their pet no matter how much it costs as I can guarantee the vet can always cost more.

No you cant you need frontline for fleas worming powder they need biscuit mixer and dog food they need boosters and a responsible owner will always insure their pet no matter how much it costs as I can guarantee the vet can always cost more.

I second that- I wouldn't be without insurance My dobe costs me nearly £30 pm to insure with petplan but they've always paid out no questions asked if I needed them too- and I have the peace of mind that she is covered for all eventualityies and we are covered if (god forbid) she happened to cause an accident or injure a 3rd party. Noway does she cost £104 pa - blimey, she goes through 3 head halters a year, collars, leads, whatever- I could easily end up spending that on her gear alone!

I'm sorry- I know I'm not meant to laugh at these things, but my glass of port did go down the wrong way whilst reading your post irenewilde.

That's kind of like the absolute mortification I felt when one of my cats brought in a neighbour's guinea pig out of their hutch. The situation was saved by another one of my furries, who took the poor thing off her, washed it and gave it back to me, unharmed, wet and utterly traumatised. Boy, did I have some grovelling to do with my neighbours.

Sorry! I don't want you to choke to death!! I know what you mean though, it's not really funny (it wasn't at the time!) but it does make a good story when it's told! Thank goodness we don't have any neighbours with guinea pigs or I'm sure something similar would happen to me!

I thought it might be useful to people looking to get a pet if they could get an idea of the "running costs" of various pets? Certainly some seem to have abolutely no idea of how much it can cost!

So I thought Id go first with our collie, and everyone else can do their own costs, and different pets! I wonder how much we all spend on average??

Purchase price: £100 to the re-homing centre

Insurance: £17 a month (includes the cat)

Vets fees: £91 to be speyed, £16 for a microchip, vaccinations not due yet but usually around £40, plus regular worming. Illnesses covered by insurance, excess is £60.

Food: £5 a week (she likes Tesco's own, bless her!)

Toys: £5 a month on average

Treats: £5 a month

Equipment: so far have spent approximately £300 on a crate, lead, collar, id tag, car harness, car grill, travel bowl and water bottle, corkscrew stake for the ground plus long chain (for days out, picnics, hlidays etc), waterproof coat (she's long haired and not a pretty sight in the rain!), dog towel, pooper scooper and bags, dog quilt to lie on, brush, dog shampoo, and a travel box for the car as it turns out she didn't like the harness much!

Extras: Good quality kennelling when we go on holiday is between £10 and £15 per day. Hoping to get her a dog passport soon, cost unknown!

Changes to our lives: Up at 6am to walk her, a couple of time out for a wee in the day (she won't go in the garden!) and again for a proper walk before bedtime. I could hoover twice a day and still not be hair-free. Finding dog-friendly holidays can be hard work, as well as dog-friendly beaches when you get there. Not being able to go out all day unless she somes with us.

I wouldn't be without her :hihi:

Because I contributed to the original thread on this subject I knew it existed- so they've been merged.

Meds, I was half way through replying and you got me very confused (it's not difficult) :lol:

I've tried and I can't actually add up everything I spend on my dogs... (or the cats but strictly speaking they're mum's).

All I know is, I'm skint, I have no time to myself, I'm bloody knackered, I've gone grey aged 19, my house is covered in hair (we've had three hoovers in two years), nobody wants to visit my house anymore...

And I wouldn't change a thing!

Depends, food wise, what the cats like to eat. Two of mine generally prefer dry food and I vary between Iams and cheaper varieties. The other insists only on eating Sainsbury's own pouches and only tuna or trout. Which are cheaper than premium varieties but she turns her nose up at the dearer stuff.

Then it depends how healthy they are etc, as mentioned above.

Because I contributed to the original thread on this subject I knew it existed- so they've been merged.

Can we change the title then, so that people know it covers all pets?
I didn't see this one!
xx

Anyone who thinks pet ownership is cheap is in for a shock - I'm always skint and have been ever since we bought Ailsa the dobermutt in 2001 - she was £500 + cost of registering her with the Kennel Club initially - and then every gadget, gizmo, food, insurance and incidentals weve bought ever since - including 2 dog crates (£90 and £70), various dog beds, bedding, collars, leads, harnesses, wormers, food (Burns dired food is about £35 for a 15kg sack) and supplements, microchipping, poop bags, flexi leads, her own luggage when we go away, treats, training books and training equipment, puppy and obedience training, etc etc. She costs £30 per month to insure through Petplan (we cant move to a cheaper insurer cos she has a pre condition which we would not be able to claim for - not that we ever have claimed but they keep rasing the premiums every year anyway and I darent not have her insured, big clumsy oaf she is). Chris buys her wet food and some other bits at Pets at Home for around £50, I order her dried food online at £35-38 per sack. In the 5 and a half years weve owned her Im sure I've spent several thousand pounds - but equally, since getting a dog, we have done so many fantastic things and made friends with so many lovely people that I think when you weigh it up, she is simply priceless.

