Before you start thinking about what to name your next dog or what breed you’d like, you should first think about everything that goes into owning a dog or other pet.
The United States is home to around 70 million pet dogs and around 80 million pet cats.
That is a lot of pets, and it’s why it seems like everyone has one.
Actually, most RVers have some sort of pet too – dogs, cats, turtles, and even parrots.
But, according to the ASPCA, about 7.6 million animals enter animal shelters each year, and one-third of them are brought in by their owners.
Yes, that means that millions of pets are sent to a shelter by their owners.
Why do so many pet owners give up their animals?
Well, according to a survey done by Petfinder, people relinquish their pets because they are moving, they own too many pets, the cost of pet maintenance is too high, and more.
Another finding from this survey is that 47% of dogs and 40% of cats are between the ages of 5 months and 3 years. Most dogs and cats are only owned between seven months to one year. This means that people are getting rid of their pets pretty quickly.
Lastly, 33% of dogs and 46% of cats that were given up had never been brought to a veterinarian. This is because many people do not realize how much time and money pets require!
Now, I absolutely love pets.
I have two dogs of my own, and, while some may disagree, they are members of our family. We bring them everywhere we go, we love cuddling with them, we regularly (almost daily) go on long hikes with them, we take them to the vet annually, and we just had multiple tumors removed from one of our dogs (so we understand what high vet bills are like).
But, many people take up owning a dog without fully thinking about everything that goes into owning one.
This can lead to surrendering the pet to an animal shelter. And, sadly there are approximately 2,700,000 pets euthanized each year.
I know that owning a dog or cat can be very appealing (they can be great companions), but before you assume you should own one, you should be realistic about your ability to care for a pet.
Related: 12 Things You Need To Know About Traveling With A Dog
Before you think about owning a dog or cat, think about the below:
Do you have the time for a pet?
Owning a pet, whether it’s a dog or even a cat, requires you to spend at least some of your time with them. In general, owning a dog will take up more time than other types of pets. You can’t just crate your dog all day long and never take him or her out for walks or to run around outside.
Many people end up getting rid of their dogs because the dog has to be left alone for too much of the day. If you have to leave your dog inside for the majority of the day, it may use the bathroom inside of your home, destroy your couch, and so on.
Pets need to spend time with others, so before you get one, you need to make sure you can spend plenty of time with them.
Are you ready for the responsibility?
Owning a dog or other pet comes with a lot of responsibility.
You’ll have to find someone to watch yours pets when you go on vacation, you’ll have to think about what you’ll do with your pets if and when you’re gone for the day, the costs (discussed further below), and more.
A pet will require many hours of your day, and it’s not something that you can just shrug off.
Your pet’s livelihood depends on you, and they look forward to seeing you each day. You should look forward to spending time with them as well.
Do you realize that one day your pet will no longer be a baby?
One day, that puppy or kitten you brought home won’t be so tiny anymore. It may grow into a huge dog, even if the breeder told you otherwise.
I know many people who were told by a breeder that the dog they purchased would only be 15 or 20 pounds, yet they are 50+.
And, sadly many people give up their pets because they say they just aren’t as cute anymore.
Well, WHAT DID YOU EXPECT?!
Animals do age, and so will your puppy or kitten.
Getting a pet just because it’s cute isn’t a good reason. Your pet will get bigger and maybe not as cute, and you need to think about the next 10 to 20 years with them, not just the super cute baby months.
Are you prepared for it to be more difficult to find a rental?
Owning a dog usually means that it will be more difficult to find a rental, as the average landlord usually does not allow pets, especially dogs. This means that you may have to search further away for a rental that suits your needs, pay a monthly pet fee, and more.
According to the statistics I cited earlier from Petfinder, each year over 100,000 pets are surrendered to animal shelters, many of them euthanized, because the owner did not realize how hard it could be to move with them.
While it’s not impossible, you will have to try harder and it may even require more money to find the best rental.
