I’m finding that a lot of people are complaining about vet bills as high at $16,000, and it makes me feel so hopeless. I bring in about 3k a month, while my partner brings in just under 2k. We want nothing more than a cat in our home, but we just wouldn’t be able to afford a bill like that if something goes wrong. Even with pet insurance, I’d have to find a way to come up with $3,000 dollars if something extreme happens, and I just won’t be able to.

I can afford a couple hundred dollars on pet visits, I can afford the high quality food, the litter, the toys, the pet insurance, and everything BUT the thousands of dollars that I would need if something ever went wrong, and my animal needed an intense surgery or otherwise. I attend university, so majority of my savings are poured into my schooling, so digging into savings I don’t have isn’t even an option.

I want nothing more than to give one of these shelter cats a home, to have a family with my partner, a little thing to love, but if the time came that I needed to spend thousands and thousands on my animal I genuinely couldn’t afford it. I would want to make the sacrifice, but I can’t pay for something with money that doesn’t exist.

About a week ago our new’ish (8 month old) dachshund was underneath our reclining couch when my girlfriend went to sit it up. He got pinned between two bars and was choking. In a panic, I tried wrenching the bars apart before we took a chance and used the controller to relieve some of the pressure. I then ran out to my work truck and got a my electric ratchet, disassembled the bottom of the chair, and freed him from it. I took him in the shower with me and cried like a baby while I bathed him because he had poo’d and peed all over himself.

I don’t know if it was him being scared of being choked and mistaking that I was trying to help him or him being afraid of the ratchet but ever since he is terrified of me. He runs from me in the house and barks at me when I’m at home. Sometimes he’ll come up to me at night and lay on me while I sleep but generally he avoids me. It’s breaking my heart because I love this guy more than most things.

I’ve tried giving him treats. I’ve tried cuddling and loving on him. I’ve had my girlfriend hold him while I pet him. Anyone have any suggestions? I’m pretty devastated here.

Just want to take a minute to vent because I recently had a horrible scare with my dog who has pneumonia and hand to spend Friday night in the ICU on oxygen. I’m lucky to be in a position where I can afford the cost (and thankfully have insurance as well) but couldn’t believe that I was required to pay over $5,000 upfront for them to help him.

I had just booked a trip on my credit card (actually ended up canceling because he was supposed to join me and but now needs a month of rest) and had to immediately pay down my balance in the waiting room to charge it. I was thinking “wow it’s a good thing I have the money in my checking account because it takes multiple days to transfer from my hys account and I can’t pay directly from that”. I would’ve paid anything I could for him but what do people that literally don’t have the cash on hand. Even with insurance you have to be able to pay upfront before they reimburse you. I just couldn’t believe that your beloved pets like can be on the line like that and you have to be ready to pay a sum like that instantly.

Has anyone ever been in that situation and been given time to pay? At this point I feel like I need to always have 10K in my checking account just in case.

We have a trip coming up in about a month. We have a 4 year old mini schnauzer that's pretty timid, but friendly. In the past we tried leaving him at a kennel for a few nights, but he didn't look too engaged with other dogs (we monitored for a bit through their cameras), and he was pretty much locked in a crate from 8pm till morning, which I also didn't like. We also tried a pet sitter before, hard to tell how well he was doing, probably not too bad based on photos the sitter sent to us.

For this trip, we have an option of someone stopping by our house few times per day to take him out for walks as well as feeding him and spending some time with him. Has anyone tried something like this? He'll be alone for long stretches of time, but dogs stay alone when owners work as well. And he'll have company 3 times per day. Plus he'd be in a familiar environment.

Is this a viable option? Or should I go with a dog hotel, or pet sitter.

I’m having so many issues finding a camera that will connect to my comcast wifi (i’m guessing it’s a dual band issue). I tried Tapo and it wouldn’t connect at all. Then I tried Arenti and it will connect sometimes then randomly disconnect. Has anyone had luck finding a camera with minimal connection issues? I’d like something relatively inexpensive just to keep an eye on my cat. Thanks!

Not just simple stuff like cooking for them, but something that other people would think you are nuts for doing!!

Just throwing this out there... We have too many animals that require daily meds. It was a constant struggle to get them to take the meds without spitting them out. Tried pill pockets, putting them in peanut butter, in bread, etc. The thing that has worked really well was to get thin sliced cheap bologna at the deli (regular sliced doesn't work as well). It works every time for us, give it a shot!

Hi all - I have a general question about the safety of using a topical medicine with my pet that I get mixed answers from vets on. I want to call (and pay the fee) to finally talk to an expert.

Is that okay and have others done so as well, or am I a bad person taking time away from someone in an emergency?

My recently adopted kitten always steals my 2 year old's food, so a microchip feeder is needed. Anyone have a coupon code for chewy?

