Saving Our Dog From The Cost-Of-Living Crisis.

 As the economy falters, as more and more people lose their job, lose their home or apartment, or simply can no longer afford to pay their regular bills (for whatever reason) the first to feel the cutbacks, can, at times, be our pet. Dogs and cats are being abandoned in droves. Click here for more info. First off, if this is you, I am imploring you NOT to leave your pet abandoned on the road or tethered to a fence or ditch. No one may find your pet and your beloved animal may die a horrible death. Don't do this to them! You are all they know and they trusted you to take care of them forever. Bring your dog or cat to an animal shelter, in person, and hand over your pet to a real human being. Never abandon an animal. No judgment. Just do the right thing.

Back in 2020, during the height of the pandemic, my daughter bought a little mix breed (Maltese and toy poodle) from one of her neighbors in her apartment building. His own dog accidentally got pregnant and gave birth to four adorable puppies. My daughter bought one, a female, for $1200 as a gift to my granddaughter so that she would have someone to cuddle and keep her company during the pandemic. Three days later, they were forced to give up the puppy because my son-in-law was allergic! My granddaughter was heartbroken and filled with tears.

Enter grandma (that would be me).

I couldn't stand to see the puppy given back to the breeder. The puppy and my granddaughter had already bonded. Besides, the puppy would know she was going back to the breeder and I didn't want the puppy to feel abandoned. Don't underestimate animals. They know what's going on around them. Anyway, I agreed to take in the dog, raise it and make sure our new beloved member of the family would always have a home, be well taken care of and she and my granddaughter would be together always. Or at least once a month when grandma (me) came to visit.

This is a blurred photo of my granddaughter and our then 8 week old little puppy, Miss Daisy.

The breeder never had any of his brood see a vet, so instantly my daughter and I got hit with several vet bills. The puppy needed her first wellness exam, be neutered and receive several vaccinations. All of that came to around $800 and my daughter and I, for one time only, split the bill. Grandma (that would be me) would be solely responsible for all future vet bills. Knowing that, I immediately got pet insurance for my little 8 week old puppy @$25 a month (now $30 a month) and I've been faithfully paying for the pet insurance ever since. It's come in handy a few times when our little Miss Daisy tested positive for Lyme disease. 

Grandma raised and trained Miss Daisy. She and the pup became instant fast and loyal friends. Despite never weighing more than 14 pounds, Miss Daisy became a "ferocious" guard dog. No body can come close to our home without hearing a ruckus first!  Miss Daisy is quick to lay on her back, enjoying a doggie biscuit or two while getting her belly rubbed. Because Miss Daisy is so small, I was able to 'potty train' her to a cage that I kept in my office. It's so nice NOT to walk a dog at any hour of the day, through rain, snow, wind and hail. Miss daisy is so small that if and whenever she gets walked outside, if the weather is bad, she comes back wet and soaked in mud (thus needing a bath). No thanks. Grandma supplies the 'potty' cage. Grandpa washes the reusable cage liners (thus saving money). Miss Daisy does her 'thing' in the cage and since Grandma and Grandpa are always at home, things get cleaned up immediately. No fuss. No muss and NO smell!

My husband and I have always owned a dog. Our last dog, however, unexpectantly died in our kitchen. She was only 10 years old and when examined by our vet, we were told she died of an enlarged heart, partly due to environmental forces and probably toxic dog food. We didn't realize it at the time, but we are very keen about good health and healthy eating now!! Even for a dog! It's no secret that many of the current dog foods on the market today, despite their false claims, cause more harm to animals than we realize. We also came to understand that many of the vaccines given to our pets are unnecessary and can at times be toxic to our animals. So, hubby and I did two things: we follow the advice of an online organic vet and feed our little Miss daisy the best food we can both make and buy. We use many organic remedies vs OTC toxic/carcinogen for either pest control (actual pesticides are applied to an animals skin!!) or home health care. 

The organic Professional Vet we follow is posted below. In the summer I now spray my little doggie with a home concoction of coconut oil, witch hazel and turmeric essential oils as a means to ward off fleas and ticks. And guess what? It works! No more fleas or ticks on Miss Daisy's body and no more dangerous pesticides. Miss Daisy gets her fair dosage of Brewers yeast and we combine fresh foods (chicken, salmon, turkey and an occasional round of beef) mixed with natural, healthy kibble (click here for more on dog food). For treats she gets cut up carrot sticks, apple slices or a taste of real cheese. NOTE: be very very careful what human foods you feed your dog or cat. Some human foods are toxic to pets. For a complete list of acceptable and healthy human foods to feed your dog or cat, click here. 

Dr Jones, Natural health For Dogs and Cats (click here).

