YouMe&Bones Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 Hi everyone! I'm sure there have been a few posts on this but I did do a search looking for specifics on French Bulldog & in Melbourne. Looking to get a puppy, just want to make sure we can afford it! We live in St Kilda - looking for advice/prices on desexing(around 5 months) insurance, micro chip, shots, food & any other start up/first years costs. Any advice greatly appreciated! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Queen Maeby Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 (edited) I always put $500 aside, not including the cost of the dog, when I buy a puppy. It sounds like a lot but it's not really when you think of all the things it has to cover. Edited June 21, 2014 by Queen Maeby Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simply Grand Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 (edited) I'd be budgeting twice that (at least)! Not including purchase price. Depends on the area and male vs. female / simple castration vs cryptorchid but desexing alone can be $500 :) Insurance will be $30 + per month. Good quality food... Puppy should already be chipped by the breeder, and have had first vacs but you'll need the following 1 (or 2). You can go cheap on beds, toys etc but not worth skimping on the above! A healthy, happy, well bred puppy is well worth the investment though :) Edited June 21, 2014 by Simply Grand Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scottsmum Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 (edited) I got Scottie in November last year (Mature desexed dog).... Off the top of my head, our expenses have been Kennel - owned from last dog Trampoline bed - owned A few "blankies" - preowned Collar and lead -$30 bed - $10 Other, better, New bed - On sale $90 jacket - $45 - on sale (medium sized weather beta) Countless toys - too much to tally Night light - clip on collar + torch for me to walk in the dark Pre-adoption Health check with trusted family vet $50 (+ Heartworm test + 2 emergency trips to the vet already + One check up cause I'm a worry wort) + heart worm injection Flea treatment (Comb + Cpmfortus) $110 Shampoo - $5 Countless bags of food to trial - I dont want to go there. Approx $60 a month for high quality kibble (Ziwipeak + a bag of supermarket grain free) +approx $15 per week on fresh bones and mince to accompany his kibble Treats - too much to add up training - casual obedience class $20 per week + one large expense / Scent sports training (6 week course) This doesn't even come close to the total of what we've spent on him. He does need a dental too - just trying to save a little extra up before we do that. Obviously this doesn't include the cost of adopting him or his vaccination, chip or desex as that was all done before we got him. Edited June 21, 2014 by Scottsmum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esky the husky Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 (edited) Your pet needs to be microchipped before they sell it to you..That's the law so don't worry about that cost ;) Fritz so far Vaccinations 2 x $100 ( average) Chiro $35 4 x collars $ 50 2 x leads $20 Harness $40 Crate $70 on sale Bedding 1 x $10 cheap bed ( plus a free clothes beanbag) Council Rego $25ish Basic Training classes $110 for 10 weeks Worming I don't know about $50 We're on about our 5th or 6th 20kg bag of food. Trying out various brands $400 Meat ... don't know as it's a split cost with our adult dog. $960 minimum Oh and the toys, and the $500 worth of fencing for the new place and the $220 for a double kennel.. + purchase cost and airfares ( and the dog trailer because I ran out of room in my wagon ;) ) Oh and kudos to you for actually working out if you can afford it! Overlooked by many.. Also my figures are for a large breed, he's already 40+ kg so my costs are higher for most things ( food, worming, etc ) Edited June 22, 2014 by Esky the husky Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scottsmum Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 Your pet needs to be microchipped before they sell it to you..That's the law so don't worry about that cost ;) Ah yes - totally forgot about that! Brain freeze kind of moment... LOL - its just that its listed out on Scotties adoption papers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaCC Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 (edited) First year I probably spent $4000 easily. Not including puppy I haven't desexed either. Edited June 22, 2014 by LisaCC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VizslaMomma Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 First year I probably spent $4000 easily. Not including puppy I haven't desexed either. Thinking our costs are the same. We took a holiday interstate to chaffeur the puppy home LOL. His arrival selaed the best holiday we had for years. Earlier today I was looking at what I was spending for Horrible Herbert. Sure mounts up. We choose this so we are making sure the budget is there. Considering another expense. But that's for another thread. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Queen Maeby Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 (edited) I'd be budgeting twice that (at least)! Not including purchase price. Depends on the area and male vs. female / simple castration vs cryptorchid but desexing alone can be $500 :) Sorry, I didn't realise the OP meant in the first year :) When I first bought Grover I spent $500 initially and then $55 a week in the first year. This was well before he had any signs of cancer and needed treatment. So that comes to $3360 in the first year. eta Actually, Grover was pretty spoilt and had the best of everything. Maybe most people would spend half that on a small dog? I don't know. Edited June 26, 2014 by Queen Maeby Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Queen Maeby Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 What I do now is transfer $50 a week into an account for my Pug. Also, that budget included pet insurance and I don't have pet insurance now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunny1shine Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 1st year for our pup crate $100 pen $100 blankets $20 Teething toys $30 Puppy class $110 Dog Club $130 Breed Club $30 Desexing $300 vaccination 2 $100 vaccination 3 $100 lead $40 Collars $40 6 bags food $720 insurance $540 worming $80.00 council rego $40 flea $80 training treats $260.00 swimming $300.00 total $2,560 not counting all the random toys several beds she killed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christina Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 OMG I have never spent amounts like that on a puppy in my life. Lots of soft blankets around at present for around $5 each. Coles, Reject shop, Foodland etc, they are everywhere. Unless you want something ultra fancy or leather you can pick up a collar & lead for under $10 in variety stores & there is lots to choose from. Pet shops charge 5 