How much does owning a dog cost?

[MeadowHay]

We are dithering about rescuing a pup, we need to make the decision quickly, one of the things worrying us is the cost. The pup is a 4 month old lurcher, roughly how much would it cost a month, as well as initial costs, anyone want to help me out??

So initial costs I've thought of:

• Collar
  
• Lead
  
• Harness possibly
  
• Coat - would it need more than one coat? And how many jumpers for indoors would it need as I know lurchers feel the cold?
  
• Crate
  
• Bed?
  
• Blanket?
  
• Toys - how many would they need to start with? A kong, a chew toy, a teddy, and a ball?
  
• Poo bags
  
• Something to clean up accidents with as I've read there is specific stuff you need to use to erase the smell?
  
• Shampoo
  
• Food bowl
  
• Water bowl + a collapsable water bowl to take out and about
  
• A brush
  
• Puppy training classes
  
• Third set of vaccs.
  

That's all I can think of. + Cost of neutering a bit later down the line.
I don't know how much any of these things cost but I can have a look at pets at home I guess.

Then ongoing costs:

• Insurance
  
• Food
  
• Treats
  
• Toys, and replacing bedding etc
  

Any estimates for me?

[Songbirdthatsings]

Vets bill are the devil... one of mine has cost over £5000 in vets bills from May to November last year. Insurance premium now a whopping £107 a month. But saying that I can afford hundred quid over a few thousand in one go!
Second is decent food, lots of websites offering dog food reviews and some great foods out there.
Then I guess all the various accessories. I'd say on average we spend £300 a month on our two good job I love them!

[PleaseNotTrump]

A lot more than you expect! Our main outgoings are vet bills, decent food, decent treats for training, training itself. Also factor in beds! As puppies they chewed beds and if/when they are ill, I have thrown away vet bed rather than put it through washing machine.

There are also lots of little things - balls, throwers, portable water bowls, crates to travel, day care if you go out for the day, holiday costs.

Expensive, but worth it

[crashdoll]

Another thing to add, when we moved house, we spent £500+ (that we didn't really have) to ensure the garden was fully secure for the dog. At the time of getting our dog, we had no intention of moving.

[crashdoll]

Things that I didn't financially account for when I got my dog:

• that he'd develop a condition that means he needed an expensive, prescription diet for life,
  
• that I'd change my job and need a dog walker at £10 an hour. Just because you don't now, doesn't mean that things won't change over the course of your dog's lifetime (10 - 15 years)
  
• that I'd become unwell and less able to care for my dog and therefore, need extra paid dog walks.
  
• that he'd eat everything known to man and get ill from it and need regular vet appointments. Most insurance polices have an excess per condition and mine is £100 per each condition per year.
  

I love my dog and would promote dog ownership but it's naive to assume that your life won't change and your work and lifestyle patterns won't change and this will affect your dog.

[dudsville]

We're one of the few who don't have dog insurance. I'm not recommending it, it was just the right decision for us as we rescued adults that came with known health complications and insurance plans seemed like a waste under the circumstances given that we were in the position of being able to set aside a substantial amount of money into savings for them. So, that said, in the last 12 months we spent £2,500 (one was often sick and the other wasn't so it can't be divided per dog). That includes food, vet costs including monthly worming stuff and annual and 6 monthly things, dog walking, house sitting when on holiday... anything else but can't think what that might have been. Ours are medium sized dogs.

[drinkingchanelno5]

Holiday costs can be the biggest expense. I have friends that take my dog but if they cannot I pay £25 a night for my dog to stay in-house with his occasional dog walker as I wouldn't put him in a kennel. That adds up quickly.

[BestIsWest]

Oh dear, that milgicoats website is going to cost me a fortune and I don't even have a sighthound. Although I am an aunt to one.

[tabulahrasa]

The jolt isn't great for them, because yes, they do get a better burst of speed than other breeds... But no dog should ever be walked on an extendable lead with a collar, they need a harness, no dog can safely take their neck being snapped like that.

