In my previous post, I shared the drawn-out story of how we came to be the proud new parents of Mika the Shiba Inu.
In this post, I’ll detail our decision-making process as we considered our adoption of Mika. We’ll take a look at the downsides, the benefits, and the finances of owning a dog.
The downsides of dog ownership
When considering our adoption of Mika, we first looked at the downsides. By discussing the downsides first, we were able to cut out the emotions and look at the situation objectively.
Here are all the negatives of dog ownership that we could identify:
The expenses (oh, the expenses)
The cost of dog ownership can be significant. We needed to start with the expenses to see if keeping Mika was even within our budget. Mr. Money Mustache estimates the average cost of a dog to be $2,000 per year. Based on our estimates, he’s not far off.
The time cost
It takes time to care for a dog. They need to be walked, fed, played with, trained, and groomed. You’ll also need to allow extra time for cleaning, planning, vet visits, groomer visits, and shopping. That’s at least an hour of dog-related tasks per day.
The worries
When we dogsat, certain types of worries never crossed our minds: Are we providing enough mental stimulation? Is this the best choice of food? Does this behaviour need to be corrected or worked on? All we had to do was walk, feed, and play with our furry little house guests. With a dog of our own, these worries would become our responsibility.
The guilt
This is something every dog owner experiences when leaving their dog at home alone. Those sad brown eyes make even the most stoic of us crumble!
But that’s not the only guilt-inducing situation. There’s also the guilt of: not exercising them enough, not providing enough mental stimulation, not feeding them on time, etc.
As with children, doggy guilt comes in many forms and is ever-present!
The terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days
We all have days like this. Now imagine having to deal with dog diarrhea while you and your kids are sick, the washer has conked out, and your partner’s away on a work trip. Could you manage that, or would that push you over the edge?
It’s an important consideration. While I know I could manage it now, if you’d asked me when my kids were little, my answer would’ve been NO WAY!
The inevitable sadness
The sad reality with dogs is that we’ll almost always outlive them. This was partly why M has always been so hesitant to get a dog.
Additionally, now that we’re parents, we’ll have the extra sadness of seeing our kids upset if something happened to Mika. For most of us, the joy that a dog brings is worth it, but it still deserves some serious thought.
The strict schedule
It sounds terrible, but it’s true—dogs tie us down. Day-to-day, Mika’s walking/feeding schedule ties us to a 6–8 hour schedule. That means full-day outings are out of the question. When travelling, we’re also tied down unless we can take Mika with us or find someone to watch her.
The extra planning
Adding to the previous point, we now need to factor Mika into all our plans: Is the place we’re going dog-friendly? If we leave her at home, is that too long to be leaving her alone?
And when travelling, we need to consider: Can we take her with us? Will she need papers of some kind? If we leave her, are M’s uncle and aunt available? How and when will I make time to pack for her and drop her off to them?
The environmental cost
From their poop and the plastic bags they’re encased in, to the environmental cost of producing their food, and even their toys (which are often made of non-renewable materials) dogs leave a big footprint on the earth. Even with my best efforts, it’s not possible to make dogcare 100% sustainable.
The mess
Dogs are messy! They leave their fur everywhere (sometimes in your food) and track in dirt, leaves, and other lovely things. Having a dog is essentially like wearing your dirty shoes around 24/7. Ick.
They also slosh water out of their bowls, have accidents in the house, and (given the opportunity) chew on and leave the contents of a garbage bin all over your bedroom.
If you’re taking in a dog, plan to drop your standard of cleanliness by a lot!
The destruction
If you end up with a dog like Mika who loves to chew on things, be prepared for destruction!
Mika has chewed and destroyed more items in our house than I can count! Her favourites are LEGO and anything else that’s plastic and bite-sized. Recently she’s turned her attention to clothing, and did this to a pair of M’s jeans:
As much as we try to Mika-proof our house, she still manages to find something to destroy just about every day. Sigh.
But I guess we don’t have it that bad. Other doggy parents tell me that their dogs chew on their shoes, furniture, and even their expensive Crate and Barrel rug!!!
