Frugal Dog Lover Tips from admin's blog

In these hard economic times, every Dog Lover is looking for ways to save money. However, sometimes saving pennies now can cost you dollars in the future. As a well-informed dog owner, you are probably already aware of the potentially high costs involved in caring for a pet and have planned accordingly. Here are a few money-saving tips:

Take your dog to the vet regularly for check-ups. Check-ups are a lot cheaper than emergency visits! Be aware of your dog's normal behaviour and report any changes to your vet. Read-up on diseases that your breed of dog may develop so you can spot the symptoms early. Our Samoyed recently developed bloat and the fact that I had just read about the symptoms saved his life.

Don't skimp on nutrition. Ask your vet or breeder what type of food to feed your dog and stick with it- a well-fed dog is a healthier dog. Buy in bulk to save money. The cost per meal will be significantly cheaper.

Take care of your dog. Prevention of health problems is cheaper than curing them. Regular brushings and trimmings can prevent skin or eye problems and help you catch some disease symptoms early. Keep them free of fleas, ticks and heartworm. If you can, brush their teeth- tooth and gum health is very important. Some dogs will accept this more easily than others. My dog thinks it is a wonderful game and jumps around barking. I get about two teeth cleaned per session.

If you can, groom your pet at home. Smaller dogs are easy to bathe- just be prepared to get very wet! Clipping toenails can be done at home, too. Buy a good pair of clippers with a stop so that you don't trim too short and draw blood. This is usually more traumatic for the owner than the dog.

Make your own dog toys out of tennis balls, old socks, rope and empty pop bottles. As with any toy, keep an eye on the state of disintegration so your pet does not swallow pieces. If using old pop bottles, remove the lid, the little plastic ring and the label. Pop bottles make very popular and very noisy chew toys, especially when you are on the phone!

You can bake your own dog biscuits at home. There are many good money-saving recipes on the net.

If you have money-saving tips of your own, please let us know. We would love to hear from you.