Owning a Pet When You Cannot Afford a Vet?

Yes as a pet owner it is the responsibility to assure the pet is well taken care of. I won't say that if one can't afford to pay a vet one should not own a pet, but it is important that when they do get sick and it is beyond our own caring that we do what it takes to assure they get well. I currently do not have a pet, simply because my landlord is a meany and will not allow them in our building. But if I could I would make sure mine was taken care of well and assured it got their exams, shots and or to the vet when sick. How would I manage, would be to carefully think about this before hand and save a bit on the side to assure I could and or make payment arrangements with the vet. This is what I did while raising my kids, who were well taken care of. So the same would apply to my pet as I would feel he is part of my family.

Well sometimes things happen. I am a pet owner. We never adopted an animal without the means to care for them. That said my hubby lost his job in April. He has been doing odd jobs and short term jobs but hasn't been able to get a permanent full time job. We are lucky that we have a vet right now who will work with us. Let me do some office work to pay for everyone's shots this year and so on. I sub there for the secretaries when they need me as well building up a credit for when we need it. One cat has allergies and needs a shot every three months or so. We did not take on our pets irresponsibly but life has changed. They are our pets but they are family to us. To get rid of my children's animals who are so much a part of their lives is unthinkable and I pray life gets better before we even have to think about it. Yes our dogs are with family members right now. When we where flooded we had no where to live and they where taken in by my folks and grandparents. None like cats and we found a place to live that will let us bring them along. This was a tough choice and my second daughter has cried every night for the last month because her dog is not there to sleep with her. Breaking my heart it is. I do think buying or adopting a pet when you know you cannot take care of them is irresponsible. Just like having a child when you cannot afford to care for them properly and you know that. That is for those who know they cannot care for them from the beginning, life happens, people deal with it the best they can.

Ok,You love Your Dog..but how would you feel being unable to pay for the treatment if it was sick or injured where Vet care would be the best thing to help? It would be stressful for You both financially and emotionally, watching the dog suffer while you were unable to help..

I think that when you have a pet, you have a responsibility to care for them. if they need medical treatment, you pay for it. somehow. fortunately there is insurance for pets, so large bills are easier to manage. some medical treatment can run to thousands of pounds, and without insurance, that would be impossible for a lot of people. as I keep rats, their medical bills are usually very small. they CAN be operated on, but it's very risky as they don't cope well under anaesthetic, so unless it was a very young rat, and the operation was something that would let them regain full quality of life and have a normal lifespan, then I would be very unlikely to consider operating. not because of the costs, but because it's not likely to do much good. so there is little use in insuring them. I had one that needed her teeth trimmed about once a month, and another that was very prone to respiratory infections. each of the visits only cost about £25, and I would never begrudge them a penny of it. I do think that with things like dogs and cats though, it's essential to have them insured so that if they need expensive treatment, you don't need to worry about whether you can get a loan or find the cash.

Hi Angell, There is a ,maxim in English, "Ct your coat according to your cloth" Yes, if you do not have sufficient fund to provide the pet what it needs, why do keep it? Not only me other people too would pass the same comment. They could go even to conclude that what you are doing is mere an affective. What I would do is to sell that pet and until I am economically sound I would not go or these pets. are economical sound.

I have mixed views on this as well. On one hand, animals are bound to get sick with old age, and if someone can't afford to pay for it - Are they doing it an injustice by getting them in the first place? Could the pet find a home with someone who could afford the bills? It's such a tough call. On the other hand, so many pets don't even have a chance of experiencing what it's like to be loved in a home in the first place, so just to experience a loving environment may be very healthy for them, even if in the future they may have lacking health care due to their owner's financial situation. I just feel like most animals would rather be adopted, taken care of, shown love and affection as much as they can, and take the risk...As opposed to them sitting in shelters, pet shops, etc. and never experiencing love at all.

