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cost of looking after a large k9?

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After initial purchase price I would say probably around $5k per year on average as long as there aren't any medical issues.
That's for insurance, food, grooming etc
 
It kind of boils down to how well you want to treat your animal and how much you can afford.

Grooming really isn't an issue unless your breed needs to have an occasional haircut. Most large breeds only require brushing and once you get a routine established it isn't an issue. My German Shepherds are brushed daily but if you have to miss a day here and there it's not much of an issue. The cost here is where you place it - if you do the brushing then the cost is nothing but your time.

They do need "Heartworm" medication monthly as a prevention to Heartworms. The cost is around $15 per month per animal.

Next is flea and tick prevention. You can give them a bath each month and apply atopical preventative medication or you can give them the chewable variety. The cost is around $30 per month per animal.

The next is the largest cost, food. This cost will depend on how well you are willing to treat your animal and how much you can afford. Most of us want our animals to receive the best but we can't all afford what is best. Canines are carnivores and that means that they do need meat. Many dog foods on the market claim to have meat in them but you really need to research them to see what their source for protein actually is. My dogs are given a wide variety of food but they each receive a chicken breast in their food each day. Because of the wide variety of how you might feed your animal the cost is really up to you. But a diet of only dry dog food or that in combination with canned foods really is not adequate. But you could give these kind of foods and add a chicken breast and make it much more suitable. Again how much you spend is up to you.

Oh, the food consideration is how much how often. For puppies they need to be feed 3 times a day. After age 1 they can be trimmed back to 2 times a day unless they are hyper active where they would still require feeding 3 times a day. At age 2 all dogs are fine with twice daily feedings, My dogs are feed at 6 AM and 6 PM.
 
Depends really. If you buy quality food, pet emergencies if they are chewers. Etc. But presuming everything is going good factor in 10-100 for pet insurance, 80 for food (it's good to factor high) 60 for toys, a good high quality bed so let's say another 100 (if it's a chewer you'll be replacing that or the couch) bones/wood 50 doggy bags 20

So 300-400 factoring high. Good quality food abundance of toys and bones. We want the dog to be as happy as is possible after all. Theres even meat delivery services especislly for dogs but if your asking how much dogs cost you cant afford it. Its insanely expensive only the rich can afford that company. Best food you can find though far as I know.

So just ask yourself can you afford 400 a month for a dog? Not including money aside for emergency expenses?

What if your dog is intolerant to certain foods si you gotta buy thd more expensive bag. Etc. Great danes and their mixes are pretty much the only dog that interests me so that's all I know about really. Again those prices I said are factoring on the high side. It's just how I do my finances so when it costs less I'm happy and rarely costs more. Keeps me safe.

Anyways best of luck! Seriously get pet insurance.
 
Over the past decade I have averaged just under $2500/year for one dog, that includes food and veterinary care. We have never had insurance, so that is not included nor is the initial cost of acquiring her. Of note, that includes several years of battling cancer, a fight we seem to have won.

Most years the veterinary costs have been about half the total, with a few notable exceptions. Also, if this is your first dog, your first year's expense will likely be quite high as you learn what to do and what not to do. Not included in that are some costs not usually discussed such as increased rent for having a pet.

Edit: Vet prices vary wildly; shop around. I have found that skill and price are not neccesarily related and sometimes inversely so.
I have found expensive vets are typically not good vets and that the best clinics often have the best prices.
 
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5k a year is bs! As he said vet is something you can not guess, and that all depends on what you can afford and what the dog means to you. Food depending on breed and food maybe 100.00 a month. Vet assuming nothing drastic another $200 every 2-3 yrs. Once they are older may go up depending on your devotion to them. Monthly food cost is your most common expense but beware vets are not cheap and forgive me shit happens. When and if that happens it’s a matter of fiancés and your feelings towards him or her.
 
knotinterested said:
It kind of boils down to how well you want to treat your animal and how much you can afford.

Grooming really isn't an issue unless your breed needs to have an occasional haircut. Most large breeds only require brushing and once you get a routine established it isn't an issue. My German Shepherds are brushed daily but if you have to miss a day here and there it's not much of an issue. The cost here is where you place it - if you do the brushing then the cost is nothing but your time.