The stress
All the issues above add up to an extra layer of stress in our lives. The crazy thing about that is: it’s completely optional! Is it wise to willingly choose to add more stress to our lives? 
And… there’s more
When I first binged on Mr. Money Mustache’s blog in 2014, I read his article, Great News! Dog Ownership is Optional! and fully agreed with everything he said. (I still do.)
It may not be pleasant for dog lovers (me included) to face these hard truths—but they do need to be considered.
The benefits of dog ownership
After reading the list above, it’s probably hard to understand why anyone would choose to adopt a dog! But if you’re a dog person, you get it. Dogs are wonderful, and there many meaningful reasons to adopt one:
More quality time outside
Now that our boys are in their tweens and teens, we’re in a new phase of life. They’re more stubborn and choosy about the activities they want to do, and it’s harder to motivate them to get out of the house.
Adding a dog gives all of us a renewed drive to get out and do things. (It’s like having a curious toddler again—you’re excited to expose them to new things and watch their reaction.)
Previously, it’d take a lot of convincing for the boys to take a stroll with us ‘just because’. But with Mika, they’re more than happy to go. Everything just seems more fun with a dog!
For me, this was the biggest reason why I wanted to keep Mika. She motivates us to get outside and have more quality time together.
More exercise
It’s unavoidable—if you have a dog, you’ll need to take them out for walks. Even if it’s pouring rain or freezing outside, they still gotta go!
Having a dog ensures that we get out for two to three walks every day. (And we live in a hilly neighbourhood, so our walks are always somewhat strenuous!)
Neighbourly friendships
We take Mika out three times a day for at least 20 minutes per walk—that’s an hour per day. With all this time spent wandering around our neighbourhood, we’ve had lots of opportunities to bump into our neighbours.
It’s been nice getting to know people we normally only smiled at and said a quick hello to.
New connections with old friends
For me, this is a big one. As our kids have grown, and I’m at my kids’ schools less often, it’s become harder and harder to get together with my mom friends.
Luckily, most of them have dogs—and now we have a new reason to see each other! Not only do we make plans to walk together, but we’re texting and calling each other more as we exchange doggy info and check-in about our dogs.
M has also enjoyed chatting with work friends about their dogs and swapping info and advice.
More time for solitude and healing
This is something I appreciated when I was an angsty, grumpy teen. Whatever my mood when I started walking with our dog June, it would always be a little lighter and brighter by the time we got back home.
As a teenager, getting outside into the fresh air (often in the darkness of night) was so healing for me. It helped me pause my worries and connect with the world in a way I couldn’t during the rest of my day.
When I started art school in my twenties, these quiet walks also gave me time to ponder my latest project. If I was stuck for ideas, a walk with June would clear my mind and allow the solutions to magically appear.
M and I have seen the same wonderful benefits when we walk Mika now. I hope that my kids will one day use their walks with her as time to reflect and quiet their busy minds.
A unique bond
Having grown up with dogs, I know how special that bond with your very own dog can be. I figured we were getting most of that experience by dogsitting a select group of our favourite dogs.
But it really is so different when that dog is yours. It’s a deeper, more meaningful connection that only grows with time. I’m happy that we can give our kids this unique and precious experience.
Life experiences for the kids
Having a dog teaches kids so much, and it’s not just about how to care for a dog. There’s also the less-tangible things, like having another living being rely on you. Or that all living things will eventually pass on… and even when that happens, you’ll be okay and find happiness again.
Unconditional love
All of us enjoy and benefit from the unconditional love of a dog. No matter what life throws at us, dogs are always there to cuddle with and tell our worries to.
I think this is especially helpful for children, who often feel so small and helpless. When it seems like your friends, parents and teachers are all being so mean, it’s such a precious gift to have a dog to go to.
The finances
So we’ve weighed all the pros and cons of dog ownership, and determined that we can afford Mika. But I’m a personal finance blogger, so I can’t just leave it at that!