Can you afford owning a dog or cat?
Dogs and cats are expensive.
Many people don’t understand the total cost of owning a dog or cat and only think about the cost of pet food.
Unfortunately, that’s all most people think about, and I am always shocked by that.
You will need to think about veterinarian visits, obedience classes, housing, and more.
The average cost of owning a dog or cat can cost anywhere from $500 to $2,000+ annually.
That is a lot of money!
If you cannot afford the costs of owning a pet, then you should wait to adopt one.
You need to make sure you and your family’s financial obligations are taken care of before taking on the cost of adopting a pet. Considering that the average person only saves around 5% or less of their salary each year, the cost of owning a pet ($500 to $2,000 a year) may severely impact your ability to save any money at all.
Plus, no pet deserves to be surrendered at an animal shelter. If you are upfront and realistic with your financial obligations, you can prevent another pet from being surrendered and losing their family.
Are you interested in owning a dog? Do you think that some people jump into pet ownership?
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Antoine de Saint-Exupéry – “You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed.”
I believe this about any child or animal that you take in – you took on the responsibility when you felt like it, when they were small or cute or easy. We don’t get to just brush our hands off when it’s not easy anymore and say too bad, fend for yourself.
I’ve owned dogs most of my life and they’ve always been one of my top priorities. Dumping them was never an option, no matter how poor we were, we didn’t get to cross them off the list just because we didn’t have much money. I always found a way to cover their needs, even if I didn’t always take the most expensive (which wasn’t necessarily the best) options for care. They never went hungry, and they were never left untreated.
Even now, I’ve been wanting to add two more dogs to our pack but we can’t afford to give three large dogs the diet and care and attention that they deserve, so we’re waiting.
Great article! As the last comment mentioned, too many people think of their pets as disposable. A pet needs to be taken care of for his full life. We have three pets and, yes, it costs a fair amount of money to take care of them properly. They have gone through a few moves with us (including 2 rentals – therefore, severely limiting possibilities) and are a major factor to consider when traveling – all things to consider before getting a pet. But they are family and we would never ever give them up. People definitely need to be aware of the costs and other factors before getting a pet.
this is why people who are interested in a pet should adopt an older pet first, especially if they’re not used to all the activity a young pet entails. At least with an older pet, you don’t have it as long as a puppy/kitty, so if your life changes drastically in 5-7 years, your pet may have passed away (in a comfortable place), so you wouldn’t have to give up the pet.
Cats are one animal in particular that people don’t realize can live a LONG time, longer than most dogs. You could have a cat live to the age of 21 easily, especially if it is an indoor cat with no major health problems (like renal failure which can be common older cats who eat a lot of starchy dry food). People who adopt a kitten do not realize that they are signing up to a 21-year commitment. Yes, cats can be less maintenance than dogs (especially if you have an automatic-style litter box), but they still need love, affection, and play.They also can destroy furniture (dogs too), and so anyone with a nice leather couch needs to realize that the only pets they should be contemplating are ones in cages or tanks. Declawing is extremely inhumane and if that’s the only way you’ll get a cat, opt for a fish please!
I would love a dog, but I know our house is already full with our cats. Maybe down the line, we might consider it, but for now our house is full. It wouldn’t be fair to a dog if we adopted one now. We might actually go the older dog route when that times comes–there are so many older dogs in shelters that need a loving home to leave this world in, and I know I would prefer their less-energetic lifestyle as well! 🙂
I totally agree with you on this one! Our pets are our family and I don’t understand people who decide to neglect or give away their pets any more than those who decide to neglect or give away human children!
I absolutely agree with this! I think it’s so crazy when people get mad at their dog for being hyper or naughty when they never give it any training or exercise and attention.
Our pup is our baby. He has traveled with us and we’ve had to may extra for apartments to keep him with us. I can’t imagine not having him with us all the time.
