@nyoung15 My basenji was super picky when he was a puppy.... until I started to cook for him amazing recipies heheeh, but then pandemic season was over and I had to go back to work and started to give him whole barf ( raw food ) it comes with meat veggies, fruits, raw bones and vitamines.
Startup Costs
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I am trying to estimate how much money I need. Would you be able to give a ball park range of what a puppy + crate + food + toys + vet + whatever else will cost at initial purchase? What about an average year of spending thereafter? I would greatly appreciate any estimates that will give me some idea
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My experience so far
dog- $750
Wire Crate - $95
Crate pillow - $40
Vet vacinations - $850
Baby gates - $40
BAckyard Fence $4,000
Training classes - $400
AKC registration - $40???
Neutered - $150
Collars & Leads $80.00
Total - $6445.00 -
$850 for vaccinations!? Is that a typo? When we got Cory, the only vaccinations she still needed were her last rabies and a bordatella (which our Vet required) - those two vaccinations plus her initial Vet exam, heart worm exam, plus a 6 month supply of heart worm pills only totalled $142.
Pat
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I will check with my wife, I could be wrong.
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I am trying to estimate how much money I need. Would you be able to give a ball park range of what a puppy + crate + food + toys + vet + whatever else will cost at initial purchase? What about an average year of spending thereafter? I would greatly appreciate any estimates that will give me some idea
From my experience so far with Dallas [he's 3.5 months old] these have been our costs:
Puppy: $600 [although depending on the area you live it could be anywhere from this to closer to $900]
Crate: $80 [not from my pocket as I got it as a Christmas gift]
Food: $10 [for a small Merrick's bag which is taking him about 3ish weeks to get through but that number will obviously increase as the dog ages] but if you add on the treats, bones, etc. I'd say probably monthly I spend around $30-40
Toys: I'd say thus far I have spent around $200 but obviously you buy more toys in the beginning then they keep the same ones so the buying becomes less frequent…plus I spoil him. LOL
Vet: First visit the breeder covered, second visit was $110 & the second [with rabies shot] was $200. He gets his final parvo in 2 weeks which will cost about $50 & finally to get him neutured in a couple months will run another $200 or so [& getting your pup fixed is vital!!!]
Puppy Kindergarten: $60
Plus add in stuff like shampoo, a brush, nail dremel [or clippers], bedding, leashes/collar/tag, car safety harness, etc etc etc…
I would say to get a puppy, keep it's shots up to date & ensure you have everything you need, you are looking at a "starting cost" of $1500-2000. Now of course there are minimal ways to cut corners [less toys, less expensive food] but with the vet bills & cost of the pup I don't see that number going below $1500.
And as far as a yearly amount, I haven't had Dallas long enough to know. However, my family dogs didn't cost too much annually but again, we fed them beneful [not what is recommended for dog food…], only had their yearly checkups, & very rarely bought toys, rawhide or bones unless it was some sort of special occasion. A bag of rawhides probably would last all darn year in our house!
I think it's hard to say an exact number on the cost of a dog because you never know what could happen to it [as far as additional vet costs] & individual preference on how much you spend is a huge factor. I know some of my friends think I am crazy that I have bought close to $200 for toys but it's what I did.
In my opinion though, having Dallas by far outweighs the cost to keep him! -
Seriously wrong I'm sure - EL D's vaccinations (DHL, rabies, bordello) were less than $100!
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Seriously wrong I'm sure - EL D's vaccinations (DHL, rabies, bordello) were less than $100!
Can you tell me where your vet is located?!? LOL That is so low!
Our first appointment alone was $110 & that was for the checkup, 1 month of flea/heartworm meds, fecel exam, & only 1 shot!
His second vet appointment, with his Bordello & Rabies cost $200! Plus he still has another temprement shot before he's done for the year, not to mention his $200 neutering!!!
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I live in CA and my vet costs are less than yours! An office visit is $45 and each vaccination is between $10.50 - $15. I never get more than one vaccination at a time. I don't want to overload their system and if there is a reaction I want to know which shot caused it. A heartworm test at my vet costs $15 and a year's supply of Interceptor is right around $60. Frontline costs a bit but is totally worth it to be flea free at $90 for 6 months and the tick protection is a must when we are coursing in natural fields.