It’s time to go deeper with the numbers…
Working out our own estimate
According to Mr. Money Mustache, owning a dog costs an estimated $2,000 per year. While I trust MMM, I think it’s important to work out an estimate based on our actual expenses.
Doing so will get us as close to an accurate number as possible and allow us to:
- Save and plan for Mika’s expenses.
- Look for areas where we can save.
- Determine if our path to FI will be affected.
I’ll detail the potential expenses below by breaking them into two sections: ongoing and unknown.
Ongoing expenses
These expenses are relatively predictable and generally known to us:
Food: $640/year
Mika loves her irRAWsistable chicken patties! (Image credit: irRAWsistable Pet Foods Inc.)
Mika’s been on a raw diet all her life, so we’re opting to keep her on it. She’s done well on raw and has realized many health benefits from this diet.
Unfortunately, all this goodness isn’t cheap! Mika’s raw food costs 2 to 2.5x more than high-end kibble (e.g. Acana or Orijen).
Dogsitting: $350/year
We take a three to four-week trip every year and go on several shorter trips throughout the year. Thankfully, M’s uncle and aunt are happy to watch Mika, so that’ll take care of most of her dogsitting needs.
On the odd occasion that we all go away at the same time, we’ve budgeted for one week of dogsitting per year.
Medical: $750/year
This is my estimate for Mika’s basic annual medical costs, amortized over her lifetime. It includes things like: check-ups, vaccinations, and minor injuries and illnesses.
Note: this line item doesn’t include medical treatment for serious injuries or major illnesses. In the sections to follow (Self-insurance vs. pet insurance and Our plan) I detail how we’ll cover these expenses.
Medications: $300/year
Mika will need medication for flea, heartworm, and parasite control (around $15/month). She may also need the odd prescription for minor illnesses (I estimate this will cost about $100/year).
License: $41/year
In our municipality, dogs must be licensed. Since Mika is spayed, her licensing fee is reduced to $41 instead of $84.
Other: $190/year
Mika also needs nail trims*, treats and chews, and replacement gear. While these items aren’t huge expenses, they do add up.
*Pet nail trimming is something I’ve always done myself. But Shibas hate nail trims and are very dramatic about it! After many failed attempts to get Mika used to nail trimming, we gave up. For only $10 per trim, we’ll let the groomers be the bad guys!
Mika’s annual expenses
| Expense | Description | Total annual cost |
|---|---|---|
| Raw food | $80 x 8 cases/year | $640 |
| Dogsitting | $50 x 7 nights/year | $350 |
| Ongoing medical (amortized over Mika's lifespan) | $75/checkup $75/vaccination $300/minor injury $300/minor illness | $750 |
| Medications | $180 flea, worm treatments $120 meds for illnesses | $300 |
| License | $41/year | $41 |
| Nail trims | $10 x 12 trims/year | $120 |
| Treats and chews | $15 x 2 bags $3 x 5 chews | $45 |
| Replacement gear | $25/leash/harness/jacket | $25 |
Based on the above estimates, Mika’s total annual expenses come to $2,271. If she lives to be 15, that’s 13 more years, for a total of $29,523.
Wow, that’s a lot, and it doesn’t even cover everything! We also need to be prepared for the big unknowns…
Unknown expenses
One of the scariest parts of dog ownership is the unknown expenses. These expenses tend to be big and unexpected and could lead to difficult choices if we’re not prepared.
Breed-related health concerns
To get a better idea of the medical issues your dog may face, you should always research typical health concerns for your specific breed of dog.
For Mika, I did some internet research and reached out to members of the Vancouver Shiba Inu Facebook group. From what group members told me, it seems most Shibas are quite healthy.
If we continue to feed Mika high-quality food, exercise her regularly, and keep her away from dangers, she’ll likely only ever need basic medical care.
However, there’s no guarantee that she’ll always be healthy. Shibas are known to develop allergies and eye and ligament issues.
Additionally, accidents and other serious illnesses can occur at any time. We still need to plan for major health concerns down the road.