hi angelee I love animals and we seldom went to the vet yet we had a dog and a cat and they stayed healthy too. we loved both dearly but unfortunately we had to sell our house and move to an apartment so we had to find good homes for both of them then we were doomed to no pets most apts.we could afford all has the same lousy rules no pets.Oh you could have fish but to me fish are ot pets at all.But really you can do a lot yourselves to keep dogs and cats healthy without expensive vet bills.

i never say that to someone as there are 2 reasons they may have a pet they cant take to the vet. when you have children, they bring in pets that need a home and want to keep them. when you are older like me, you may have gotten the pet when you had money for vets, like myself. then, the economy has caused you to cut back on vet bills, like me. ive been putting off taking coco till yesterday for her shots and check up. it cost me 80 bucks i coudnt afford but am going to do without some things for it myself.

The question is not that simple. It is as if people should not have children if they are not rich enough to give them all sorts of things (good schooling, a good health insurance, good school). Yet love is a lot more important than all that. And I think that instead of saying that people who love dogs but cannot affort a vet, there should be a free vet service for those people and their pets.

yes friend ,when we can not afford for the vet then it is really a bad feeling that we can t look after the pet in proper way. I am saying if there is a necessity to go to the vet then should make some or the other arrange ment for that.

I'm sure what the Animals in the world needs first it's love, we should stop eating, testing and wearing them and when one wants to have a pet their love is the most important thing. Now if they get sick both Animal and Owner will suffer a lot if they don't have the means to take the poor Animal to a vet. But still, love is the most important thing cause then the owner won't just dump the animal on the streets, will give many happy memories to the animal and that's what matter the most.

this is were i am glad were i live it is illegal not to take your animal to a vet if it is sick. if you live in a country ere you have to pay for health care and your kid becomes sick child services will take your kid away if you do not get them health care they require it should be the same everywhere for animals as well

Nobdy can dictate to anyone else what they should or should not do. If you want a pet, get a pet. Of course there are going to be problems which will require expensive treatments. But that shouldn't stop you. The most important thing you can give to your pet when he is hurting is love. And that is for free. Some of my pets have been sick. And, I can't afford a vet. But, I learned something. In MOST cases, animals have the power to recover from illnesses without any treatment. Of course, it happens faster with a vet. And it is easier on the animal. But, just because your pet is sick, that doesn't mean it will die because you can't bring him in.

I think that if you can't afford a pet, you shouldn't get one (unless you somehow get stuck with one). But if you already have the pet and you end up with a lower income and it would be impossible to pay an expensive vet bill, then just be very careful with your pet. It's not as likely that you'll ever have an expensive bill than it is that the pet will be emotionally scarred by being given away from its owner of many years. Besides, most people (I think) probably could ask their parents for a couple hundred dollars now and then if they really needed it, especially for a living animal. So even for people with not a lot of money, it wouldn't be that bad to have a pet.

I am like you, but doubly so.. Ironically it was my husband's idea to get two dogs, and I don't regret it, but it does cost us twice as much for their care..what ticks me off though is, my husband's instructions were, "You guys, (my son and I) take take of the dogs, feeding, bathing, grooming, etc.. and I will pay for their needs, food, vet bill, flea drops. Yet so far I have paid the vet at least once or twice, and have paid out of my pocket for fleas drops many times.. I can't afford it, my income is mylot and whenever I can get a dog sitting job, I don't have a regular paycheck every other week like he does... So, though they both did get their checkup and shots this year, they are way over due for flea drops that is going to cost us $30.00, which isn't bad for a 3 month dosage, except with two dogs, I need two packages, ($60.00) for a 3 month treatment..

Buying a pet is really expensive and so, that would mean that if you buy one, you should make sure to take good care of it. One of the ways to take good care of a pet is by taking it to a vet. Like people, pets need to have their vaccinations. It's one way of keeping them healthy. But I do know a lot of people who have pets but they don't take them to the vet. I guess it's just okay. But as for me, I make sure that my pets are updated with their different vaccines.