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That's about right but our spay & neuter cost us about $500 per dog.
We Microchip our dogs $50
Food, training, & collars & doggy gifts..endless amounts of $$$$
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Can you tell me where your vet is located?!? LOL That is so low!
Our first appointment alone was $110 & that was for the checkup, 1 month of flea/heartworm meds, fecel exam, & only 1 shot!
His second vet appointment, with his Bordello & Rabies cost $200! Plus he still has another temprement shot before he's done for the year, not to mention his $200 neutering!!!
Wow. :eek:
It may depend on where you live, but Keoki's first vet visit cost me $86.06 and that covered: physical exam, rabies vaccine, distemper/pravo/corona/lepto vaccine, fecal exam, and worm meds.
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That's about right but our spay & neuter cost us about $500 per dog.
We Microchip our dogs $50
Food, training, & collars & doggy gifts..endless amounts of $$$$
Our spay/neuter was less than $200 per dog.
Our microchip, with registration included, was $60.00.
My gosh,I cant' believe the variance of costs here!
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Instead of having mulitple replies, I'm going to consolidate the last couple of I put out there:
My dogs each cost me $800.
We already had a fence, so that was nothing.Crates were around $85.00.
Toys – I bought a bunch of cheap stuffed animals to start -- $1 - 4.00 eac -- and some edible chewy things. That just really depends on your pup,too, I found. Jazzy wouldn't touch the greenies, or rubbery puppy toys. If it was not a stuffed animal, or made from a formerly living animal, she wanted nothing to do with it. Keoki was not so picky.
Microchip, with registration, was $60.00
It may depend on where you live, but Keoki's first vet visit cost me $86.06 and that covered: physical exam, rabies vaccine, distemper/pravo/corona/lepto vaccine, fecal exam, and worm meds.
{I don't remember what Jazz's was,that was 3 yrs ago, and she was a little younger, but it was the same vet, so comparable}Food is hard to say because you should start, IMO, on whatever your breeder feeds and slowly move the pup to your food of choice.
Spay/neuter for each of them {2 yrs apart} was under $200. Jazzy was 2 when spayed; Keoki was 9 mos. That is not generally a "start-up" cost for bringing a puppy home.
Overall, I'd say it cost me about $1,100 to start with a puppy {not counting spay/neuter}.
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Yea…I'm thinking this vet I see isn't the greatest.
Not only does he seem very expensive for the area _but I'm not a huge fan of the info he's been giving me.
For exmaple, he told me he doesn't think I should be feeding Merrick's because it hasn't been around long enough to be proven as a good dog food vs, Euk or Purina. He wants me to switch him over to Eukanuba asap & get rid of the Merrick's because it's a new fad to put non-fillers in dog food but one that hasn't been proven as that beneficial yet vs. Euk which has been "improved through decades". Right…does anyone remember Merrick's having rat posion in it? Hmmm...
Not to mention he got upset that I wasn't at least feeding him a puppy kibble. I tried to explain that because Merrick's is so concentrated it isn't really needed since Merrick's adult has more protein, etc [the stuff puppies need to develop] than puppy eukunuba & it doesn't have the preservatives like crazy nor fillers [i.e. corn]. He wouldn't budge on the issue though & said when I return he expects me to have switched him over if not away from Merrick's than at the very least onto their puppy kibble. I may end up doing that but I don't want to put Dallas back on Euk…or maybe I should...darn vet!
Oh & he told me that I shouldn't be cleaning his ears nor trimming his nails more than once a month. I tried explaining that I was worried because his ears smell inside but he said that's normal in puppies & that I make it worse by cleaning his ears out. Hm..maybe was cleaning them a bit too much & causing some of the dry skin in his ears BUT their stupid website says to bring him in if inside his ear smells at all yet when I did he said it's nothing. Maybe I should try another vet in the area..._
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I think he sounds a bit pushy anyway – when you bring the puppy back he "expects" you to have changed food? Is this your vet or your dad?
I'd definitely start asking/looking around for someone new.
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As for the costs to add a puppy to your household, alot will depend on the cost of living for where you live and some choices that you make.