times as much for the exact same thing. Big plastic dog beds are only $25 in most variety stores too. You don't have to crate but if you prefer a pen 2 packs of Bunnings compost panels, that is 8 panels total will give you a nice size pen for around $52. Plus $4 for garden ties to join it up. The breeder will have given the puppy one vaccine, so unless it was done at 6 weeks & useless, many wait until 8 weeks so pup should need one more not 2 or 3. Cost varies from vet to vet so phone around. Should be about $35 to $40. Desexing is variable to so phone around, prices may vary up to $150 depending which vet. Buy worming stuff online or in fodder stores, you save heaps for the same brands. I have never added up food, emergency vet costs or insurance so no idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scottsmum Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 To each their own - I wanted something quite specific for Scotties bed and was willing to spend up to $100 on it. I was reasonably sure he wouldn't ruin it. All bedding in it is recycled / pulled from around the home. Most toys are $3.50 monkeys from kmart, tennis balls,old soccer balls. The most expensive toy we have is a light up ball ($17) Our kennel and trampoline bed were the best quality money could buy when they were purchased - Scottie is now the 3rd dog who has refused to use the kennel ;) (a little plastic igloo) and the 4th dog who has lounged on the tramp bed - it's even been loaned out to other family members when we havent needed it. Better to over budget and under spend I say... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dogsfevr Posted June 23, 2014 Share Posted June 23, 2014 (edited) Yep we too wouldn't spend anywnere near what most are saying & we tell our puppy buyers not to go crazy in the first year either . Many new owners waste far to much money on buying things they don't need,aren't practical nor suit the dog money that could be set aside for other needed expenses , Dog coats make your own or we buy via horse places . Food your breeder will suggest a diet that suits the breed ,vet expenses can vary from crazy to realistic. We pay $145 to spay ,vets around us up to $5/600 . We don't flea treat as we don't have issues . Your biggest expense will be buying the breed itself they aren't cheap so finding a good breeder is a must Edited June 23, 2014 by showdog Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esky the husky Posted June 23, 2014 Share Posted June 23, 2014 I don't think my costs were excessive, it really depends on breed. Went through two cheap leads- broken. And outgrew 3x cheap collars, now with a decent $40 leather collar for a strong dog. Really food is the killer with a bigger dog. So it should be cheaper to feed a bulldog :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelpiecuddles Posted June 23, 2014 Share Posted June 23, 2014 Yep no way have I ever spent that much. Bedding has been $2 blankets from the op shop until they were older and then they got second hand shell type beds(which were actually given to me by a lovely DOLer but even if not I would have hunted some cheapish ones) which are still lined with blankets from the op shop. Main costs for us first year were desexing, vaccinations, worming and food. 1 collar and lead(buy the largest collar that will go down small enough to fit so it lasts longer), a car harness and a crate if you plan to crate train. I used blackhawk puppy which would last months for a pup that size at $80 for 20kg (I feed two med-lg dogs for 6 weeks on one bag). Cheap toys from kmart, etc I think it's a bit like having a baby, you can go out and buy the ridiculously expensive $1500 pram that Beyonce uses or you can buy a simple lay back from kmart for $40. What I have mentioned there are what I would call the essentials. Work out what you want to do in terms of unexpected vet bills. Some like to have insurance, I choose to have a credit card set aside for the purpose(so far we are well ahead even if we ended up with a vet bill of $5000 or more). Over and above that it's what ever extras you want, you can feed your dog in an old tupperware container if you want, it won't care, but do you want a fancy bowl or a collar with more bling, etc, they are extras you will pay more for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaCC Posted June 23, 2014 Share Posted June 23, 2014 My price estimate included emergency vet visits, lots of different foods because food sensitivities, and when he got his adult coat grooming supplies. I originally bought cheap ones but his hair was so thick brushes would be completely wrecked after 3 weeks. Without that it would be a lot less. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sash Posted June 23, 2014 Share Posted June 23, 2014 I've had my whippet puppy around 5 months now and have spent a lot by comparison to some others it would seem! From memory (and I'm sure I'll forget a few things) - Crate $80 Bed $100 Pollar fleece blankets $15 Toys $150ish Puppy collar $25 Adult collar $30 Leashes $40 Food and water bowls $25 Two winter coats $80 Six months worth of flea/tick/worming products $130 Vaccinations / vet visits $180 Puppy preschool $110 8 week obedience class $155 Council registration $40/year Food $250 maybe? I feed a mix of dry kibble, veggies and raw meat/bones so really have no idea exactly how much he costs to feed. I know I probably spoil him in the material sense (he's a whippet of luxury! :D), but I honestly think I enjoy shopping for him more than I do for myself. All that said, the most important thing is the investment of time put into training and socialisation with a puppy. I was fully prepared for the financial side of owning a puppy but the time investment to raise him right was something I definitely underestimated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Queen Maeby Posted June 24, 2014 Share Posted June 24, 2014 I'm putting $250 away a month until I get my Pug puppy in nine months... And I'm going to continue putting money away for my next Pugs. They have their own account called The Pugs' Account :laugh: I don't want to be a breeder; I just want four Pugs (and they will be desexed) :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Animal House Posted June 24, 2014 Share Posted June 24, 2014 It's been a while since mine was a puppy, but I bought a decent quality crate, a good quality lead/car harness, one or two good toys like kongs (all of which I still have 7 years later), but her bed was cheap, the same for blankets, because she chewed them all up in the first year anyway. :laugh: Got a few soft toys and balls from the op shop and $2 shop. She was fed mainly raw, so no expensive dry food either. I bought worming treatments and shampoo etc online. As for dog coats, she's had a few, but the Weatherbeeta one is the best/longest lasting. I think buying a good quality bed is important after the puppy stage. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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