[NoBetterName]

tabulahrasa, I don't like extendable leads at all anyway and think they should be banned, but they are particularly dangerous for sighthounds because of the speed with which they can take off. If they see something small and fury, they can reach full-speed within a fraction of a second before reaching the end of the lead.

Just mentioning it in reference to sighthounds since the op is getting a lurcher.

[tabulahrasa]

"Also, do not use an extendable lead with a sighthound. If they take off at full speed, they can break their necks on extendable leads"

No breed should be on an extendable lead with a collar.

[tabulahrasa]

Re the vet petplans... You get some that offer vaccinations for life for £99, that is well worth it and you can do one vet for vaccinations another for treatment if they're not the one you'd pick otherwise.

Toys - I'll be the lone dissenter, I haven't met a toy yet my dog can't destroy in a day or two, so I buy the cheapest ones of those I can, that way I'm not sat glaring at him while he rips it apart, lol.

[NoBetterName]

Don't forget that for a lurcher pup you will need a special martingale collar, not a "regular" dog collar because sighthounds can slip out of normal collars. Also, do not use an extendable lead with a sighthound. If they take off at full speed, they can break their necks on extendable leads. We buy our dogs' martingales from Silver Peacock www.silverpeacock.co.uk/ , but I know others on here have recommended Meggie Moo www.meggiemoo.net/ previously.

We use programme plus for worming and fleaing (one tablet does both jobs). Costs about £35 for 6 tablets from the vet and you need to give a tablet every month.

Our pet insurance is via the PDSA and costs about £15/month for our 6 year old whippet and £35/month for our elderly lurcher.

You won't need a groomer if your lurcher is smooth coated. Just a quick brush every now and then will be fine.

Lots and lots of high-value treats for training. Ours will do anything for livercake. It's a bit gross to cook, but can be frozen and lasts for ages. It's a bit like crack cocaine for dogs.

Instead of buying lots of specific dog bed stuff, ours have quilts dotted around the house. They used to have crates too, but as they got bigger (and we got more dogs), the crates have disappeared. They now have a "room" of their own made out of the large under-stairs cupboard (with the door taken off and a baby gate across the entrance. We also kept baby-gates on the stairs to separate off children and dogs where needs be.

Last but not least, look at Milgi Coats www.milgicoats.co.uk/ for beautiful and practical coats. Ideally you'll probably need a house-coat and a waterproof coat.

[Floralnomad]

The pet plans at our vets start at about £10 for small dogs and go up from there , we were on the medium dog price but stopped doing it because it covered advocate / drontal and I wanted to swap to bravecto .

[NewNNfor2017]

I need to have a look around, I just looked at our nearest and it's like £15 a month for a large dog and really didn't seem like a good deal, it's mostly just 10% off certain procedures and things on top of the worming & fleaing

They do vary - puppies tend to be cheaper for the first year, but then it goes up, and again, is based on size of the dog.
But, deflea/worming alone can cost £10+ a month if you do it at full cost, and annual vaccinations cost in the region of £100 a year, so you're probably still saving even at £15 a month.

[Blackfellpony]

Meadow I take my dogs to work occasionally and the insurance didn't rise but they did put exclusions on the policy.

I think it was something like they won't pay out if they were injured in the workplace or if they insured someone at work. So if they attacked someone or damaged property etc then the 3rd party cover would be invalid if it was at work.

[Floralnomad]

Rough costs for mine (13kg terrier X) are
Insurance £30 per month
Food £30 per month ( Millies wolfheart)
Vaccinations / KC vaccine - no idea about £60 I think
Bravecto £100 per year ( 3 monthly)
Milbemax monthly ( no idea but I think about £6-7)
Groomers £39 every 5 weeks
£50 for his toe nail account monthly ( has a toe nail issue not covered on insurance )
Extras probably £150-200 per year for toys / harness / collars/ coats
As you can tell I don't really add up what he costs , he's a family member so just gets what he needs ,when he needs it . He doesn't go to kennels / daycare or have a dog walker .