They do need "Heartworm" medication monthly as a prevention to Heartworms. The cost is around $15 per month per animal.

Next is flea and tick prevention. You can give them a bath each month and apply atopical preventative medication or you can give them the chewable variety. The cost is around $30 per month per animal.

The next is the largest cost, food. This cost will depend on how well you are willing to treat your animal and how much you can afford. Most of us want our animals to receive the best but we can't all afford what is best. Canines are carnivores and that means that they do need meat. Many dog foods on the market claim to have meat in them but you really need to research them to see what their source for protein actually is. My dogs are given a wide variety of food but they each receive a chicken breast in their food each day. Because of the wide variety of how you might feed your animal the cost is really up to you. But a diet of only dry dog food or that in combination with canned foods really is not adequate. But you could give these kind of foods and add a chicken breast and make it much more suitable. Again how much you spend is up to you.

Oh, the food consideration is how much how often. For puppies they need to be feed 3 times a day. After age 1 they can be trimmed back to 2 times a day unless they are hyper active where they would still require feeding 3 times a day. At age 2 all dogs are fine with twice daily feedings, My dogs are feed at 6 AM and 6 PM.
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Do you feed them a raw chicken breast? I have heard a lot about an all raw diet - would you do that if cost wasn't an issue?
 
I have never fed raw food and don’t know that I would not that I think it’s bad but I’ll admit I am lazy and from a convenience stand point raw food is a pain. In addition packaged food also has minerals and vitamins that are required. I have been fortunate that over the many years I have fed kibbles I have never dealt with allergy issues. I do purchase dog food brands that have never had a recall. I am not a nutritionalist but if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.
 
blue138 said:
Do you feed them a raw chicken breast? I have heard a lot about an all raw diet - would you do that if cost wasn't an issue?
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Some dogs are allergic to chicken which is a pain. Over here many raw foods have mixed meat and it's usually a chicken mix.
 
Autsfun said:
I have never fed raw food and don’t know that I would not that I think it’s bad but I’ll admit I am lazy and from a convenience stand point raw food is a pain. In addition packaged food also has minerals and vitamins that are required. I have been fortunate that over the many years I have fed kibbles I have never dealt with allergy issues. I do purchase dog food brands that have never had a recall. I am not a nutritionalist but if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.
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Best thing I did was switch mine to raw. Good raw brands are balanced over here.
 
I have a big dog. He costs a minumum of 200UKP per month but can float up to 300UKP per month. I wouldn't change a thing. Worth every penny.
 
Dunno about where you live. I own two large dogs. A stray and a husky.
A bag of 15kgs of Pedigree lasts me a month-ish but I also cook for them a pot of veggies with 1kg of minced meat which lasts around 2.5 days, maybe 3 if they're not as hungry as usual. I top that off with chicken wings and the chicken skeleton that butchers tend to throw out and they sell for very cheap.

I'd say it costs me around $5000 Ars per month which is around $73 USD and they're both very healthy. Lots of excersize, they're both fit, and my husky has a beautiful perfume on her coat and it soooooooooffffffffffftttttttttttttttttttttttttt

They like it more when I use minced beef in the pot rather than chicken but cow bones can be dangerous once they get dry and lose their elastic properties so I use beef for the pot and chicken for their teeth and "dessert"
 
As for vet fees, around $2000 Ars for both this year (inflation doesn't let me give you a "standard") for the rabies vaccine but not much more. They don't have fleas, lice, ticks, and no need to visit the vet other than a yearly checkup and rabies fortification
 
well, maybe OP doesn't want to get a dog if he can't give it the best life possible, maybe OP will think it's too expensive to have a new self-moving furniture, don't jump to conclusions, everyone has their reasons
 
My Golden Retriever goes though a 40 lb bag of food in about a month, which cost ~$50. Annual vet visit costs between $300 and $600 depending on how many extra tests and/or multi-year shots he's due for (I do 3 year rabies vaccines). Flea and tick prevention is about $200 per year (not included in the above vet cost). Recently my vet started offering a new single dose heartworm prevention that's good for a year and only cost I think it was about $60.

