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 Posted: Thu Feb 07, 2013 11:57 pm
Budgeting with A Cat We all see it, know it, and feel it. The economy is being hit hard and we see it as gas, the cost of living, and basic nessesities go up. We work, we pay bills, or the unexpected happens and you lose your job. Things get cut out of our normal routines and sacrifices have to be made. And our pets are often the ones that are hit hardest. This section is to provide tips and tricks to maintaining a healthy cat when you have to count pennies.
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Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2013 10:48 pm
Concerning Food One of the main things your cat(s) need is food. They need to eat (theres no way around it). 1: Feed a variety of kibbles. This preps the cat for possible food changes that may need to be done. It also helps them from getting addicted to one kind of food. Feed different brands, types, etc. (currently Freyja has 4 different types of kibble that I circulate: Origin 6 fish, Orijin Chicken, Evangers, and Taste of the Wild). This also keeps the food from getting boring, and gives spice to the life of your feline. 2: Dont go out and buy the cheapest food at the supermarket. Even though the price is appealing, it might not be whats best for your cat. There are good foods out there that are moderately and reasonably priced. Taste of the Wild is grain free, and depending on the number of cats you have, can last a few months. (I go through a bag of Orijin in 3 to 4 months and is cheaper than I was paying for Friskies on a monthly basis.) As well, feed your cat bits of raw meat (fish, beef, poultry and pork at least) and such from time to time so that they'll accept/like it.
Butchers will often sell scraps and saw scrapings for cheap, so if you're needing to make a bag of food last a bit longer, or you need to decrease quality for finances, you can supplement with a bit of raw for added protein and moisture. ("chicken soup bones" are also often fairly cheap). You can also talk to farmers, fishermen, and hunters about scraps.
In some places, a raw diet may even be cheaper than feeding kibble (especially if you have friends that farm/fish/hunt), so do your research and price it out from time to time if you have the chance.
And, instead of feeding wet, because even the cheap stuff adds up quickly, add water to the kibble to ensure kitty's getting the necessary moisture
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Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2013 10:51 pm
Litter Another main thing your cat needs is kitty litter. Keep in mind, like food, make any changes gradual so that your cat gets used to the change. Try to conserve litter. Rather than do full box changes every week, just add enough to bring the litter level back up to ideal, Baking soda mixed with the litter helps reduce the smell of the box, and is a cheap way to keep your house smelling clean and fresh. Continue to scoop daily, though, you dont want box avoidance. Good litter, like food, is also worth the extra couple of dollars. It'll absorb the pee and control smell better, thus lasting longer. (obviously if you need to cut costs somewhere it should be here before with food)
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Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2013 10:52 pm
Vet Visits This is one of the hardest hit subjects concerning budgeting. Vets are expensive, and can hit the wallet the hardest. Your cats life can hang in the balance of "Can I afford it?" Be prepared for it. Choose a vet that allows payment options or check out if your vet has a Care Credit program (a credit card that can be used only at vets and specific areas). This should help with those "My kitty is ill, and he needs medical attention" situations. Try to set aside a fund while you can for emergencies, because they do happen, even with the best cared for cats. If your cat requires a surgery, or has a life threatening illness, you as the cat caretaker might have to make a difficult decision regarding your cats life. Nobody wants a 6000$ vet bill. No one can make this decision for you, and keep your cats best intrests at heart. Quality of years vs quantity of years. Its never easy to say goodbye, but it does happen.
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Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2013 10:55 pm
Toys and Entertainment Just because your counting pennies doesnt mean your cat cant have new toys. There is so many things you can do to keep your cat entertained and the best part? ~ ITS FREE. A few ideas to keep kitty entertained: Boxes
Paper Bags
Thread Spools (empty)
Toliet Paper Rolls (fill with bells and tape off the ends)
Shoelaces from old shoes
The plastic tab from milks/juices
Crumpled up paper
Recycle Old Toys and make them Fun again
*Please make sure any toy you give your cat is safe for him to play with.*
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Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2013 4:08 pm
Something to keep in mind in regards to all of this sort of stuff is how much a little bit of preparation/prevention can help in the long run.
When times are good and it's affordable, feed your cat a high quality diet, get it vaccinated/take it to the vet for routine physicals, put aside a bit of money into a savings account each month. Even if it's just $20 a month, it'll add up and every little bit will help if something comes up. (set up a monthly allotment, avoid adding it to your online banking or having it on your debit card; if the only way you can get money out is by going into the 'bank,' which can be inconvenient when you work, you'll be less tempted to dip into it for every little thing). A savings account won't have the limitations and restrictions that insurance does, and there's the added bonus of it earning interest.