Estimated costs
To get an idea of how much these big medical issues might cost us, we asked other dog owners and used this page on the Trupanion site. Here’s my best estimate for each expense:
- Serious injury: $2,000+ per incident
- Chronic condition: $1,000+/year in treatment and medication
- Major illness: $5,000+ for a course of treatment
Okay, now that we have a rough idea of the numbers, we need to decide how we’ll pay for these expenses. That means it’s time for the big debate: self-insurance or pet insurance?
Self-insurance vs. pet insurance
Like any good Mustachian, I consider most types of insurance to be a tax on people who are bad at math.
I only buy insurance for things that we can’t afford to replace (car, home and life). Still—a lot of dog owners swear by pet insurance, so I decided to look into it.
The downsides of pet insurance
- Pet insurance isn’t cheap. Plans with decent coverage start at $30 per month. That’s close to $400 per year!
- Even a very high deductible (e.g. $1,000) doesn’t do much to lower the premiums.
- No pet insurance offers 100% coverage (the range is 70–90%). That means you’ll be out of pocket for the deductible PLUS 10–30% of the cost of the treatment.
- With some companies, the more you claim, the more your future premiums will be.
- Rejected claims, endless correspondence, and delayed payments are common.
- If you want pet insurance, you should get it as soon as possible. If your dog develops a pre-existing condition before your coverage starts (or during the waiting period) you’ll be denied coverage for that condition.
There are definitely a lot of downsides to pet insurance. But that doesn’t mean it’s always a bad idea. There are a few situations where pet insurance might be worth its high price:
When pet insurance might make sense
- You know you won’t have a lumpsum of cash to pay for an accident or illness.
- Your dog develops a chronic condition that requires long-term care and medication.
- Your dog is frequently injured or ill, and you have a plan where the premiums and deductibles are low enough to make it worthwhile. (And premiums don’t increase as you make more claims.)
My take
I might come across as a Debbie Downer, but here’s my not-so-positive take on the above scenarios:
- #1 is avoidable with good financial planning (or not getting a dog in the first place).
- #2 is unknown. This means you’re essentially gambling on the chance that your dog will develop a chronic condition. (And we all know that gambling is another tax on people who are bad at math!) I think the chances of your dog not developing a chronic condition are lower than them actually developing one.
- #3 is a trickier situation and requires some detailed math. However, most dogs don’t get injured or sick that often, so #3 is more than likely not typical. Additionally, minor injuries and illnesses aren’t usually expensive enough to justify paying the deductible plus 10–30% of the treatment cost.
When it comes to money decisions, I’m a shrewd analyzer—as you should also be. Carefully consider if pet insurance is truly the best financial decision for your family.
Conclusion: self-insurance vs. pet insurance
Based on my informal research, chronic conditions and major accidents aren’t as common as insurance companies would have us believe.
(My anecdotal experience proves this: none of our family dogs had major accidents or illnesses when we were growing up. And all the dogs we currently know have rarely needed more than one or two major treatments in their lifetimes.)
Given all this, and the knowledge that insurance companies exist to make money, I’d prefer to self-insure. We’ll save up money every month to (hopefully never) use towards these big expenses.
Worst-case scenario—if Mika develops a chronic illness or suffers a serious injury and it exhausts our cash reserves, we have our emergency plan to fall back on.
Our plan
After all that analysis, we can now make a clear plan for Mika’s care:
Ongoing expenses
- We’re in a unique situation in that M’s uncle and aunt will share Mika’s costs with us.
- They’ll transfer a set amount to us every month and we’ll put in an equal amount.
- Anything leftover for the month will be rolled over to the next month.
- My estimates for Mika’s ongoing expenses are amortized over her lifetime, so we’ll very likely end up with excess funds in the early years.
Unknown expenses
- The excess funds should build to a point where they can cover a major incident in later years.
- Whatever isn’t covered, we’ll discuss with M’s uncle and aunt (and we can always fall back on our emergency plan).
- Since we’ll be splitting the bill, the cost will likely still be well within their and our budgets.
Dogsitting
- M’s uncle and aunt will watch Mika anytime we go away.
