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Money- Saving Tips for Pet Owners

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In America, 67 percent of people keep a pet. This isn’t surprising because being a fur parent comes with many advantages: companionship, stress reduction, and even improved health benefits.

 

But as a responsible pet owner, you must also invest a lot of time and money into looking after your furry friends. According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, pet owners spend more than $1000 on their pets annually. But how can we make the best decisions for our pets without breaking the bank? Here are some suggestions for saving money on your pet’s care.

 

Adopting Instead Of Buying

Buying an animal from a pet store or breeder is almost always more expensive than adopting one. According to Bechewy, purchasing a pet may easily cost you anywhere from $500 to $1000 or more, while adopting a pet can set you back just $50 to $350. The price variation for adoption is due to the organization’s different policies. For some organizations, vaccinations, spay/neuter, and occasionally a microchip are often included in the adoption fee. So, research carefully and partner with organizations you trust. The best part of adoption is that you’re not only saving money, but also saving a beloved pet’s life.

 

Buying Just Enough Pet Food

It should be no surprise that purchasing pet food in bulk will save you several bucks. Buying a larger bag saves you money per pound, especially when you buy from online vendors. However, these savings are useless if the food spoils! Think seriously about how much your pet consumes weekly or monthly before getting pulled into the temptation of bulk discounts. Also consider that a husky’s appetite differs significantly from that of a pug. Tracking your pet’s daily consumption and comparing it to the expiration date on the food is a simple yet effective budgeting hack. Ultimately, you’ll get the biggest savings without wasting food and money.

 

Grooming At Home

Bathing and grooming your pet may be daunting, especially when it comes to nail clipping, cleaning their ears, and brushing their teeth. For example, you don’t want to trim their nails too short or accidentally snip your cat’s whiskers. It is, nevertheless, possible with the right tools, products, and training. Enroll in a low-cost grooming class, consult with your veterinarian and groomer, research your particular breed of animal required, and practice. That way, you’re learning a new, valuable skill and spending more time with your pet.

 

DIY-ing Toys And Treats

You don’t have to buy items for your pet all the time. Instead, save some money by making toys with items you already have. Do you have a sock that’s missing its match? Fill a sock with packing paper to make a sock toy for your cat. What about that shipping pallet that you never threw out? Make a customized doggie bed out of it. Many DIY home improvement projects for your pets can help you save money, too. Plus, you can make a tasty dog-friendly trail mix treat for your pup with leftovers in the fridge. 

 

Taking Care Of Your Pet’s Health

You may think skipping your yearly vet check or a month’s flea treatment will save you money, but it will most certainly cost you more in the long run. Investing in your dog or cat’s health and well-being is certainly more cost-effective. This means sticking to a regular exercise routine, feeding your pet nutritious food, and keeping up with immunizations and yearly health checks. Taking your pet’s health seriously will help you avoid potentially astronomical expenses in the future. 

 

Couponing And More

Do you use coupons when you go shopping for your pet? Knowing how and when to use discount coupons is a great money-saving tip. To get coupons for your pet, just go to your favorite pet food brand’s website and sign up for their mailing list or “like” their social media page. You’re likely to receive discount coupons for your first order or your pet’s birthday. Present them to the cashier or use them in your online checkout when you make a purchase. Additionally, search for coupons affixed to your pet’s food bags. You can also purchase in bulk at your local discount store for maximum savings, compare prices online before shopping, or join a low-cost subscription program.

 

Final thoughts

Having a pet should be both enjoyable and stress-free. But it doesn’t mean always choosing the cheapest product and services out there. Aim to strike a balance between quality and affordability. Finding that balance will pave the way for you to become more financially stable.

 

Balancing quality and budgeting applies to adopting pets, buying pet food, grooming, toys and treats, and pet health care. Use this principle even when you’re going out of town by choosing an expert pet sitter. Contact Whiskers to Tails Pet Sitting for reliable pet sitting and save 10% on your first transaction.

 

Guest Author: Sophia Young recently quit a non-writing job to finally be able to tell stories and paint the world through her words. She loves talking about fashion and weddings and travel, but she can also easily whip up a thousand-word article about the latest marketing and business trends, finance-related topics, or even a nice heart-warming article about family life. She can go from fashion guru to your friendly neighborhood cat lady with mean budgeting skills and home tips real quick.

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The Purr-fect DIY Cat Toys For Fun

Photo by Arina Krasnikova from Pexels

 

Cats can sometimes get overlooked in the toy department at stores. With limited options, you’re left with rat toys, scratching posts, and fake fish hooks. If you’ve owned a cat, you know they can be picky, so if they don’t like any of those options you’re left with almost nothing.

