The main thing you need to know before choosing to take a “free” dog is that there is no such thing as a free dog. Read that again.
In 2011, I brought home Caesar. He was from a littler of German Shepherd mixes on an Amish Farm. He was $60 on the first day. In 2012, I brought home Jeter. He was completely free. So in total, for two dogs, I spent $60 just to bring them home. What a savings compared to a pure-breed, right? “Haha,” at naive 19/20 year old me.
I think we can all agree that $60 for two dogs is really cheap. But even as puppies, I soon found out that there was no such thing as a free or even cheap dog. To get their puppy vaccinations and to get them neutered I spent hundreds of dollars. Back then I was short sighted and thought the only money I’d need to spend on them was the basics – food and annual vet visits. I was very wrong, and I think everyone should realize this before deciding to add a dog to their home, even one they pay higher prices for.
Of course, we all know that annual vet visits, the initial puppy vaccines, neutering, food, toys, treats, heart worm medicine, and flea and tick medicines costs money. These are the very basics that every dog needs. But, as my dogs have aged, especially Caesar, I’ve learned that dogs can be very expensive and if you’re not willing to spend the money to keep your dog healthy, especially as they age when they need you to care of them the most, please, reconsider adding a dog to your home.
Jeter has been, thankfully, void of health issues so far, but Caesar, not so much. At times, I feel like I should just insert money into him like an ATM. I’d spend a million dollars to keep him healthy; he’s worth every penny, but I didn’t realize how many issues one dog could have in such a short amount of time. It can be heart breaking and devastating at times, and there are times when I feel like he just can win in life. I’m happy Jeter has no issues, but I ask myself, “Why Caesar ALL the time???” He can’t catch a break and this is where people really need to understand that if you’re not prepared to shell out thousands of dollars on your eight year old dog, maybe a dog isn’t for you.
Almost exactly a year ago (last fall) Caesar had a cyst on his eye removed – $400. At the beginning of the year, he chipped a tooth while chewing on a bone – $50 exam fee. In the spring he had the tooth removed – $375. His annual vet visit was in August – $100 exam fee and annual shot costs and another $100 for six months of heart worm preventative for each dog. He had a cyst burst on his leg this summer – $50 exam fee.
Then, on October 7th I came home and he had an accident in the house; this is totally unlike him. During our walk that evening, I noticed he was peeing blood. I stayed up with him all night letting him out every two hours until the vet opened in the morning. The next morning I took him to the vet – $320 exam fee, x-rays, and antibiotics.
Just in the past year alone, my $60 turned into an over $1,200 dog – and that’s ignoring all the basic care he’s had during the year (50 pound bag of dog food every three weeks – over $520 for the year, a bath every month – $120 for the year, treats, toys, flea and tick preventative – $???).
What I’m trying to say, is that if you are not willing to spend thousands of dollars keeping your dog healthy when they become ill or if you don’t have the money to do so (or can’t come up with it thus causing you to ignore the issues), maybe rethink getting a dog, especially if you are opting for a free or cheap one because you think it’s going to remain free or cheap – I promise, it won’t.
While the vet checked Caesar for prostate cancer today, I began making a plan to pay for cancer treatment in case that was the diagnosis. If my dog can live a happy, healthy life with treatment to any illness, I’d happily give all the money I had. As a pet owner, this needs to be your mindset, and remember: nothing is ever actually free.