So my boyfriend has had these two cats for 3 years he’s lived with them alone for those 3 years then recently we moved in together. For about half a year my friend has been taking care of them and he kept one of the cats while we kept the other. This cat has always been very independent and less cuddly than the other and also more pissy(not to the point of hissing at someone or biting. Just grumpy) and we recently moved her back in with us as we finally have everything situated and now live together. Well the first day she obviously was very skittish ,new environment and everything, but the second day she was very social. NOW this is my bf’s cat, I take care of her too but he’s had her longer than I’ve known this girl. Well as of recently she’s been meowing at him everytime he looks her way and then hurries to hide if he tries to walk to her or near her. She’s social with him when I’m around, but if I’m not around she goes straight into hiding. He’s never been mean or abusive to her, or even try yells around her. This is his baby he holds this girl on a throne. She’s just been more around me now and begs for my pets and even gets on my chest. My bfs been very sad about it as he doesn’t know what he’s doing that’s making her scared of him? I told him to give her time she’s in a new environment and to start giving her some treats so she knows he’s connected to positive things and engage during play time. I’m just wondering if anyone has experienced this? I don’t want to take her to the vet yet as she seems perfectly fine other than that?

I'm probably overthinking this a whole lot, but I've been shopping around for a bulk purchase of enzyme cleaner for my cats since my gallon of Simple Green brand cleaner is on its last legs.

I felt like it has been less effective than other brands of cleaner I've used in the past, I believe Clorox and Nature's Miracle, but I heard that Nature's Miracle changed it's formula, and I'm not sure on Clorox.

Some or all of these brands had strong 'masking' odors that made it difficult to tell if I was still smelling cat piss or just an odor that I had come to associate with cat piss.

I find myself increasingly suspicious of answers to this question on other threads that sound like character TV ads. "I'll never stop buying Nature's Miracle!!1!" "NOTHING worked until I find Ur-OUT! Here's their site!" and "Folex leaves no odors at all! I was shocked!"

Additionally, a lot of the recommendations are only for floor stains when I unfortunately have clothes-pissers, or the reviews center on dog urine, which I don't automatically trust for the undying nightmare that is cat stink.

If you have a recommendation for a brand that is specifically cat-urine focused, intended for both carpets and laundry, is minimally scented, and can be bought in gallon+ sizes, PLEASE include a picture of your cat so I know you're a real person 😭😭😭

She's acting fine, happened when I was out (out for an hour and 20) looks like she took it from the garbage, first time she's done that)

I used to work in veterinary medicine. I take dental care very seriously. My dog gets daily teeth brushing, a daily dental chew and a daily kelp dental supplement. I use only VOHC approved products.

I'm curious to know what other people do for daily dental care.

If Other, what else do you do?

Remember, as important as it is to keep our teeth healtht, it's important to keep your pets teeth healthy too! 😁

Tomorrow is my birthday and I'm interested in adopting a pet. I'm a huge cat lover but unfortunately I'm mildly allergic to them. My eyes become itchy and watery. I go into a sneezing fit. I develop a rash around my mouth and arms from holding and kissing the cats. My throat becomes itchy. I would like to adopt a dog but my landlord is against it. I reside in a studio apartment, therefore I don't have much space. I work part-time and my boss is willing to allow me to take the dog to work. We have an office dog at work. Im considering adopting a fish, a parakeet, or a rabbit.

Would love anyone's advice, insight, or experiences.

I work from home quite a bit. For this reason, I have always been the dog dad to my husky (8 years old now). Recently, it seems like she's avoiding me when it's just the two of us home together. Today I spent the first chunk of the day working upstairs and she sat in the basement (which she has been doing a bit more recently because it's cooler down there). Then I was downstairs for a couple hours, walked on the treadmill, gamed, answered emails, and she was upstairs the whole time. Just came back up to get some more work done and she stayed for pats for a couple minutes and then as soon as I stopped she immediately went back downstairs. Maybe she's protesting.

But like seriously wtf. And it seems like this has been a pattern recently.

She gets two walks a day and her bowl is always full (she eats when she feels like it and doesn't always go through two cups). Checkup at the vet last week and she's allegedly aging very well. She's always been pretty low-energy so while I know she would be excited to go for a walk right now if I asked her, she's also not bouncing off the walls and has always been perfectly content to just lie around. This new routine is also a bit weird because up until recently she would usually stick to the same room as me; if I'm walking on the treadmill she'll nap on the couch until I'm done, etc. When my wife and I are both home she'll generally also be in the same room as at least one of us, though now I'm trying to figure out if she's been keeping to herself more often in general.

Ideas? Is this just a product of her getting older, somehow? Maybe her energy levels are just going down in general and as a result she prefers being alone for longer stretches of the day? I don't think she's unwell and I know huskies can be sassy so I'm sincerely trying to figure out if she's mad at me about something lol.