[MeadowHay]

Ok, you've convinced me insurance definitely is necessary, although I know you can buy liability-only insurance very cheap from Dog's Trust or something.

I was thinking of taking my pup to work with me sometimes though but I've seen Petplan say if you want to do this you need to call them for a personalised quote...does anyone take their insured dog to work with them, if so how much did it push up the insurance cost? I didn't realise it would make insurance more expensive eek.

Dog walkers/daycare etc not necessary for us on a day-to-day basis and we don't have many holidays or anything atm as we're a bit strapped for cash hence wanting to make sure we can definitely afford a dog! And there are hopefully family members/friends who could dog-sit if we did go away.

How have you all got £11 a month pet plans with your vets ?? I need to have a look around, I just looked at our nearest and it's like £15 a month for a large dog and really didn't seem like a good deal, it's mostly just 10% off certain procedures and things on top of the worming & fleaing .

Thanks for the tip about poundland for bowls etc that's a good idea. I could do with some wellies but otherwise am well stocked up on the waterproof/thermal front already haha. Was thinking we could get blankets/towels etc from pound type shops or charity shops as well.

Will remember the consensus that more expensive toys are better.

TheMortificados I feel like this too I think. I tried to do a list of up all the initial costs and we could probably do a small holiday on that alone, which would be a stretch. So I guess it's about prioritising what we want more, holidays/other luxuries or a dog, hmm..I've wanted a dog for years and feel we've done all our research and could offer a good home but financially to start with it will be a stretch and it's such a huge commitment it's a bit scary thinking we might really get a pup after all this dreaming!

[Chelazla]

Food

[Chelazla]

I don't even notice the cost of my dog and he's s big boy! Good bought with supermarket shop and expensive! Insurance isn't excessive and you can pay £99 and you get boosters for life!!! He has treats, fresh meat bones but it's literally a couple of pounds! We've had him 9 years I love him to bits!!!

[tabulahrasa]

"You will never continue to pay £20 a month for a 12 year old dog.
As the pet ages - the policy goes up. Lots."

Depends on the insurer how much it goes up and when...but even say it doubles or more and you pay 6k in insurance premiums, that's an MRI and a minor operation and nothing else.

[WeAllHaveWings]

We have a 3 year old Labrador.

Insurance £36/month (started at £28 and will continue to increase as he ages)

Pet health plan £11/month (initial vacs, booster vacs, health checks, advocate/milbemax, 10% off nails, annual kennel cough vac, dental work, neutering etc)

Food £40-£50 month (Millie's wolfheart, haven't calculated exact cost)

Treats/toys

beds/blankets (we had loads chewed to pieces in fist 18 months)

Lots of towels etc for after muddy walks which need washed dried regularly (3 washes/tumble dry for us each week in wet winter)

For anyone who walks the dog - Waterproof boots, wellies, waterproof jackets (lightweight for summer and heavy weight for winter), waterproof trousers, thermals, etc etc.

Others to consider

Ongoing Training classes
Dog walkers/daycare if regularity out of house
Kennels/daycare if you go in holidays or for emergencies

[BestIsWest]

Definitely worth every penny though. He brings such joy.

[BestIsWest]

Training classes obviously vary greatly. We paid £40 for a six week course x3 (bronze, silver, gold). They were excellent and worth every penny.

We also pay £10 per month to vet which covers vaccinations, flea and worming treatment, six monthly check ups and claw trimming.

[OddBoots]

PDSA says £16,000 and £31,000 over the dog's lifetime It does depend to an extent on how far you are prepared to go with expensive vet treatment though.

[TheMortificadosDragon]

Our biggest expense in addition to insurance is holidays, as we don't have any local family or doggy friends, and we don't think he'd like kennels, so use Holidays4dogs for foreign and summer hols.

I call my dog 'my luxury item'