 

While cats can be independent animals, they need some playtime to get their energy out in a healthy way. Big changes such as finding the perfect home can add to their anxiety and long-term stress can create bad behavioral habits. Proving enrichment toys are a great way to keep their minds working and alleviate stress.

 

These DIY cat enrichment are a purr-fect way to help your little one let out that energy by staying active and healthy while you save money:

 

1. Elevated Spaces

Cats love to be in high places. They like to let everyone know they’re the ruler of the house. It makes them feel safe and secure as they can see everything below them. Things such as window hammocks are ideal, but why not go a step further and build their own kingdom in the living room. With just a few planks of wood and nails, you can customize it to your liking.

 

Make sure you create a new and welcoming place for your cat in your home so they know they can feel safe. Adding special touches such as scratching posts or homemade hammocks just add to the fun of customizing their own little space to play.

 

2. Catios

Even if you’re limited on space, you can still create a place for your cat to feel safe. Catios are a great way to welcome your furry friend home and allow them to look and explore outside as they watch the birds and squirrels without having to worry about them running off. There are endless possibilities to create the best catio for your pet.

 

Some catio ideas include:

  • Treehouse
  • Window extension
  • Sunroom
  • Repurposed shelves

 

2. Puzzle Feeders

With a busy life, it’s hard to keep your cat entertained all day. Whether you find a cat sitter or want to keep them by your side, puzzle feeders are an easy way to keep your cat occupied for a while so you have time to do what you need to. 

 

It’s easy to use items you already have such as toilet paper rolls, tissue boxes, or towels. Cut holes large enough for their food or treats in a household item of your choice for a quick and easy way to save money and keep your cat amused. Just be sure they are safe and don’t chew on something they aren’t meant to.

 

3. Enrichment Box

Don’t throwaway all of your delivery boxes this week! Instead, repurpose them into enrichment toys for your cat. It takes minimal effort, but keeps your cat happy, healthy, and stress-free.

 

Crumple up a few pieces of old paper, some pet-safe dried leaves, their favorite toys and treats, and throw them into a box. It takes less than five minutes and leaves your cat occupied for the next hour.

 

While you look after yourself, it’s just as important to look after your little friend. Saving money and DIY-ing a catio or enrichment toys are the purr-fect way to allow them to relieve their stress and keep them happy and healthy.

Guest author: Eve is a content writer from Southern California. When she’s not writing, she’s playing soccer, surfing, or taking trips to Disneyland!

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DIY Home Improvements for Your Pet

Up here in the frozen tundra we call Minnesota, we often need to find ways to amuse ourselves and our pets during the long winter months. We may bake treats, teach new tricks, or even try to teach our pets to talk with buttons. But after a while we need to change things up. If you enjoy DIY projects, why not try some DIY that would make both you and your pet happy!?

More and more pet parents these days are keeping their pets in mind when buying or renting homes. They pay attention to the flooring, the stairs, the places to put gates, pet doors, or cat trees, and the spaces for play, bathing, and grooming. (Check out the infographic below for more details!)

It’s wonderful that so many people are considering their pets’ comfort when choosing their homes. However, you can still customize their living spaces for their entertainment and peace of mind even more, or if you weren’t able to choose your housing with your pet in mind, here’s a chance to spice things up!

Cat Shelves

Cats love climbing and high spaces. Higher perches allow them to feel safe and secure in their surroundings. But there are some places in your home, like your kitchen countertops, that you’d prefer their little toe beans to stay off! Some cat owners put a hammock in a window for their cats but what about building them their own highway in the sky? From installing a singular wall perch for your cats to creating levels of shelves, walkways, and tunnels, building cat shelves will be a great way to enrich your kitty’s life and keep them off unwanted surfaces!

To build your shelves you’ll need a sturdy wooden board at least 1/2 inch thick, “L” brackets, and heavy duty wall anchors. Be sure that your shelf is long enough for your cat to comfortable rest without parts of their body hanging off. Hillspet.com has a great how to guide to get started with your cat shelves. You can easily customize your design to best suit you, your cat, and your home!

Most cats will gravitate to their new kingdom in the sky, but if they are unsure of change you can help encourage them to interact with their new world by placing treats or catnip on the shelf as enticement. Soon your cats will be climbing all the time!