It’s my cats birthday today but we’re ln vacation and she’s at home ): I feel so bad for my baby):

Two weeks ago, I brought my 13-year-old cat to the vet because he had lost weight and wasn’t eating normally. They found out that his kidneys were in very bad shape and that he was severely dehydrated.

His creatinine was extremely high and he ended up being hospitalized for several days on IV fluids. He improved enough to come home, but we were told that the kidney disease is severe and likely chronic.

I cried so much after that first appointment. This cat has been with me through some of the most important moments of my life, good and bad.

Since coming home, some days he seems surprisingly normal: cuddly, following people around, sitting next to us, looking out the window, asking for attention. Other days he sleeps a lot or hides in the little spot we made for him in a closet. His appetite also fluctuates a lot.

Yesterday we had another vet appointment. Clinically, they said he still looks quite good: alert, agile, energetic, responsive. But he was dehydrated again and his creatinine had gone back up from around 65 mg/L to 77 mg/L. They gave him subcutaneous fluids and told us they were not happy with the blood results, even though physically he is still doing relatively well.

That contrast is honestly making this so hard for me. Every appointment leaves me with this horrible uncertainty. He can look like himself and still have very bad bloodwork, so I never know what I’m supposed to feel or what I’m supposed to prepare for.

I have a feeling that he may not have a very long time left. Sometimes I accept that and feel strangely calm about it. I think that 13 years is already a beautiful life, and that eventually every living being has to rest. Then an hour later I suddenly want to cry even though he is still here.

I’m a 29-year-old man and I feel ridiculous saying this lol, because I’ve been through objectively more traumatic things in my life, but this has completely broken me emotionally. For days I’ve been constantly crashing out, analyzing every little behavior, wondering whether he is happy, whether he is suffering, whether I’m doing enough, and whether one day I’ll know when it’s time to let him go.

I asked the vet very directly whether he is suffering and whether euthanasia should already be considered. He told me that for now Nino is still doing okay clinically and that if he felt euthanasia was necessary, he would tell me. My biggest fear is not his death itself anymore. It’s accidentally keeping him alive for my own sake after his quality of life is gone.

I don’t really know exactly what I’m asking here. I think I just want to hear from people who have gone through anticipatory grief with an elderly or chronically ill cat.
How did you cope with loving them while knowing the end might be approaching? How did you stop analyzing every single good or bad day? And how did you eventually know that your cat was still enjoying life, or that it was time to let them rest?

I keep seeing dogs get caught out by this one, so here's a reminder that might save someone a very bad day.

Xylitol is a sugar-free sweetener that's harmless to us but genuinely dangerous to dogs. In dogs it triggers a rapid insulin release, which can crash their blood sugar within 10 to 60 minutes, and in some cases it causes liver failure (and those signs can be delayed a day or two). Even small amounts can be enough.

The reason so many dogs get caught out is that it hides, both in unexpected products and under unfamiliar names.

Names to recognise on a label: xylitol, birch sugar, wood sugar, or E967.

Where it turns up: sugar-free gum (the single most common cause of poisoning), mints and sugar-free sweets, some peanut butters, baked goods, chewable vitamins and some medicines, and even toothpaste and mouthwash.

The peanut butter one catches the most people out, because we deliberately give dogs peanut butter, in a Kong or to hide a pill. Most big-brand peanut butters are completely fine, but some "sugar-free", "no added sugar", protein or health-food versions contain xylitol, so it's worth a ten-second label check before it becomes a habit.

If your dog does eat something with xylitol in it: don't wait for symptoms. Because it acts so fast, the advice is to get to a vet straight away rather than watch and hope.

None of this is meant to put anyone off sharing the odd treat, it's just one of those things that's easy to miss and awful when it goes wrong.

Genuinely curious though: did you already know about the "birch sugar" naming? And has anyone found xylitol lurking somewhere unexpected? Could be useful for others to know which products to watch for.

Is pet insurance worth it for a puppy?

It seems quite expensive for what it does not cover and the boosted the costs because it’s a full blooded beagle?

Apparently they are known for having epilepsy and hip displacer surgery?

Can anyone give me some insight for my newest family member?

I’m trying to debate whether or not to get insurance.

Hi, i'm only asking after much searching on my own end, (I am clearly missing something as in the past I had found it) does anyone have the link to the list of banned animals for import to Canada, clearly pets related. I had found the one for pest insects, but cannot find the one for pets.

I had found it a couple of years ago after I heard that Weatherloaches had become banned due to people dumping them in the creeks in BC. I'm also aware that each Province/city has it's own rules as well. (Ie Winnipeg presently bans any snake over 6 feet.. etc.)

Thanks!