- If our travels overlap, we’ll work together to find alternatives:
-
- Mika goes to another family member.
- Use the credits that Mika still has at the doggy daycare she used to go to.
- Find someone on Rover.
- Send her to a boarding facility.
All-day outings
- If the boys and l will be out of the house all day, M can take her to work with him. (His workplace is very dog-friendly.)
- If the four of us will be out of the house all day, M’s uncle and aunt can usually watch her. If not, other family members and friends have offered to watch her. (But we can usually find a way to take Mika with us.)
Managing the money
- We’ll keep the cash for Mika’s care in our high-interest savings account.
- To track the money, there’s no need to open another bank account. I can just set up a new category in YNAB:
- Mika’s expenses and payments (from us and M’s uncle and aunt) will all be categorized under a ‘Mika’ category in our budget.
- Even if the expenses and payments are from different accounts, they’ll all be listed under this category.
- I’ll be able to see all the transactions in one place and track how much of a balance we have—just like a bank account. (This is just one of the reasons why I love YNAB!)
- If we find we’re overspending every month, M’s uncle and aunt asked us to let them know and they’ll be happy to contribute more.
- If there are funds leftover at the end of Mika’s life, we’ll split them with M’s uncle and aunt.
Our FI plan
- Mika’s care will cost around $30,000 for her lifetime. (Note: after talking to other dog owners, it’ll more likely be half this amount. It all depends on how healthy Mika is and if she gets into trouble regularly.)
- Our cost will be half of this since M’s uncle and aunt will cover the other half.
- $15,000 over 13 years has little to no effect on our FI plan.
And that’s it—we’re ready!
Having this detailed plan in place allows us to rest easy. We’ve thought about the worst-case scenarios and have backups ready if challenges come our way.
I urge all pet owners to make detailed plans like this (just like you should make a plan for your personal finances). This will prepare you so you can make rational decisions in the midst of stressful, emotional situations.
Summary: should you adopt a dog?
We went through a 4-step process to decide if dog ownership was right for us:
- Identify all the downsides: Are there any dealbreakers? If not, move on to the next step.
- Identify the benefits: Are the benefits worth it and do they outweigh the downsides? If so, move on to the next step.
- Crunch the numbers: Can you comfortably afford the cost of a dog? If so, move on to the next step.
- Make a plan: How will you manage the finances for your dog’s expenses? What’s the plan for covering major accidents and illnesses? Work these details out before the bad stuff happens!
While there are many downsides to owning a dog, we found that the benefits far outweigh them (for us—it’s a very personal decision).
We also looked at how much Mika’s care would cost and determined that we can comfortably afford it. We also have backup plans in place should emergencies arise.
All of that gave us full confidence in our decision to adopt Mika—yay!
I’d love your feedback!
Does the cost of caring for a dog make you want to run for the hills? Do you use and love pet insurance, or do you prefer to self-insure? Any helpful suggestions to save money on dog care?
I’d love to hear your thoughts—please leave a comment below!
Support this blog
If you liked this article and want more content like this, please support this blog by sharing it! Not only does it help spread the FIRE, but it lets me know what content you find most useful. (Which encourages me to write more of it!)
You can also support this blog by visiting my recommendations page and purchasing through the links. Note that not every link is an affiliate link—some are just favourite products and services that I want to share. 🙂
As always, however you show your support for this blog—THANK YOU!
16 Comments
Ana
October 7, 2019 at 2:39 pmYou make some excellent points on dog care. And, yes, doggy guilt is real! I’ve never opted for medical insurance but I’ve been fortunate to have healthy pets. I appreciate your breakdown on the pros and cons of the insurance. I wasn’t sure if I was missing something. If pets develop health issues and get on medications, it really can add up.
Mika is a great investment! 🙂
Chrissy
October 7, 2019 at 11:48 pmThanks for the comment Ana, and good to know you’ve also opted to forgo pet insurance. It’s not an easy decision, but taking a hard look at the math and facts makes it a bit easier to decide.