I cook four chicken legs @.89 cents a pound (in our insta pot) every week, shred it and combine it with a very healthy kibble. It also gives me a free pint of chicken broth that I use in my own personal cooking recipes. (I am not a vet so I can not recommend anything. Watch the video on pet food here and make your choice from there.) This helps save me money plus my little doggie is eating very well, which will cut down on future vet bills.

Here's Miss Daisy, all grown up and looking adorable!

The next thing I did with Miss Daisy in my quest to continue to save money so that our little doggie can be with us forever and ever is I do ALL her grooming. As you can see Miss Daisy has longish hair and if not groomed properly can lead to matted, tangled hair. The first time I took my little doggie to the groomer I got hit with an $82 bill! You read that right. Because Daisy's hair grows quickly she needs to be groomed every month. Ka-ching! That's $984 a year and doesn't include tips.

What I did instead was take that $82 and buy grooming tools. I bought a pet-specific hair cutting tool, from Amazon, called a 'OneIsAll'. Here's the link to Amazon, click here, for only $25. I started watching grooming videos on YouTube and after a few, not-so-perfect cuttings, I got the hang of it and have been doing Miss Daisy's grooming for the last four years. In today's pricing of $125 per grooming visit, that's a savings of $1,500 per year. Will my doggie win 'Best In Show' awards? I doubt it. But she looks fantastic to me.

To make our home-grooming events more realistic, I also bought a rotating grooming table with a tether, from Amazon. Click here to view/order for $45. My little puppy loves it and it's perfect for getting her to stand still while I do my magic.

Here's Daisy on the grooming table, waiting for her close up.

And here's Miss Daisy's close up. Perfect IMHO every time!

The last part of the home-grooming requirement was getting a good set of doggie clippers. I bought those also at Amazon (BTW, are you getting the hang of it that I love, love, love Amazon?) You can get these scissors for $20 by clicking here. I did buy nail clippers BUT I just can't cut my dogs' nails. You have to be super careful because if you cut too close, the paw will bleed. Instead, one of the local groomers here where I live, as a service to the community, will cut your dog's nails for free. She has a certain reserved time during the week to do this. I just walk right in, she drops everything and she and another groomer professionally cut my puppies nails. I give them a $10 tip (as our local vet charges $32 to clip a dog's nails!!) 

Lastly, thanks to Dr. Jones and his YouTube videos, I figured out what vet bills are necessary, what vaccines are required for my doggie's continued good health and how I can continue to save money and keep our little baby home with us forever and ever. Not all vaccines or vet procedures are vital. Do your own vigilance and investigate what is good and needed for your own pets. For example, we live in the northeast. Some vaccines are for animals, out west, exposed to wolves or who drink out of wild ponds or streams. My doggie doesn't come in contact with any of that nor is she outside, alone, drinking out of ponds, rivers or streams. So, she doesn't need the Leptospirosis vaccine. This saves us money and keeps my doggie away from unhealthy veterinarian pet procedures. An annual vet visit used to cost me over $450 a year. Now, we've gotten it down to $253 a year.

Before Miss Daisy gets her monthly groom, Grandma (that would be me) gives Miss daisy a bath, in my jacuzzi tub, using only organic doggie shampoo @$9. Click here and yes! it's from Amazon. As a cancer survivor myself, I understand the importance of using good, clean, non-toxic products on my dog. Period. Dogs can get cancer too and I wouldn't wish that disease on my worst enemy. When I spent my last year (2024) in treatment, guess who was always by my side, in bed, giving me companionship and comfort while I underwent brutal bouts of chemo and radiation? That was my little Miss Daisy. None of us had any idea the importance this little dog would have to any of our lives. If I tell you I am NEVER giving this dog up, for anything, believe me. I'd rather go without and suffer than have my little Miss Daisy go without. She comes first here. Never, ever underestimate the power of an animals love towards you. I will admit, I had no idea that animals could feel such love towards a human being. But it's true! Animals are to be respected, cared for and loved. Period.

If for any reason, you can't take care of your pet, don't despair. Write to me and together we will find a solution for all of us. (PlentyAtSeventy@yahoo.com)  This cost-of-living crisis is killing all of us. Horses too! Inflation is destroying us BUT we can and must band together and fight back. If you want to help by volunteering at an animal shelter (which I am going to do as soon as I am better fully) or make a donation, or drop off bags of dog food or kitty litter at one of your local shelters, please do it! 

Oh my goodness! Look at that face! How can anyone say 'no' to that little angel?

Like this post? Want to read more? Sign up as a Follower and instantly get my next posts as soon as I hit 'send'. Comments are most welcome, provided they are respectful and considerate. 

Want to join Amazon? Click here for the link. Happy shopping! Please note: I make a small commission if you use my link and make an Amazon purchase.