The Cost of Dog Parenthood

Cheaper than sending a kid to college; but still — BE PREPARED.

Twenty years ago, there were no Emotional Support Animals on planes, no Chewy.com, and probably no more than two different places you could go to get Fido a winter coat. Now it’s different. Dog family-hood in the early 21st Century is all I know. And I’ve made a spreadsheet about it.

I’m a dog mom, and I’ve got the Mother’s Day cards, coffee mugs and fridge magnets to prove it. Also, I have Gogo. He’s my dog, whose other title is The Sunlight in my Universe. When I picked him up from his foster home, all I had to plunk down was $275. Such a deal!

He was a mystery mutt, pretty-sure-he’s-a-pitbull-but-definitely-lab-boxer-plus-maybe-hound. I bought some food, a collar and leash, pee pads and a crate. His fur was kind of thin, so I thought he would need sweaters. That’s all I thought of, as expenses went.

If you’re thinking of getting a dog, but haven’t taken the plunge yet, this might be a good moment to take a hard look at the financials. If you already have a canine Sweet Baboo, this post may serve to confirm that you’re not alone, and you’re not imagining it: dogs get expensive.

The following cost estimates are based on my real bills, since 2016, and project forward from 2021 until 2033. In this scenario, this dog will live to be 17 years old. That’s optimistic for a large-breed dog, but not unusual for smaller breeds. Each family makes choices along the way: how expensive his food is; how many toys he gets; how often his bed is replaced. Each family will complete this adage its own way:

Shred it once, shame on you.
Shred it twice, that's coming out of your allowance.
Shred it three times...maybe we have to rethink the wisdom of buying you fluffy beds. Ok, ok. One more....

Some items are not optional, in my opinion, and were unknown to me before I got Gogo. For instance, in the past 5 years here in the Northeastern US, leptospirosis and Lyme disease have become so prevalent that many vets, including mine, recommend dogs get a vaccine for each, every year (Lyme vaccine and Lepto vaccine= $27 each this year).

Heartworm preventive medication, which used to be recommended mainly for Spring-Summer-Fall administration (prime mosquito time), is now generally recommended year-round, even here in the Northeast (Thanks a lot, global warming). For the vendor I use, that prevention comes to $112 each year. Without prevention, heartworm can be lethal. Even dogs under treatment for heartworm sometimes die from it. Not a risk I want to take.

	YEAR 1	YEAR 2	YEAR 3	YEAR 4	YEAR 17
ADOPTION FEE	275
TOYS	100	100	75	60
FOOD & supplements	900	900	900	900	900
poop bags	42	42	42	42	42
PUPPY SCHOOL	200	100
LEASH, HARNESSES, COLLARS	145	34	62	34
winter coat	60	60
TRAINING COLLAR (ELECTRIC)		110
ROUTINE VET CARE**	292	292	292	312
SURGERY, SPECIAL VET CARE		314	236	180	300
Medicine (antibiotics,pain relief etc.)	72	35	50	60	60
Flea & tick prevention	268	260	260	260	260
Heartworm prevention	112	112	112	112	112
Pet first aid kit				180
Bed(s) and crate	120	160	60
Human GOODS REPAIRS/REPLACEMENT	85	100	75
Human CLOTHING REPLACEMENT	200	120
FENCED-IN YARD (4′ high)		$7,000
Housing premium*			$1,400
vacation boarding (1 or 2 weeks/yr.)	280	385	0	150	300
City dog license	25	25	20	20	20
Annual total	$3,176	$10,149	$3,584	$2,310	$1,994
Lifetime total (lifespan = 17 yrs.)	$48,052

Purposely excluded here are the extras – like a fabric budget for making a fabulous bow tie collection, for example. Also, there is no allowance for major surgeries. A TPLO surgery (tendon repair, common for large and/or very active dogs) can cost thousands of dollars. You can consult gofundme.com for confirmation on that. Lots of owners saying “my dog needs this surgery…help!”

The extra-expensive years (so far) have been years two (splurged on a fence for the yard; gates on both sides) and three (fancy insulated doggie door purchase). These were, in large part, quality of life gifts to myself.

Take this as just one budgetary example, from a person who always, always wanted a dog, lives in a cold climate, and is highly risk-averse. Your results may vary.