We rescued a dog over 4 years ago. It is a lot of work. Luckily my wife works from home which means this dog pretty much hit the lotto. It is amazing how much more complicated it becomes to go on a vacation or short trip. “who’s going to take care of the dog?” is a big question that needs a really good answer every time.
For us, I think having a dog while we are working is better than when we retire. I’m not sure i’m going to want to be tied down to having to take care of my dog when I’m retired and headed out on routine trips. Will be something to consider pretty hard as we near that time in our lives.
YES!!
So many people do not take long-term care into consideration when getting a pet. My “free” dog cost me well over $3,000 her first year of life. After ten years, we’re well into 5 digits, I’m sure. She was a horrible puppy – stubborn and SO HARD to train, but she’s an amazing dog and partner in crime now. I don’t get to go straight to happy hours after work, or stay out all hours like a lot of my pet-less friends do, and I’m 100% OK with that. This is part of the responsibility of owning a dog, and she comes first, no matter what.
She’s my kid, and I wouldn’t give her up for anything. I’ve lived in a few states now, and many apartments over the years, and yes, renting is expensive with a pet, but I’d never consider giving her up. If I can’t find a place, then I guess I’ll just be sleeping in the car with her for a while.
Once she’s gone, there will be another dog. And I’ll do it BECAUSE of my girl now – to give a shelter dog a loving, easy life is the best way I can think of to honor her. I wish I could have another cat, but my asthma and allergies won’t allow it. I had to promise two doctors and a LOT of family that my last cat would be the last one. So, I just obsess over cat pictures online, and smother any cats I see at friend’s houses!
I’m a dog person and recently lost the first dogs I adopted as an adult (they were 13 and 14). I’m well aware that even *I* probably don’t want to know the sum of their care over the course of their lives. It would exceed $100K easily. That’s a shocking number. One of my boys needed two TPLOs in one year – just those costs added $8500 in 2009. Some of my costs are by choice higher (raw food, old dog physical therapy and acupuncture), but most costs are hard to avoid – they’re just part of dog ownership.
To me, the dogs are worth it. They added more than $100K+ worth of enjoyment to my life. But that wouldn’t be the case for everyone – and I think this is a great article to help get people thinking along these lines. I’ve prioritized my dogs so that I can afford it, but I do recognize dogs limit some of my ability cut costs to increase my pace to financial freedom. Heck, I bought them an RV (not really, but they were a big reason why RV travel is so great for me and why I felt it was worth buying one) and I need property with a yard for them (when not in the RV), etc. So they drive up costs in many other categories than just their direct care. They are even written into my will (a cash allotment for their care to be provided to the person that takes them).
I used to volunteer at the puppy rescue I got my pups from, and I found it scary how often people would struggle to scrape together the $95-$125 adoption fee (or not be able to come up with it in cash, etc.). I would think: if you can’t afford this fee you DEFINITELY can’t afford to own a dog (let alone a puppy!).
There are now a lot of pet care plans to help make costs more predictable. Pet insurance is an option to help with unexpected expenses. I’ve had a lot of people ask me my opinion on pet insurance, and I boiled it down to the following:
-If you have a “farm” mentality (i.e. if the pet is sick/injured just put it down), you probably don’t need pet insurance.
-If you love your pet like a family member and can’t afford a $3500-$5000 surgery/event, find appropriate insurance.
-If you love your pet like a family member and have the discipline to self insure or the cash reserves to handle what might be thrown at you ($10K+ in a year is totally possible; it happened to me), then plan on earmarking some funds.
If you choose insurance, read the coverage carefully and know what you’re getting. I think the market has come a long way in the 12 years since I was looking into it for myself, but at the time it was roughly $100/month (that might have been for two dogs?) and there was a $3500 cap PER SYSTEM. I didn’t like my odds on that… if my dog needed new knees – as he did – it would’ve capped out after one surgery and any other “skeletal system” issues would not have been covered. I figured it was unlikely my dog would have things become issues in a nice distributed pattern across his “systems” – more likely to have concentrated issues in a system or two.