Joe
October 10, 2019 at 7:57 pmMika is super cute. I think you made the right choice. Life isn’t all about money.
Luckily, my wife and kid like cats. They’re so much easier to take care of. 🙂
Chrissy
October 10, 2019 at 8:07 pmYou’re absolutely right Joe—life isn’t all about money. We’ve also cat-sat in the past and I agree: cats are definitely easier to take care of! I’d love to see some photos of your cat. You should post them on Instagram!
Abigail @ipickuppennies
October 10, 2019 at 7:58 pmHaha, you’ve been making a lot of so-called terrible FI decisions lately (what with the car and now dog) — but in both cases I think you made the right call. Mika looks like an absolute sweetheart and the companionship of an animal is hard to overestimate. I know my cat keeps me (relatively) sane since I’m home alone so much.
It’s great that you have a plan in place to save for future expenses. I should probably start doing that for my cat. She just cost me $200 in x-rays yesterday because they thought she had bladder stones (she didn’t, argh). But they did find another potential problem, so it’s good that the things were taken, I guess. Problem: They may need to take even more in a week or two if the issue doesn’t die down on its own. So that’d be $400 in the span of just two weeks.
Luckily, she’s been otherwise healthy, so she just costs me $33/month for a Banfield pet plan. It’s not the same as insurance. It covers her vaccinations, free office visits and a yearly cleaning. I did the math and found that the vaccinations and cleaning come out to about $30 less than the cost of the plan and I can take her in for free if I’m concerned about something. So it’s worthwhile. So long as I don’t let them convince me to do unnecessary tests.
Chrissy
October 10, 2019 at 8:11 pmWe’re not exactly model FI-seekers are we? Ha ha. Thanks anyway for your support! Pets are wonderful, and that’s why we keep ending up with them… even when we try not to take new ones in!
Yikes about the x-rays for your cat. I hope everything will be okay. The Banfield Pet Plan sounds interesting! That might actually be worth it since you know you can use it and how often you’ll use it. Great tip—I’ll look into it for Mika!
Sam
October 15, 2019 at 10:28 pmChrissy, reading this post made me smile and nod my head in agreement so often. It is such a useful article and should be mandatory reading for anyone thinking about getting a dog. As you know we look after trainee assistance dogs some times. I love it when they come and we get to know them, but particularly at this time of year the house gets dirty and I spend a lot of time washing old towels which we use to put out on the floor and rub them down after a walk. I vacuum up never-ending amounts of dog hair, even after they’ve gone! It’s great that they get us out in the fresh air, but our mornings are taken up with this and other chores are often on hold. We fortunately don’t have the expense of food or vet bills as that is taken care of by the charity who owns the dogs. In summary, I love it when they come, but it’s also nice to get back to normal when they go and have a break before we welcome the next one.
Chrissy
October 15, 2019 at 11:15 pmI always suggest to my friends that they should dogsit before getting a dog of their own… but does anyone ever listen to me? Nope! Maybe I’ll have to reveal my blog to them just so they can read this article. 🤔
I’ve always loved that you look after those darling assistance dogs. What an amazing way to give back while also getting just enough doggy time! Had Mika not fallen into our laps, and we ran out of friends’ dogs to watch, I very well would have tried that. Perhaps one day!
Thanks for sharing your experience. It’s a good dose of reality for perspective dog owners.
Dale Roberts
December 12, 2019 at 3:00 amGood post. A dog is priceless for family and kids. I’d say it’s almost a must for those with kids, if you can afford it.
On insurance, our extended family dog situation shows a 100% major cost situation for surgeries and other. Our daughter also adopted and we made her get insurance, as she’s a student and can’t afford a major event. Lucky, it has already saved her several to $10,000.
Even with our mixed breed (generally healthier than pure breeds) we would have been much better off with insurance thanks to a couple of eye surgeries.
Perhaps Mr. MM also has this insurance thing wrong. No worries though as he is a multi-multi millionaire with hundreds of thousands of dollars of annual income. A dog surgery or two is not likely to take a bite out of his annual budget.
