Saving Money With Dogs

I realize that having a pet is an expense, but since my wife and I rarely go to movies or go out to eat much, having a pet is an expense that we chose. We first had a Australian cattle dog-mix (still going) about 8 years ago. She has developed cataracts and a bit of neuritis in the last few years and we decided to adopt a blind, high-energy Australian Shepherd who is about as opposite as you can get. The older dog tolerates her fairly well, but the puppy seems a bit incomplete (our perception) as she loves to play.

We solved that dilemma last week when we drove 200 miles to adopt another Australian Shepherd who is nearly twice the size of our youngest despite being just one day older.

Dogs can be expensive, but we have discovered a way to be frugal with dogs. This is a challenge because we reward our dogs (through obedience training) with treats. We don't buy the commercially made ones, we make them ourselves.

Our treats are one of two types: chicken or pumpkin. Both are fairly easy to make. You can find the pumpkin recipe here or we use an inexpensive dehydrator, buy chicken breasts in bulk, chop the chicken into tiny (about your pinkie nail size) pieces and make a load of treats for a fraction of the cost of purchasing commercially made ones).