Saving for a Puppy!

[Thorsmomma]

I just was wondering...when you guys save for a yorkie puppy (for people that have to save, including myself) if you are planning on saving $800-$1,300 to spend on a puppy, do you save say $1,000-$2,000 so you can cover initial puppy stuff, like collars, bowls, vet bills (all the puppy vet bills are so expensive!) Or do you just save the amount the puppy is going to be and work with it from there? Just curious!
Hannah

[christelnpeawee]

I personally had to save a little extra. I got all the supplies I needed first. Then I saved for the puppy and just a little extra that I new what vet bills would immediately come up (like shots). I called the vet to find out exactly how much it would be. Then for any emergencies the vet had a payment program.

[stinky]

Every major purchase I have ever made (my house, cars… Ginger) I’ve done by the seat of my pants. I was looking for months and when I found her I was so excited I used an entire paycheck (and some of my boyfriend’s ) to get her—forget the mortgage! Lol

[PlatinumYorkies]

I am saving and buying..Also any extra money I get I put aside. My birthday and Christmas is coming so I told family, and other loved ones to give me cash and or a gift card to petsmart, walmart, and target...I know how much Shot's, and thing's cost at the vet..

[Foxy5671]

I am also saving for a puppy. I put money in the bank every week and I also buy things I know I am going to need, but also things to spoil him (I want a boy) with.

[Thorsmomma]

Thanks everyone for your input. I know I am a dork but I like to hear everyone's method, as these little guys aren't cheap!! I'd love to hear more stories!
Hannah

[chachi]

Well I just saved for the puppy and learned a hard lesson. My vet gives you a discount if you pay for all your puppy shots up front so there was another 250.00. Then Chachi had to go back to the vet right away because he had diahrea. They injected him with fluids and it was another 150.00 bill. It was a very expensive time.

[Thorsmomma]

Yeah I think saving for unexpecting things is really important. Like with Thor he has had one emergency room visit and an unexpected broken baby tooth that had to be removed AFTER his neutering which were both expensive...Next time I will be really prepared for things like that. But also pet insurance is really important to me. I won't go with out it.
Hannah

[lilbumbleybees]

I'm currently saving for Bounce's girlfriend! I take at last half of my paycheck everyweek towards the purchase of her. Then I take my other half and split it into bills, gas, free money, and everything else goes into the bank to anticipate puppy food (thank god I get the discount on that from work!), vet bills, etc. That way when I get her I won't feel so overwhelmed with paying for things and worrying, "do I have enough money to eat!" lol

[SoCalyorkiLvr]

I am the first to admit that I paid a lot for my yorkies but I have spent way more than their original purchase price on vet bills for all three and not because they were unusually sick or had accidents or anything. It was just normal stuff that puppies have happen.

I would save the cost of the puppy and then have at least $1000 in reserves so you can not stress out too much or possibly delay taking them to the vet because you fear you may not be able to pay the bill.

When Ava had her corneal ulcer and I took her to the emergency vet in the middle of the night when she was crying from the pain they charged $1500 on my credit card. It ended up costing $900 and all they did was run tests to rule out parvo, coccidia and hypoglycemia and they rehydrated her.

When Buddha wouldn't walk on his hind leg and we thought he may have broken it, it was $600 for the x-rays and the sedation for them to tell us he was fine. We realized afterward that he was probably stung by a bee but the vet did not diagnose this.

Princess Chai developed Kennel cough after a trip to the vet but I still had to take her back there, and when they couldn't diagnose it, I switched vets and paid again for the second opinion.

I use a homeopathic vet for second opinions a lot, and he has actually saved me money with the western style vets on unnecessary vaccines and surgeries but I have to pay him for his time and advice too.

Just from reading the stories on here you can see that the vet bills are expensive. My microwave repair guy this week told me he just spent $1300 to have his 15 year old yorkie's eye removed for health reasons. It all adds up and we all want the best for our babies so.....we all need to be as prepared as possible for the unexpected.