Dale
Chrissy
December 15, 2019 at 10:52 pmThanks for the comment, Dale. We are dog people and love that our kids are able to experience having a dog while growing up. As you say, it’s priceless—if you can afford it.
For those who cannot afford it, or who choose not to, I always suggest regularly dog sitting a few good dogs. It’s a free (or even income-earning) way to get 90% of the benefit of owning your own dog.
This is what we’d been doing the last 5 years and were very happy with the setup! Of course, now that we have Mika, we can’t imagine life without her! But life was most certainly simpler (and cheaper) when we only dogsat her. 😉
About the insurance, I can’t say there’s a clear answer when you calculate it based on math and probabilities. It’s definitely a wise choice in the case of your daughter, who might not be able to afford a sudden and large vet bill.
But most of us in the FI community are far enough along in our financial journeys that we can safely decide to self-insure (as we’re currently choosing to do). It’s not right for everyone, but after weighing the pros and cons, and costs vs benefits, we feel better to self-insure.
But you’re not wrong. Pet insurance is often a very good thing, and a necessity for some. I think everyone has to look at their own situation objectively and make the decision for themselves. (And not just blindly follow anyone’s advice—including Mr. Money Mustache!)
Sam Z
December 13, 2019 at 1:35 pmThere are ways of drastically reducing dog ownership costs. But first some basics:
Dogs are pack animals and never should be left alone. Get another dog if you only have one have to leave it alone.
Health: Raw meat should be the cornerstone – look for filler like anything with meal after it (fishmeal, chickenmeal, etc). That’s garbage. Raw organ meat can be surprisingly cheap. Look at organically based farms that sell pet grade meats. Often less than $.50/lb. That’s cheap. Source raw bones as well. Should be about the same. Dogs need bones to keep their gums and teeth in shape. Dogs are natural gnawers so don’t deprive them of this. No need for any dental “work” when they have bones all the time. No need for any grooming, nail clipping if they’re outside a lot. And if anything grows a few minutes with your nail file will remedy that. Pet service costs are ludicrous. For real health experiment at first with intermittent fasting (skipping a day of food once in a while) always keeping PURIFIED water available (distilled, reverse osmosis or good sediment filtered – not garbage chlorinated, floridated tap water). Water fasting is the miracle treatment when your dog gets sick. Unlike humans who get very weak after a few days without food, dogs retain almost all their energy. Humans regularly water fast for around 40 days before the body starts consuming muscle. Not sure about dogs. Several days of fasting can cure many ailments. Just be very vigilant if you walk them and keep the leash ultra short so they can scarf down something and ruin the fast. Vaccinations are the ruin of our modern health. They lower the immune system making dogs far more susceptible to all manner of infections. Don’t fall for that.
Now you have a dog with no vet bills (barring accidents), no medications, no vaccinations, no beauty treatments (do dog nail trimmers speak Vietnamese?) being fed for $.50-1.00 a day. That just went from $2000 to about $175 – $350 depending on the size of your dog. Breed rabbits or insects (the best as its the highest in nutrients, low fat and they replicate like mad) and you may have almost no cost at all.
Chrissy
December 15, 2019 at 11:23 pmHi Sam,
Thanks for your informative and thoughtful comment. Re: feeding a raw diet, we’re in complete agreement with you. Based on what we’ve heard anecdotally and seen with Mika, all the benefits you’ve listed, and more, are real when feeding raw.
I’d love to find an organic farm like the ones you mention. It sure would be nice to pay only $0.50/lb for Mika’s food! But we do like the convenience of the patties we buy. They’re pre-mixed with vegetables and are measured to be a consistent size. Not cheap, but not outrageous either.
You’ve offered a lot of other food for thought with the water fasting and vaccinations. Those are definitely intriguing topics that I’ll look into. Thanks for taking the time to share!
