I think it is absolutely sickening that people breed dogs when thousands are euthanized daily. You do not love animals if you are a breeder-you are a greedy jerk who should be locked up. I will do anything I can in my state to ban dog breeding and fine anyone caught doing it. This practice is barbaric and done by ignoramuses to make money because they are too lazy to go to work.

I dont mind paying for quality care but my shock was when my dog needed a heart operation and was told that vets are not trained to do heart operations because people are not demanding that  the operations be done due to the cost. WHAT......after all these years of knowledge and time we still are not performing operations on dogs like we do on humans and the vets are not wanting to do them at a lower cost......God help us......a vet should have to train and learn to do any operation that a human has done. What are they training them at vet school anyway?

The vets just seem to want to practice medicine on the healthy animals and too bad for those that get really sick. They just expect you to put them down if a major issue comes .

I am in complete agreement with Bowes about chained, neglected animals.  We adopted a beautiful, purebred golden retriever from a rescue group two years ago and his story was heartbreaking.  His owners left him outdoors in -20 degree weather with no food or water.  Compassionate neighbors cared for him until they could convince his owners to give him up.  He is 94 lbs of love and we are in the process of having him certified as a therapy dog.  We have had him for nearly 2 years and in the winter he still gets frantic if we don't let him back in immediately.  Please, if you aren't willing or able to care for and love your pet, give them to one of the many rescue groups out there.  Families like mine would love to make them a valued member of their "pack."

I took cat koda to the pet clinic and it cost in the range of$ 200.00, but it was worth the money because we love our two cats the other is kenya and shes  spayed we had koda nutured in Wy. and iit was only$ 42.00 we looked all over here in indpls for a cheap clinic,which we found and it only cost 20.00 so that was a real savings it seems like the animal population should have all the clinics cheaaper so people can afford them as were told too

kkeep them from having more litters and so they should do thier share and not charge too much so keep looking when its time to get treatment for your pets their s people out their who care for the pets and not just the profit.

Inexpensive toys can be purchased at Thrift Stores costing little and most enjyoyed by pets that like soft stuffed animals...They can carry them around, toss them, chew on them or find a soft pillow from them...and the cost if very little when you shop at the Thrift stores or after the holidays when prices are cut way down.

Proven way to save money on pets: feed the BEST kibble you can buy, or *make* your own raw diet (buying a commercially made raw diet is expensive). By the best kibble I mean stuff along the lines of EVO, Timberwolf Organics, and so on...grain-free food, with good protein sources. There is no substitute for an extremely healthy dog. You might spend about 50 bucks a month on a large dog, but this is probably all you're ever going to spend for most of the dog's life. Coat will be clean, silky, and (on a raw diet) teeth will NEVER need cleaning. Health problems will be minimized, as you are building up a good immune system in the first place through the healthy diet and thus saving money on vets in the long run! Also, you save money on plastic bags, since you're not picking poop up as much (digestion is maximized, less garbage).

Another absolute must, if you don't want to throw money out of the window when it comes to pets is to KNOW what you are paying at the vet's and WHY. Research about yearly "booster" vaccines that is costing you upwards to 70 bucks and see why they are unecessary and dangerous (after the puppy shots, your dog is immune for life! There is no such thing as being 'more' immune!). Some vets will charge ridiculous amounts for extremely simple procedures. Learn to do things like cutting nails and cleaning ears yourself.

It's all common sense. Remember your grandfather's dog they just threw scraps at and never went to the vet and lived till he was 18. It seems society today think pets are fragile things you have to constantly 'support' in order to live, feeding only 'special' diets and giving medication and such and such. The majority of pet services are highly unecessary, meant only to ease pet owners' guilt (after, of course, being scared into doing them in the first place). Why, after all, do you have to buy a 50 dollar dog vest when the dog has a perfectly serviceable double-coated furcoat?

To the person breeding litters for sale; just because a person can afford to buy a pet at a good price doesn't mean they will necessarily keep  the pet for it's lifetime. Do you follow these puppies after they are sold?   Many people buy pets on a whim and despose of them at a shelter or elsewhere later , basically treating animals like disposable goods. Once they are no longer cute puppies,  or they tire of them and want a new "model", or have have obedience problems because of lack of training, etc., off they go. Many also have congenital health problems later on because the parents shouldn't of been bred in the first place. Anyone responsible and with enough knowledge of animals to be breeding them would know this before breeding animals for profit or otherwise.

To Holly: I don't know who told you that some kind of meat should not be the first ingredient in the animal food, but they are wrong. Chicken, Beef, Lamb one of those should be the first ingredient in any dog food. I have a Jack Russell and she is small but I buy the biggest bag of her food that I can find and that saves money, also I break her bones in half, she is a dog, she doesn't know what half a treat is she only knows that she is getting a treat. That helps with the weight issue as well, as mine is a couch potato. I would never think of vaccinating her myself and I always take her to the same vet, I don't "shop around" for healthcare. Find a good vet and let them get to know your pet, that way when something is wrong with them there is a history. You wouldn't go to some random doctor everytime you had to go, you generally pick one doctor and stick with them because they get to know you and when you are not yourself they can pick up on that. Bottom line, do for your pet as you would do for yourself. If you can't afford one then don't get one, and if you have fallen on hard times and can't afford the animal then give it up! Don't make the animal suffer too, they can't help themselves.

Just because you charge a high price for a dog doesn't mean the new owner will look after the dog.   Stop adding to the overpopulation problem and find another hobby such as volunteering for a local animal welfare organization.   How can anyone possibly guarantee that the puppies will be well cared for?   Does Betty D visit the dozens of homes of the new owners on a regular basis?   Having money to pay for an overpriced dog is no promise of a good life for the dog.  Money doesn't mean the people have the knowledge to care for an animal.  

If you are in the military, check with your base vet. When I was getting ready to come to Guam I had to get all kinds of tests done on my cat so he could come with us. The vet on base saved us $500 compared to off base.

Another big problem is people moving and not taking pets with them. There is an over population of animals here on Guam because people leave and do not take their animals.

To come here to Guam it cost me over $1000 for my cat after blood tests, flight ticket, health certificates, shots, quarantine boarding, and health check on arrival. People need to think about this part of having a pet as well.

Also, buy the furminator to brush your pet with. I got one for my short haired cat and it is AWESOME. I seen the infomertial at my vets office. If your animal sheds this brush will save you money in pet hair rollers.