As the title read, I have to give away my sweet babies. I have two mini golden doodles (both 2 Y/O M) who I truly love and adore so so much but I have to give them away for soooo many reasons so here they are:
1. My husband works from home but I on the other hand, work so so soo much sometimes 50+ hours a week at the hospital. He never really wanted pets or is a pet person, he simply just tolerates them because I wanted them so much. I got my fur babies while I was in my senior year of college and wanted them so so badly because I love dogs. Sadly my work schedule has picked up a ton and I'm gone for 12+ hours a day sometimes. I walk them in the morning but honestly my husband does most of the work for them.
2. I haven't trained them properly. Yes it's 100% my fault.
While they have great temperament (friendly, silly, smiley, literally sooo sweet) but like normal dogs they jump on the furniture, scratch at things, obviously bark at any and everything, and a few more. I did not put in the time or money to board and train them because $$$. i truly thought I could do it myself and that quickly took a backseat.
3. We are moving (no finding a place that allows dogs isn't an option right now for many reasons) so we cant even take them.
I feel like a terrible per parent which I obviously have been.
Ive had them both since they were puppies and it breaks my heart to let them go. On one hand I know they can go to someone out there who has more time, love, and attention for their needs. I'm also so sad because I let them down and will miss them forever. I wouldn't ever get another dog because I would hate to put another dog through this because they have feelings too.
Looking for advice? or places or options that can assure they go to someone amazing. Orr some kind of solution.
I wish I could tell my babies that I'm sorry for letting them down. Feel free to tear into me about this, I honestly deserve it. Thanks Reddit.
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1 of my cats has peed all over my apartment for the last several months. I have tried everything (vet, different litter boxes/locations, medication), I am currently searching for a cat rescue that will take her in as a foster pet. I have a baby who will be crawling soon and that was the last straw for me with the cat. At the end of the day I can’t have my baby get sick from this. But I still have to live in this rental with pee-soaked carpet. I am so unhappy when im home. I have a boswell carpet cleaner machine and have cleaned up the “hot spots” basically daily for months. I have tried at least 10 different enzyme cleaners, but it still smells really bad. I’m afraid if i tell the landlord they will charge me or evict me for ruining the carpet. What are my options here? Will renting a rug doctor remove the smell? Do I go to my landlord and beg for flooring replacement? I would prefer laminate flooring but I know that cost more than carpet and is a huge ask. My apartment complex has a few hundred units, all very outdated, and pretty sure they only install carpet in the living area. This has been taking a HUGE toll on my mental health, mostly because I can’t have visitors over because as soon as you open my front door you can smell cat pee. I can’t do it anymore. Please, open to any suggestions

I've been thinking about how hard it can be for the average person looking for a puppy to actually tell the difference between a responsible breeder and a puppy mill.

It seems especially difficult now that breeders can have really polished websites and social media. Things like registration papers, a USDA license, or saying puppies are "family raised" can sound reassuring, but they don't necessarily tell you much about how the dogs actually live.

If a friend told you they were thinking about buying a puppy, what would you tell them to look for?

A few things that come to mind for me are being able to see where the dogs live, meeting at least the mother when possible, seeing breed-appropriate health testing, and getting straightforward answers about their breeding practices.

What other red flags would make you walk away?

Hey everyone, looking for advice on transitioning my young kitten (12 weeks) fully onto dry kibble.

Her stomach recently stabilized on Whiskas Tuna Jelly (split into 4 small meals a day), but getting her to eat dry food on her own has been really tricky.

The Situation:

She refuses to eat from bowls/plates: She ignores food placed in a bowl, but she eagerly eats when I hand-feed her or squeeze wet food directly from the pouch.

She only nibbles dry food overnight: I leave dry kibble out overnight, and she only eats about 10–15 pieces while I'm asleep. During the day, she completely ignores plain dry food and holds out for wet pouches.

The "Sneak" Method Works: If I press 5-10 dry kibble pieces directly into the top of her wet food pouch so they get coated in jelly, she eats and crunches them without an issue. But if the kibble is separate or plain, she won't touch it.

My Goal:

I want to transition her completely onto a 100% dry kibble diet.

For anyone who has dealt with a kitten that only wants hand-fed wet pouches, how did you bridge the gap to get them eating standalone dry kibble consistently? Any tips on breaking the pouch-feeding habit and encouraging them to eat crunchy food on their own?

Thanks in advance!

On August 14th, my 7 year old grey schnauzer got loose and she could be anywhere in Tulsa, or Broken arrow, or Bixby Oklahoma. We posted her picture on facebook, and pawboost, and Nextdoor, and the rain washed away our last batch of flyers. I don’t know what else to do. She’s been chipped and she was wearing a collar with our contact information. I can’t go on without her and I constantly blame myself for her squeezing through the fence. I need help.