A responsibly bred puppy will cost between $600-1000 depending on where you are located in most areas it is between $800-1000. By going to a responsible breeder the puppy will come from health tested parents with verifiable health test results. Check out http://www.offa.org to see where you can search for health testing results. Just type in the registered names of the parents into the search box. In addition to health testing responsible breeders do a lot of work to make sure their puppies are well socialized and exposed to many situations that they will encounter in their daily routines so they are able to take changes in stride. Many responsible breeders also microchip their pups before they leave and send them home with a "puppy pack" of some sort. Depending on what age they send pups home they will have at least 1 shot and perhaps 2 shots, mine have also been had their eyes examined by a veterinary opthamalogist. Also depending on the breeder they may also pay the cost of AKC registering the pup if not then it is $20 to register and $12 to register their microchip number into the AKC Lost and Found program.
In preparation for you pup you will need a crate. If you buy one online know that shipping costs are usually more than for the other catalog items but you can still get a good deal.
An Medium Vari-kennel makes a good travel crate but for daily use I would go with an intermediate
http://homeandkennel.petedge.com/Petmate-Vari-Kennel-In-Fashion-Colors-DO311.pro?parentCategoryId=194&categoryId=310&subCategoryId=502Or you can go with a wire crate that is about the same size for this brand that would be the small and medium.
http://homeandkennel.petedge.com/ProSelect-Gold-Fold-Down-Crate-with-Fleece-Crate-Bed-ZW259.pro?parentCategoryId=194&categoryId=310&subCategoryId=502Sometimes you buy one only to find your dog prefers the other. The wire crate I listed above comes with a crate mat but the vari-kennel you would need to buy one. The same company sells them for about $10 for the size that fits the medium vari-kennel.
You will need good chew toys to keep your puppy busy. The price will really depend on how much you get and where you get them. I usually send my puppy people home with a PetEdge catalog several weeks before their puppy home with some shopping suggestions.
Food costs are again variable but if you are estimating then probably putting $20 a month on your budget would be good that would also give some for training treats and chewies like ziggies or bully sticks.
Training cost vary greatly from area to area. It is important that you find a trainer that uses positive reinforcement techniques. Basenjis respond very well to clicker training and positive reinforcement training. You will want to enroll in Puppy Kindergarten and at least one other session of classes. So depending on your area it will probably be between $200-400 or between $10-20 per class and expect to take at least 16 classes.
Vet costs will again depend greatly on your area and I listed many of my prices in a previous post. Neutering is another $200-300 in this area.
I had saved about $1500 for expenses when I brought home my first basenji which was 10 years ago.
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Not to mention he got upset that I wasn't at least feeding him a puppy kibble. I tried to explain that because Merrick's is so concentrated it isn't really needed since Merrick's adult has more protein, etc [the stuff puppies need to develop] than puppy eukunuba & it doesn't have the preservatives like crazy nor fillers [i.e. corn]. He wouldn't budge on the issue though & said when I return he expects me to have switched him over if not away from Merrick's than at the very least onto their puppy kibble. I may end up doing that but I don't want to put Dallas back on Euk…or maybe I should...darn vet!
I would be looking for a vet ASAP! A vet may make a suggestion about something like food but his demand that you switch is out of line. As for puppy vs adult, look at your dog and let his weight and condition be your guide. With a good high quality food the adult formulas work fine for puppies. Any vet who is this pushy is one that is unlikely to listen to you when your dog most needs you to be able to speak for him.
I have a puppy person who had a vet like this who was very pushy. She finally switched vets when she brought her dog in with a small bump on his lip and the vet wanted to do major surgery with the risk of physically deforming the dog for what turned out to be an infected puppy bite. The vet did not follow the procedures that every other vet I know has in similar situations because "he knew what it was and didn't need to do any further diagnostic tests". She took him to another vet who did a fine needle aspiration to see what was in the bump and was prescribed antibiotics and it cleared up on its own.
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You should always ONLY use a Vet you are comfortable with… both your dog and the human. If one seems to pushy, then you need to find one that you are happier with. Vet's should not be bullies, sure they should give their opinion... but certainly not to bully you on what to feed. I think that maybe you might have been cleaning the ears too often... and for nails, at least every two weeks, however until they become used to the tool you are using should be every week IMO... of course you are not taking much off the nail.. it becomes a training thing.