Catio

Yep, a catio (a cat patio) is a thing! I should know, I have one and my cats adore it. I bet you can imagine the look on Beans’ face when I tell her “no, I’m sorry, you can’t go outside because it’s -10 degrees.” They absolutely love having the space to explore outside, and I love that they (and our local birds) are safe.

Catios can range from a box attached to your window that you cat can relax in to watch the birds, to an enclosure large enough to be considered an addition to your house! There are many different catio plans out there so depending on your home type, number of cats, and handiness with power tools, you can create an outdoor oasis for your kitties.

The first step is determining where and how large your catio will be.The Daily Paws suggests creating a structure that is at least 20 feet wide and 8 feet high if you have the space, giving your cat optimal room to roam (and a bench for you!), and provides ideas for flooring, roofing, and extra enrichment. Catio World has suggestions for structures of all sizes as well as step by step instructions for construction. For those of us who maybe aren’t quite as DIY as we thought, Catio Spaces has plans and catio kits available.

Dog House

Most of our pups love to spend time outside, sniffing the breeze, watching the neighbors, and just relaxing in the sun. Wouldn’t it be fun to create a space outdoors just for your pup? There are a ton of pre-made dog houses out there, but designing your own means you can customize your pup’s home to their preferences? Does your dog love to sit up high (maybe channeling Snoopy)? Add a deck on top of their house. Does your pet have a thick coat that gets hot in the summer months? Add a porch to the front for some shade.

The most important part of DIY’ing a dog house is ensuring the frame is sturdy so that your pup can safely relax inside or play around their new space. Home Depot has some great instructions for how to purchase supplies, measure, and build your pup’s new pad. They also have some tips on how to insulate and weather proof the house to make it safer for your pet to enjoy in all weather. Just be sure to always bring your pup inside in severe weather.

If you have some carpentry skills and want to plan your own dog house, go for it! Just remember to include a floor so your dog is up off the ground, and add some insulation to make it cozy as it gets colder. If you are new to building houses of any size, check out these plans from thespruce.com or k9ofmine.com.

Doggie Dooley

Ok, I’ll admit that this last one is not so much for your pup as it is for you. For those of you who don’t know what a “dooley” is, it can also be called a doggie septic system or a doggie waste digester. Disposing of your dog’s waste often means having a trash can in the backyard, throwing away many plastic bags per day, or paying for a pooper scooper service. Instead, why not try to compost your pup’s waste. Just don’t use it in your vegetable garden, stick to using it around trees or flower beds.

Creating your own doggie dooley can be as easy as buying a large plastic trash bin (bonus points if you have an old one lying around that you can repurpose), cutting the bottom out, digging a hole for it, lining the bottom of the hole with rocks and gravel, and putting it in! The Wildest has a clear step by step guide on how to do this.

You’ll likely need to add a “starter” to the bin to get the waste to begin breaking down, so you can use a septic starter from any home improvement store. However, if you’re concerned about any of the chemicals, here is a good option for a more natural starter.

There are so many other options out there, these are just the beginning! You can build your pet their own room, a throne, some costumes, or a castle. The sky is the limit, so get out there and DIY for your pet!

 

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How to DIY the purrfect cat bed

Your cat is royalty, why not treat him/her to their own throne?

 

Why buy an expensive cat bed at the store when you can make your own DIY cat furniture? With the guide below you can give your furry friend a comfortable place to sleep, handcrafted with love by you.

This bed is not your usual cat furniture as it has multiple features like a scratching board and a head massager, and because we all know that cats love to sit in boxes, this bed is made out of a wooden box, which means your cat will love it.

In order to make this multi-purpose cat bed just follow the steps shown in the guide below.

 

Contributing author: Timi Smith

Timi Smith is a cat owner and some of her favorite things to do are DIY projects and spending time with her cat. This time she teamed up with Buy Rope to bring you this guide on how to make a multi-purpose cat bed for your feline friend. Follow her and her kitty Coconut: @timischmidtt @coconutthecat.2020 https://www.buyrope.co.uk/

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Cactus Cuteness for your Cat

Do you like cacti? Are you looking for a new home project for the coming winter months, especially now that COVID-19 rates are on the rise? Check out this holiday cactus cat scratcher. It’s a beautiful addition to your home and a wonderful new toy for your cat!

Contributing author: Timi Smith

Timi teamed up with Buy Rope to put together this guide for every cat owner who wants to surprise their furry friend with a unique cat scratching post. As a cat mom and DIY lover she thinks this is the purrfect project that will make you and your cat happy. Follow her and her kitty Coconut: @timischmidtt @coconutthecat.2020 https://www.buyrope.co.uk/

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