That's all the regulars. I do all his bathing and grooming myself, and don't do insurance. Then you have to be prepared for the unexpected which can cost a lot. My boy slab fractured 2 teeth a few years back which had to be extracted, that was roughly $1000.

Costs will go up as they age just like with humans. My boy is 9 and the vet wants to run a full wellness panel complete with cancer screening. It's gonna cost around $600, if anything shows up then it'll need to start being treated.
 
Zebby said:
I have a big dog. He costs a minumum of 200UKP per month but can float up to 300UKP per month. I wouldn't change a thing. Worth every penny.
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UKP may refer to: Ukrainian Communist Party
what currency is UKP?
 
4K usually. Food cost isn’t an issue usually for me but I do get him top notch dry food to supplement him. Most of what he gets I have shot my self and having a friend with an industrial grinder makes feeding him bones a reality. Vet bills are another thing that I really don’t feel like pulling out the paperwork for?
 
Wow! Sounds to me that some of you need to shop around for a new vet. There are four vets in my town and the one I go to has the cheapest prices. Your biggest cost will be your initial set-up. After that, it is mostly the food bill. Yeah, big dogs will need chew-toys or they will destroy your house. My cousin had a bull mastiff and they went through a fifty-pound bag of dog food a week. The dog could eat a large meat-lovers pizza form Dominoes by itself. A large rawhide bone would last a day. As far as vet bills are concerned, you should consider getting a credit card. $80-$100 a month for a big dog and that is for food.
 
@DannyWotan
i see your vet prices and holy shit do you guys get choked by healthcare
both human and animal

I never spent more than $2k on both of my girls on a regular checkup and $11k on a 3-day ICU and 2-day observation due to gastric hemorrhage and which my girl came out well.
passing those to USD, you get $29USD for checkups and $160 the hospitalization
 
lonewolf8 said:
as much has been said it does depend on the dog vet is the most cost if you are going to take care of him as you would yourself heartworm for my boy cost about 50 and that is for 6 months supply of pills flea and tick my vet recommends the collar it cost about 69 and last for 8 months don most of the grooming myself becuase i trained them when i was in the military but about every 3 mos or so he gets a spa day bath nails the works as far as food he gets the canned alpo and the dry when he will eat it but most of the time he won't eat unless a last result because he knows he can eat what i eat lol steak chicken pork chops fish and yes of course vegetables too owner of a 3 year old male shepherd from NC
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Vet cost is relative to where you live. What it cost to keep the business running will affect the cost to you. I live in NJ. Taxes are high here so I end up paying more in the final cost. As for food alpo isn’t the best. Up the quality a bit and your more then likely to get better results on his eating habits.
 
lonewolf8 said:
what would u recommented
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Depends. Budget will determine what’s on the list.
it’s one good reason why most of what I feed Jake is game taken in the field.Instinct Original is mixed with game meat and organ meat with finely ground bone meal and vegetables that were steamed and puréed and mixed with the rest. If he’s really working himself up just running with his sand vest I add 2 eggs as well. I know I go over board, but when it comes to him, no short cuts.
 
Good man. ? try blue or taste of the wild.
The way I explain it is not chipping on food equates too less vet bills in the end. If you want do a dog food comparison on google. It will line up pros and cons along with ingredient explanation and weather it’s healthy or not for them. Good luck on your journey to better canine health. It’s far over looked.
 
I recommend pedigree (the yellow bag with the golden) or eukanuba (the black bag). The latter is rather expensive but either way, putting raw chicken bones or bone-less meat in the diet is the best

even better taking them for a hunt. spend time with them and they get plenty of excersize running around the field
 
LittleBitKnotty said:
If you have to ask how much the cost is then maybe you shouldn't even be thinking about it... Just saying!
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In certain circumstances that is true. However when speculating on acquiring an everyday animal it's not that unrealistic to look into. I make 19 an hour usd and I would still look into it per breed and so on. It's good to go in informed rather than ignorant no matter your financial situation. Now that statement is totally true if your looking at tanks or sports cars or some other ridiculous thing
 
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