If you can't afford a pet, maybe you shouldn't get the pet?

[Summerbubbles]

I have seen a post on social media advertising pedigree kittens with the suggestion of paying using klana payments.
AIBU to think of you can't afford the payment upfront, that you may struggle with vet bills etc. Also it would encourage impulse buying of kittens rather than saving up and preparing for the expenses.

I know anything can happen, job losses etc and you can get pet insurance to cover some costs. I just feel that if you can't afford the pet perhaps you shouldn't get in to debt to buy the pet.

AIBU?

klarna

I use Klana and PayPal responsibly, for people on lower disposable income levels, it helps them have money to play with. Pedigree cats tend to be indoor cats, so vet bills shouldn't be that much, but payment plans are an option at the vets. What social media still allows animal sales? That shouldn't happen.

OP, YANBU

Pedigree cats may often be indoor only, but they're also prone to expensive health conditions due to over breeding. A lot of vets are very unwilling to offer payment plans. Also, special (v expensive) foods are usually recommended for pedigrees and indoor cats can be more prone to obesity (and related conditions) and stress.

Even with insurance, pets are incredibly expensive.

YANBU

Being indoor only has bugger all to do with vets bills.

They're just as prone to illness.

My own indoor only pedigree cat has required 2 very expensive operations, over £3k in total and she is not yet 3 years old.
A friend had to find over £8k in addition to insurance for her indoor cat.
I don't know a single vet that does payment plans, and most want money upfront even if you have insurance.

Wow! None of my free range moggies have ever cost that!
One of my DCats passed away earlier this year, aged 19. She cost me plenty in food etc over the years, but vet-wise, other than vaccinations, spaying, flea and worm and chipping, she only ever had one vet visit (at which the vet advised changing her cat biscuits, which resolved the issue), which I think is some kind of record!

Agreed. In the same way as I think if you work more than about four hours a day (away from home) then you shouldn't get a dog.
But nothing can be done to stop it unfortunately.
We have one cat and wouldn't entertain any other pets due to finances and work.

See with this I am on the fence with for dogs. Animals are expensive and you need to work in order to keep them.
If you have a reliable dog walker or someone you know who goes in daily to walk the dogs, you're a responsible dog owner.

Your pet might have never needed expensive vet treatment. That certainly doesn't mean that others don't.

If someone has to get a pet on credit, I just think they wouldn't be best placed to cover things like this.

@Summerbubbles you'll see from further upthread, I absolutely agree with you people shouldn't get pets on credit!

I sometimes use Klarna while ordering multiple sizes/items, then pay for what I keep straight off, it can be useful when online returns/refunds can take a while.

As for using it to buy a pet, that sounds wild. I paid £50 at the vets yesterday for flea/worm stuff for our cat, and while he only cost a donation to CP of £100 his monthly running costs with fussy-pants food add up! Our lovely previous girl got cancer aged ten and just diagnosis cost over £3k - we opted not to treat her with chemo which would only have prolonged her life for a short time, but that was coming in at about £4k. We’re well insured and have a decent household income but pets are an expensive and long-term commitment.

I have an indoor moggy and her food costs me up to £20 a WEEK. She is allergic to everything else and it makes her sick constantly. Who would have known about this? Pets can be mad expensive

Its not the vet treatment that will add up, its food, litter etc that’s an every single day cost

Indoor cats so vet bills shouldn't be that much??? Are you for real? I was going to write a fucking long list of all the accidents and illnesses that can befall an indoor cat but then lost the will.

Nobody should even think about getting a cat unless they can afford neutering & either insurance or putting enough money aside to be able to cover expensive & unexpected vet bills.

At the rescue I volunteer for, there are frequent occurrences of idiots handing their pregnant cats over because they couldn’t / didn’t bother to get them spayed & now can’t afford to keep the kittens. If you’re not going to spay her, don’t buy / adopt her.

Also people who bring their injured or ill cats in because they can’t pay the vet bills - I know people's circumstances change & that sometimes can’t be helped, but then sometimes, once the rescue’s paid out & the cat is better, they want them back, for free. And THAT is completely unreasonable.

Same.

People are so, so ignorant when it comes to the cost of caring for pets. Any pet. I think having pet insurance should be mandatory if you have a pet. Unless you can suddenly magic up £8k plus in an emergency everyone should have pet insurance. The amount of people who say “oh I just save £50 a month” - so that’s going to get you far when a vets bill comes in at ££££ isn’t it.

When I worked full time as a Local Authority Children and Families field social worker, I was often out for more than four hours a day, and sometimes overnight, doing stake-outs with the local police force. My lovely late German Shepherd Dog was walked by me for at least an hour, off lead and on every morning and evening. I had some well-recommended dog walkers and sitters who would take her out for at least an hour at lunchtime and would go and fetch her for an overnight stay at their home if necessary. It cost me a fortune, but she was beautifully looked after and I didn't begrudge a penny of it.

Surprised the post hasn't been deleted, any posts selling/buying animals are swiftly removed from groups I'm in...rightly so

I use Klana and PayPal responsibly, for people on lower disposable income levels, it helps them have money to play with

There's no such thing as using these bloodsucking companies responsibly. Poor people playing with money they don't have, buying things they can't afford without getting into debt rarely ends well.

Couldn't agree more.

The people who struggle to afford pets seem to think someone else should fund their vet bills, when the time comes.

I've got sympathy for people who've had pets, their circumstances change unexpectedly and they then struggle to fund their vet bills.

I've got zero sympathy for idiots who are struggling financially and buy pets (often more then one!), especially designer puppies and pedigree moggies.

Most of the time it's an impulse buy after seeing a photo or ad, many delude themselves into thinking they're "rescuers" and no thought is given to how they're going to fund vet care for the next 10-15 years.

I've had a client (I'm a vet) come in with an 8 week old German Shepherd and when I told them the cost of the wormer was £8, they told me they couldn't afford it but might be able to next month.

The mind boggles (and the animals inevitably suffer).

Really unpopular opinion, I know, but I often think the same when I see people complaining about the wait for NHS IVF.

Go private, and if you can't afford to save up for private IVF over a year or so, the likelihood is you can't afford a child. They'll cost way more than the treatment will!

I have similar feelings towards those that require formula feed on prescription because they can't afford it.
WTF.

@Mademetoxic Agreed, but so many dogs of working people are just left on their own for most of the day and that's not OK.

I had a pedigree Burman. The vet bills for that animal were eye-watering.

Being an "indoor cat" does not reduce your vet bills. Far from it.

I wouldn't buy breed cats or dogs anyway. Moggies and mutts are much more healthy. What's the point in having an animal just purely for it's appearance when it's damaging to the creatures health?