If you have the space, it also doesn't hurt to stock up a bit on supplies. I generally have at least one extra bag of cat food (I buy in the five pound size), an extra bag of litter (twenty pounds), and enough wet to last us at least a few months on hand.
Having extra on hand means less trips to the pet store, which means less money spent on gas to go there, and less risk of buying extras (impulse stuff that's really not needed) while there. Personally, I currently do this because my pet stores are about an hour away, so not always convenient to get to, especially in the winter, and I end up buying way more than I should while I'm in the city (cutting down on how often I need to go to the city = cutting down on excess spending opportunities)
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Malted Shark Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2013 8:03 am
I get the pets stuff online anymore, at wag.com. It's handy and is always giving out coupons and sales and shipping&handling is free after spending $49+. Plus I recently found out that the free shipping is applied before coupons. So if you play things right, you can get nice food and free shipping for under $49. Plus they deliver in 2-3 days depending on what you get. They're good about getting the food to you in 2 days, but anything else, expect it in 2-3 days. And a free toy!(Read: box/boxes the stuff comes in) Plus in each box they have coupons for both their site, and their sister sites up on the tabs above. And they recently put up an app on iphones and android phones that will give you a coupon to use, but so far it's only been one thing, so I deleted the app afterwards. My referral code to get you 20% off your first order: SAYA1271 Another thing I do to save around the pets birthdays is if you're a Pet Supplies Plus member, you get a coupon for 1 free $5 toy around a pets birthday(whatever you sign it up to be). Pretty much, I buy things when on sale and with a coupon but any other time, unless I absolutely need to get it, I'll wait. Some other ideas for toys~ Tie one of their old toys to a stick. You can use a tree branch so long as it's sturdy so it won't break from use and all the bark is removed. ~ If you have the know-how, take old clothes you don't wear anymore and sew up little stuffed toys ~ Tie a bell or two or three to a chair or cabinet handle, or door, with some yarn
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Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2013 8:55 am
blue is having a nice thing going on where you buy i think 8 or 10 bags of their food and then they give you one for free of the same size. im doing that for stowrm.
purina one beyond usually has coupons for the same food inside the bag so your next bag of food can be $2 off or something like that. some stores let you double your coupons and some dont so keep that in mind when shopping
always check the internet for coupons and sign up for all the rewards programs at grocery and pet stores. pennies add up
also its good to always put a couple dollars aside from each paycheck for vet bills. i try to always make sure i have an extra hundred or 2 stashed away somewhere
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Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2013 12:30 pm
Shanna66 blue is having a nice thing going on where you buy i think 8 or 10 bags of their food and then they give you one for free of the same size. im doing that for stowrm.
Go! also has a buy however many get one free thing, and TOTW might as well.
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Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2013 12:32 pm
~ Aki - Fairy ~ Shanna66 blue is having a nice thing going on where you buy i think 8 or 10 bags of their food and then they give you one for free of the same size. im doing that for stowrm.
Go! also has a buy however many get one free thing, and TOTW might as well.a few monthbs ago i heard evo was but im not sure if they are still doing it. as it is though im going to be saving more money by buying blue than i was with wellness funny enough so ive pretty much changed brands
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Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2013 12:38 pm
Shanna66 ~ Aki - Fairy ~ Shanna66 blue is having a nice thing going on where you buy i think 8 or 10 bags of their food and then they give you one for free of the same size. im doing that for stowrm.
Go! also has a buy however many get one free thing, and TOTW might as well.a few monthbs ago i heard evo was but im not sure if they are still doing it. as it is though im going to be saving more money by buying blue than i was with wellness funny enough so ive pretty much changed brands
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Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2013 12:42 pm
~ Aki - Fairy ~ Shanna66 ~ Aki - Fairy ~ Shanna66 blue is having a nice thing going on where you buy i think 8 or 10 bags of their food and then they give you one for free of the same size. im doing that for stowrm.
Go! also has a buy however many get one free thing, and TOTW might as well.a few monthbs ago i heard evo was but im not sure if they are still doing it. as it is though im going to be saving more money by buying blue than i was with wellness funny enough so ive pretty much changed brands i know! i mean with all the coupons i use my purina one beyond and friskies canned food are still cheaper than the nice stuff, but its so nice that i can save this much money on my dog food at least. plus all the money i save i end up using on toys and treats for the animals. and of course stowrm's monthly vet visits
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Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2013 7:56 pm
Shanna66 and of course stowrm's monthly vet visits
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Posted: Fri Feb 15, 2013 5:19 am
~ Aki - Fairy ~ Shanna66 and of course stowrm's monthly vet visits lol thats the joke going around xd
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