I'm Worth It!

One of our Facebook friends was having a bad week.  In addition to all the stuff humans have to worry about all the time, her senior dog wasn’t feeling well so off to the vet’s they went.   Happily there is nothing terribly wrong, she’s just a senior dog and, to quote one of Mom’s favorite humans, “Old age ain’t for sissies”, for dogs either.

Our friend was saying how she had just spent a lot of money buying special things little Ella needed, like special senior food and such.  Everyone agreed that even though we pets cost a lot of money, we are definitely worth it.

Lots of people like the IDEA of having a dog.  They see on television how much fun a dog is but what they don’t see is how much care we need.  Hey, we can’t go out and work to earn money to buy our own food you know.  Anyway, having a dog can be expensive so if you are thinking of bringing one home, there are some things you need to know.

Since I am an advocate of rescue/adoption, I’m not even going to talk about how much it costs to buy a pure bred dog.  So here goes:

First of all, rescued shelter pets are not free.  It costs a whole bunch of money to rescue and take good care a dog until it is adopted so they need to charge a fee. 

At our Humane Society it costs around $200 to adopt a dog.  When I got adopted Mom and Dad gave the people $275 and that was almost 5 years ago.  I was transported from South Carolina (volunteers work for free but someone has to pay for the gas), I was spayed, had a mico chip and had all of my shots.  Then I was housed and fed until Mom and Dad came to get me.

When I got to my furever home I had to get a license and had to go to school to learn manners.  Even though other dogs lived there before me, I got all new stuff, like a water dish and food dish, collar and leash and a new crate to sleep in while I was at work with Mom.  Mom didn’t keep track of the money but according to one site it cost between $500 and $2700 to start.

DixieLee and I get regular vet checkups and Mom makes sure we get regular heartworm and flea and tick medicines.  If we do get sick, there are additional vet visits and medicines.   I remember one night I wasn’t feeling well and Mom rushed me to the emergency vet hospital.  Vets and medicine cost money too.

We just got our new license tags and since Mom is kind of old, we got a discount but she still had to pay some.  We are very particular about our food.  We don’t like food with lots of additives so we get a good brand, made in the USA.  And of course, we get treats!

When we moved to our new house, we had a man come and put up a fence so we could go outside by ourselves.   Sometimes we go to day care so we can socialize with other dogs that cost money too.  DixieLee gets her nails clipped when we are at daycare cuz she won’t let Mom cut them and I understand that some dogs get baths and nails clipped and painted and all sorts of pampering.

From what I read, when you add up all those things, the cost of having a dog can run anywhere from $500 to $2,900 a year.  Even more if they buy you lots of toys and treats.   I’m not sure but I think that might be a lot of money.  I know my Mom and Dad think DixieLee and I are worth every penny and I bet your Moms and Dads think you are too because dogs are really priceless.

Your friend,

Zeva

P.S.  Blatant self-promotion. Our To The Rescue Gift Basket is a great way to say welcome to your forever home.

 

Help Me If you Can...Where Do You Bury Your Bones?

I need your help.  Where do you bury your bones?

Only a few more days and Dixie is coming to live with us.  If you follow my blog, you may remember, Dixie is a Ditch Dog (i.e. dog abandoned by the side of the road).  Mom’s friend found her and got her heartworm treatment and everything but she can’t keep her cuz there are already two rescues living in a very small house with two humans.  When Dad saw a picture of Dixie he said she could come and live with us. Okay, so she is “cute” but cute isn’t everything.  I’m cute ….

I guess it will be fun to have someone to talk to and play with all the time but I’m not sure I want to have another dog living in MY house with MY humans.  Mom says she will have her own dish and her own crate but I still will have to share my toys and we will all sleep in the big bed.  I’m wondering what else I will have to share with her.

When Mom bought dog food this week, she bought a GIANT bag and she bought two boxes of treats instead of one.  Still, what if Dixie eats all of my food and all of my treats.  What will I do?

I am a smart dog, and always want to be prepared so today, when Dad gave me treats for helping him work outside, I hid them all.  I hid one under the rain spout and the others all around the yard.  If Dixie eats all of my food and treats, I will at least have something to eat so I don’t starve.

We dogs have been burying bones for hundreds if not thousands of years because you never know when you will need food.  Treats are okay, but bones are the best. Our ancestors used to eat their fill and then bury what was left so they could eat it later when they didn’t have fresh food to eat.  Even back then they knew that bones were the best.  Bones have marrow in them and we know that marrow has good protein and fat and tastes awesome!  Mom and Dad are very good to me.  I get three meals a day and treats but still, I need to be prepared “just in case”.

I buried the treats outside but most of the time, I bury my treats inside the house.  My favorite places are in the corners of the couches.  I need to start burying all of my treats “just in case”.  I could use a few more hiding places.  Where are your favorite places to bury your treats?  I won’t tell anyone your secret hiding place if you don’t tell Dixie where I hide my stash.

Appreciate your help,

Your friend

Zeva

P.S. Blatant self-promotion.... Our Spoiled Rotten Dog Gift Basket... in case you know a spoiled rotten dog :)