Sam Arnold
December 16, 2019 at 9:35 amThere is just so much vested interest in getting pet owners to fork over their money. Your vet thrives on your fear. Rarely are these people health orientated themselves. People that ignore their own health should not be dispensing health advice to the public. its like a mechanic that can’t fix their own car. Doesn’t exactly exude confidence in the buying public! Vegetables are fine but most dogs eat very little if offered. They know what they crave, that’s why anything premixed isn’t ideal. Rather people could offer the animal different foods as they are making a meal. All the dogs I owned ate very little in the way of vegetables. Once in a few days they wanted any vegetables and I eat a wide variety and was constantly offering stuff to them. Most of the time a dog eats “vegetables” its because its mixed with flavouring agents. That’s cheating! A dog will eat anything that is flavoured with meat! Look at the ingredients of your premixed patties and offer those very vegetables individually to your dog raw, with no spicing or anything else. I bet they almost never partake. Let us know the results of this experiment after a few days or weeks. Flavouring is powerful and fools almost all pet food owners. Their dog may approach their newly filled dog dish with relish. It means absolutely nothing. Remember that dogs are scavenger eaters. Most aren’t so particular. They’ll dig up rotting meat in the ground days later. That’s a pretty good example of a scavenging eater!
Chrissy
December 19, 2019 at 11:23 amIt’s definitely important to find a trustworthy vet who supports how you’d like to care for your dog. Many of our friends highly recommended a vet near me, but she wouldn’t take us on because Mika’s on a raw diet. This vet believes in formulated, medicated diets (which they sell). So there’s a bit of a conflict of interest there.
We’ve actually found that Mika needs the veggies in her diet as it keeps her regular (if you know what I mean). We’ve tried 100% meat, but unfortunately it just doesn’t work for her! That said, the veggies are only 10% of her patties, so it’s not much.
daisy
December 27, 2021 at 8:56 pmwhat a cute girl!!! i was reading your FIRE achieved post and saw that little photo of a shiba in the corner and had to click (BIG congrats on FIRE-ing btw)! i have a shiba girl too.
some unsolicited advice: re nail trims, i have a dremel and have fashioned for her essentially a handbag with 4 leg holes within (so she helplessly dangles as her nails are trimmed lol). i don’t know how vets do it with these shibas! 🙂 re treats, i would not recommend giving her anything harder than bullies (which they tend to lick at and partially soften before chewing anyway), such as antlers or hooves. my girl broke a tooth on an antler!
do you have any recs on harnesses? i haven’t found one that doesn’t actually choke at the lower neck area!
cheers and enjoy your new FIRE freedom 😀 😀
Chrissy
December 28, 2021 at 10:37 pmHi Daisy—aww, it’s always nice to meet a fellow shiba parent… and even better to meet one who’s also into FIRE! LOL, you know all about the dreaded Shiba drama when doing anything with their paws. Sigh! We actually got a Dremel as well and made our own grooming sling, but it still didn’t work! Mika had panic attacks no matter what we tried. 🤦♀️
We finally stumbled on a super simple solution: my husband sits in front of her with high value treats while I hold her in my lap. He holds a treat near her and tells her to “Staaay” and keeps her focus on the treat. I use her dog nail clippers and clip a sliver of nail off at an angle (so it takes 3-4 tiny clips like this to fully clip one nail). She still doesn’t like it, but she’s calm the entire time and no longer freaks out, phew.
We’re so relieved as we were at the end of our rope and didn’t know what else to do! I wish the grooming sling and Dremel worked for Mika like it does for your girl! That would be so much easier. These little shibes are such a handful! 😑
Thanks for the warning about the antlers and hooves. Fortunately, I’m in a couple of Shiba Facebook groups and was told the same thing by other owners who had the same experience as you! We’re so fortunate that you and other kind Shiba parents share their knowledge so generously. It’s saved us from having to learn the hard way!
As for a harness, Mika isn’t a puller, so I can’t say for sure if the harnesses she uses are good for not choking, but we use this one and this one and they’re both very comfortable for her. I’ve also heard good things about the Ruffwear harnesses.
Thanks so much for your comment and fro all the kind words. I would love to see pics of your Shiba girl sometime—if she has an Instagram account, let me know!