As far as puppy food, I have not looked, but is the Merrick adult the same as far as protein, fat, etc as EUK?
And as far as Vet prices, I can tell you I go to one of the most expensive ones in my area, BUT in this case I get what I pay for.... and they respect my thoughts and wishes also... means much when your Vet "listens" to what you tell him/her and not just ignore you totally.
Spay/Neuter is about 300.00 here... -
You should always ONLY use a Vet you are comfortable with… both your dog and the human. If one seems to pushy, then you need to find one that you are happier with. Vet's should not be bullies, sure they should give their opinion... but certainly not to bully you on what to feed. I think that maybe you might have been cleaning the ears too often... and for nails, at least every two weeks, however until they become used to the tool you are using should be every week IMO... of course you are not taking much off the nail.. it becomes a training thing.
As far as puppy food, I have not looked, but is the Merrick adult the same as far as protein, fat, etc as EUK?
And as far as Vet prices, I can tell you I go to one of the most expensive ones in my area, BUT in this case I get what I pay for.... and they respect my thoughts and wishes also... means much when your Vet "listens" to what you tell him/her and not just ignore you totally.
Spay/Neuter is about 300.00 here...Well I just looked & the Euk puppy kibble is this:
Crude Protein (minimum) 29%
Crude Fat (minimum) 18%
Moisture (maximum) 10%
Crude Fiber (maximum) 4%vs. Merrick's Adult Wildnerness Blend:
Crude Protein (Not Less Than) 24.0%
Crude Fat (Not Less Than) 15.0%
Crude Fiber (Not More Than) 2.5%
Moisture (Not More Than) 10.0%So there is a bit of a difference.
The Merrick's puppy plate is this:
Crude Protein (Not Less Than) 28.0%
Crude Fat (Not Less Than) 14.0%
Crude Fiber (Not More Than) 3.5%
Moisture (Not More Than) 10.0%It just figures that when I finally decide on a food, switch Dallas over & am pleased so far I get told by my vet that it isn't good. Grrr!
And yea Pat, I was cleaning his ears too often. I will not do it as frequently now but I wish the vet would have at least humored me about my concerns regarding his ears smelling. He said the smell was because I was cleaning them too much…when I asked how that is logical he didn't really give me an answer just repeated, stop cleaning them weekly.
And he was pushing science diet & Euk because that's what he feeds his dogs & they sell at this place. He even said he feeds his dog science diet because he gets it "free from work"! He was just a bit too pushy for me so I do think after Dallas' next & finaly puppy shot [in 2 weeks] I'll try finding another vet…
By the way, is it still typical for dogs to get vaccines yearly? For some reason I thought I had heard that rabies now is only every 3 years not annually...
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IMO, and this is just My Opinion, it is good to have pups on puppy food (and for sure use the Merrick puppy and NOT EUK or SD, again IMO).. till they are at least 6 to 8 months. I usually would change my pups to adult sometime around six months.
Vaccines, they need the first series of shots as pups, then a boster at 1yr (same with rabies), then it would go to every 3 yrs.
What does the Vet you are going to now say about shots?And last but not least, based on what you have already said, I would be out looking for a new Vet…
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IMO, and this is just My Opinion, it is good to have pups on puppy food (and for sure use the Merrick puppy and NOT EUK or SD, again IMO).. till they are at least 6 to 8 months. I usually would change my pups to adult sometime around six months.
Vaccines, they need the first series of shots as pups, then a boster at 1yr (same with rabies), then it would go to every 3 yrs.
What does the Vet you are going to now say about shots?And last but not least, based on what you have already said, I would be out looking for a new Vet…
Yea I think I am starting to agree about the pup food now that I need there is at least more protein in it vs. adult. I'm going to buy some Merrick's puppy plate today [since the store I buy his food from now doesn't carry the puppy plate only all the other flavors!]
As for shots, he says after this last shot he gets in two weeks he won't have another until boosters after a year then says that it would be a yearly appointment for boosters, checkup, etc.
And I'm way ahead of you, looking for a new vet currently. Problem is, I can't decide whether to find one now before his next shot appointment at the end of March or just wait & find one after the fact but by then the first time they would see him would be to neuter him!