And then there's the cats - previously weve had rescues and hand-me-downs' but our 4 very first pedigrees cost us: Bengal - £495; Wegie - £300; Maine Coon - £250; Havana - £275; Minty - free; Charlie - free + cost of registering each pedigree with the GCFC. We don't have fancy holidays or expensive hobbies, seldom drink, dont smoke or have kids, don't drive a fancy car, so our cats and the dobermutt are our only luxuries and worth every penny. The cats were insured with Petplan for the 1st year or so, but it was £13 per cat which was ridiculous- now they're with M&S so together cost around £26 per month- still a lot though. Then there's vaccinations, neutering and spaying, microchipping, collars, wormers, treats, feliway diffusers and cat urine/ stain treatments, cat litter, cat carriers, harnesses, toys and food -too much to tot up but It's usually at least £80 per month at Pets at Home just on cat stuff and that doesnt cover everything - I get their wormers and othe treatments online, buy most toys n treats online and shop around for other stuff as and when. We go through a fair amount of food and litter and seem to be ordering it constantly. Pet ownership can be done cheaper, but we buy good quality food and litter and our pets look and feel fantastic, so money well spent.

and then there's cleaning supplies, vacuum cleaners (lost count of how many ive gone through since 2001) and washing machines - oh and air cleaners cos Im allergic to pet fur and other half is asthmatic...

PS have not even begun to think about cost of our other critters- 2 gerbils, 3 fish n a cockatiel.

All in all, I might be a whole lot better off without the cats, dog n critters, but the world would be a lonelier, more miserable place, so give me poverty and my pets everytime.

Where would I start just for food

12 cans of dog food per week = £5
bag of webbox = £3
fresh veg for rabbit £4
Dry for rabbit £1
dry for the hamsters £1

snakes have rats costing £10

Beardie costs £15 in locusts a week
Beardie costs £5 in fresh
gecko costs about £3 in crickets a week

The dog costs £15 a month insurance
the reptiles are insured collectively at £30 a month

And I reckon they add about at least £20 a month to the electric bill

I have always refused to work out the annual cost for the horse :D
it is best I don't know. But I do know roughly how much each month, and she is a cheap-ish pony with being such a good doer.

£17.50 a week- DIY livery
£6 month hard feed (roughly, less in Summer)
£8 every month and a half Cod Liver Oil
£6 week hay (Winter only, about 50p a week in Summer)
£10 week bedding (Winter only, nothing in Summer)
£42 month insurance
£52 every 6 weeks for new shoes
£35 a year dentist (as long as there aren't any problems)
£35 a year vaccinations (as long as I can split call out with other people on the yard)
£50 a year (approx) worming
EDIT; £50 year BHS Gold membership
Then there are things like new rugs (at least £50 a year)
New paraphanalia (ooohhh couldn't add it up)
Cleaning of rugs twice a year
Petrol too and from the yard twice a day
:|:|:| and worth every penny :D even though I spent most of Saturday patching up rugs that the little bleep has wrecked.

Oz dog doesn't cost us too much. A box of Bakers complete (£4ish) every 3-4 weeks, he doesn't eat a lot. Dog chews and stuff, which other people ussually buy him anyway. He has the same lead that he came with, have bought others but they seem to go missing. The odd £1 for charity shop cuddlies. Then vaccinations, and worming. (can't remember how much this is as only had done twice. He is due again in Feb).

Then there are the other 3. bunny, snake and guinea pig. minimal really, bedding is included in horse costs, food can't be more than £6 a month.

I try and cut corners where possible. KatieB_23 has very kindly been giving me shredded paper for the horse, which I mix in with other stuff. Hay, and shavings I get from the farm for R and G. I don't really buy fresh fruit and veg seperatley for R and G, just use what we eat and give them that. The £6 is just for Rabbit food, guinea pig food. OH tends to buy all snakey stuff.

My main cost with the reptiles is electric

My main cost with the reptiles is electric

Mine was too when I had a load of reptiles, I always thought the police would call round with all the UV light shining out of the flat.:hihi:
It did help not working 9-5 and living near Woodseats superpet. I found when I moved from there, a lot of live food was wasted because I had bought in bulk.

Btw I don't consider myself as "owning" the cats. They choose to live with me and I look after them.

Ooooh what fun!

£100 rehoming fee
£15 to change microchip details
£35 for bed
£40 for car grill thingy
£11.00 per month Insurance
£6.00 per month for food
£8 per month on bones
£5 a month on treats and toys
£60 for dog training every 6 weeks
£100 for bark stopping aids

Vets bills over the last 9 months -
£30 for infection in scar tissue
£60 excess paid once for a snapped nail - bill would have been £140 without insurance.
£57 last week for stomach infection including CONSTANT leaking of liquid poo, electric costs of washing machine on permanently, £20 cleaning products as a result of the above, lost 4 days of holiday pay, lack of sleep, stress and anxiety.
Numerous other vets bills that I can't even remember but probably £200 for odd bits and bobs.

And you know what....I can't even remember most of the other bills because it's constant. But that's the price we pay for the unconditional love of our baby :)