I’d estimate that we’ve spent close to $20-25,000 so far on our 11-year old Saint Bernard. A big portion was to move him internationally 3 times, but vet bills are really high as well for a dog that size. He has his own budget line items for sure, because he is EXPENSIVE. He’s part of our family as well, and we take care of him as such. I’m shocked by those numbers-so sad!
This is so important to think about! I hate hearing about surrenders. Actually, a number of our pets were surrenders I took in and couldn’t rehome! But we love ’em!
Thank you for your honest post. I wish that I had read this 3 years ago. I recently lost my Missy after having the honor of her companionship for those 3 years. I never gave her up- despite my mistakes and the challenges- because I was her 4th home in 5 1/2 years.
That being said…Yes, I was one of those people entering into this responsibility without thinking it through completely. She was my first pet since 1992. Having a vet emergency visit- or annual vet care- is much different from me and my free Doctor visits and $2.00 med co-pays. My limited income should have made me wait until I could truly afford it. There is nothing worse than the fear that colored my experience. Is she in pain? Is her limp an emergency? What if I max out my credit cards? What if? Thankfully- I did it.
But, I see blog posts all the time about the joy of adopting senior dogs from the animal shelter. And- I can only shake my head at the posts and the comments. It’s so important to know what issues you could be dealing with…..and how much all of that costs…..first. The average cost, here, of a vet fixing a broken leg is $7,000.00. One emergency visit- along with tests and meds- cost me over $800.00. Your post should be handed out at shelters to all prospective adopters. Thank you.
Hi Michelle,
Thanks for this great article! I totally agree with you. Owning a pet is the same as having loved ones in your life. Pets cost cash and time and they may not be the best choice for everybody. I can’t imagine my world without my pets. But, at the same time, I’m invariably swamped with disappointment that people are simply leaving their dogs as they don’t wish them any longer. So, it’s better to adopt a pet if you can’t afford to own one.
I think too many jump right into pet ownership without analyzing what it implies first. And it’s actually happened to me back when I lived at home!
My sister rescued a puppy (the cutest puppy of all time, might I add) and wanted to give it away. However, my ex insisted we adopted it as our pet. So we did. Well, big mistake, because when we broke up and I moved abroad, there was no way I could take the dog with me so we had to give it away. The dog’s actually doing great now, had a few sets of puppies already and lives with a loving family, but the change wasn’t easy (dogs suffer too, some probably more than humans).
Great article. Owning a pet is ALOT more work than most people think. Articles like this help new owners understand the magnitude of owning a pet before jumping in.
Our dog Charlie last year started having issues with his urine. We brought him to the vet and we were told he had kidney stones.
Our first quote was $2,000 for emergency surgery! Thank God we asked other options. He was put on a prescription medication to help pass the stones and keep them from coming back. It’s work like a charm! We were able to save the $2,000 by not having surgery. His food is a little bit more expensive but we can live with that.
I went through this a few years ago with my dog! I was working full time and going to school full time so I was busy and broke. My mom had gotten a puppy and turns out the puppy didn’t get along with her cocker spaniel so she gave him to me.
I felt so guilty for those couple years because I loved him to death and when I was home we would go for walks and he would just follow me around without his leash on my college campus (he made a lot of friends).
But there were days that he was in his crate for 5 hours in the morning while I was in class and then after I came home to let him out he would be back in his crate for another 9 hours while I went to work. It made me sad! But now things are much better and he is a great dog…he’s really my BFF.
But to this day here is my mom her 50s making all these emotional pet purchases. She has gotten rid of four dogs and several birds in the last 8 years for various reasons.
And then there was the time she thought it was a good idea to buy a boy and a girl hamster and put them in the same cage. Well 200+ hamsters later she had a real problem in her basement. Now she’s settled down though…to two dogs, a cat (she’s allergic), four goats, five rabbits and six chickens. She apparently hasn’t learned anything.