Jerome J
I am about to own a pitbull mix in about a week depending whether or not if im ready for it. I currently live in a 1 bedroom apartment (people say I am crazy by choosing a pit mix due to my living conditions). This will be my 1st dog but I have trained with k9 units for the past 4 years. I will be able to take it out for exercise daily for long periods of time. I have no concerns about maintainance, grooming, purchasing food, etc. I am only concerned about 2 things....housetraining it, and its crate. Is there even a crate that is big enough to house a pitbull that weighs 45-60 lbs (im sorry im uneducated on crates) and what are crates used for? (it seems like a prison for troubled dogs) As housetraining is heavily concerned. I am very afraid because my whole apartment is carpeted but I am expecting accidents to occur but I do not want this dog to continue pissin n shittn inside the house. I will be able to take it outdoors everyday. Any advice will be helpful. Thank you for your time.
Answer
Yes you can get crates for dogs that size any pet store or even walmart or target would have them. Crate train him in the beginning. when you can't be there to watch him he needs to be in the crate it will also help house train him because he won't want to go to the bathroom in the crate. Take him out for a walk first thing in the morning then about 30 minutes after he eats. Then just watch him for signs that he might need to go. At night about an hour before your ready to walk him for the last time before bed take his food and water up so he can't have anymore until morning. I did this with my dog and she did have some pee accidents in the house but never and poop accidents, well unless she is sick and she is 4 years old and has only pooped in the house a grand total of 3 times. Once they learn to hold it they can go a long time. When I'm at work she has waited 12 hours between walks with no accidents.
Yes you can get crates for dogs that size any pet store or even walmart or target would have them. Crate train him in the beginning. when you can't be there to watch him he needs to be in the crate it will also help house train him because he won't want to go to the bathroom in the crate. Take him out for a walk first thing in the morning then about 30 minutes after he eats. Then just watch him for signs that he might need to go. At night about an hour before your ready to walk him for the last time before bed take his food and water up so he can't have anymore until morning. I did this with my dog and she did have some pee accidents in the house but never and poop accidents, well unless she is sick and she is 4 years old and has only pooped in the house a grand total of 3 times. Once they learn to hold it they can go a long time. When I'm at work she has waited 12 hours between walks with no accidents.
How much does it cost to take care of a dog?
Valerie
My brothers friend's dad found a dog that was left at his work and they cannot find the owner, so my mom said we could maybe keep it. she just wants to know how much the crate will cost and all of the accessories, plus the trips to the vet. please tell me the prices of the things listed below if you know! thx in advance!
Food?
Crate?
Vet trips?
Toys?
Clothes?
Answer
Food: I double checked this on the walmart website and a medium size 8kg bag of of regular food (Dog Chow, Beneful) costs around $20.00. Dogs really only need fed twice a day and if you avoid overfeeding (follow directions from the bag or ask your vet) you shouldn't be over spending on food. Shop around, different stores can have different prices or sales. My large dog probably goes through a large bag at least once a month but she is a puppy (technically doesn't look like it though) so she gets fed more/ Our medium sized dog (cocker spaniel) takes around a month to work through a medium bag if that helps.
Crate: Dog crates can be upwards from $50 (again wal-mart) but its not a necessary thing right away so you can take your time trying to find used ones for cheaper. My dogs don't have crates, instead they each have an old comforter (the spaniel destroyed his last bed when he got mad at us so no more expensiive bedding in our house) and they both like to lay in their corner or wherever the blanket is at that moment. A dog should have something soft (and their's, not your mom's favorite rug) to lie on available most of the time, especially if you don't want them on the couch.
Vet bills: I don't know where you live but I can give you the prices from my clinic, however keep in mind that this one is rural are government subsidized so a city price can be several times as much depending on where you go.
Because its a stray, vaccinations should be started from scratch as you don not know for sure if the dog has ever been vaccinated. The dog will need it's first distemper shot (approx $38) and in a month it will need a booster for this, same price as before. This is necessary or the first shot will be useless, this shot protects against several life threatening illnesses. The next shot is the rabies shot(approx$26) which for obvious reasons is necessary to be given to your dog. Both of these vaccinations will need to be boosted again in a year and then you can move to having them done every other year. At my clinic an examination is included with each vaccination so most people eventually switch to a program wherethey altenate shots every year, that way they don't pay as much in a single shot and their dog gets the health check each year.
In addition to shots you can deworm the dog, which I recommend just in case it has eaten something like a bird or a muskrat. Deworming can cost $10-15 I think, it really depends on the size of your dog. You can also do a topical flea treatment that also deworms so you basically hit two birds with one stone. (similar in pricing as dewormer)
These are just the basic components to keeping up with your dogs health care, I really recommend taking the dog to the vet and asking for "the works" basically. You want to start out right with your dog and getting him healthy with go a long way to making him/her a great pet. While there they can help you with any questions you may have. They can also check to see if the dog has been spayed/neutered, if it hasn't then please please please do, I know its an added cost but it makes for a much nicer pet and reduces their risk of developing cancer (mammary/prostate). I know the initial cost of everything seems like quite a lot but after the first visit its not as bad.
Toys: Most dogs like to be busy so toys can be fun. Its really up to you to find out what your dog likes to play with and go from there but I'll tell you what my dogs like: Lucy(large dog) loves to chew, I got her a kong, which I totally recommend as an awesome toy. Kongs come in different shapes and types of toys but they are virtually indestructible ($5-15) on average it depends what you are getting. Rawhides can be expensive when you think about it, som type sell for like $7 for two but you can get a bag of them for around 10.
Charlie(medium) loves balls, especially the rubber ones with bells inside, they cost about four dollars at superstore. Both dogs love milkbones (they get one at bedtime) again its a choice to spend the money and different stores have different prices, in my experience petvalu sells them at a decent price. the dogs also love empty milk jugs, which cost the price of...milk, they love runing around with them and pushing them across the snow same goes for 2L pop bottles (wouldn't let them chew them though)
Clothes: I would say not necessary unless its a short haired dog like a doberman or a chihuahua and is in contact with cold weather, then its nice to get them a winter coat if they`re spending an extanded amount of time outside. Don`t know the price though...
Extras: licensing, some areas ask for your dog to be licensed. (price will vary too for depending on area I`m sure)Also you will need a collar, and leash for sure. My clinic sells collars and leashes 10-15 dollars each, rogz is a great brand with fun styles and sturdy designs!
Hope this helps!
Food: I double checked this on the walmart website and a medium size 8kg bag of of regular food (Dog Chow, Beneful) costs around $20.00. Dogs really only need fed twice a day and if you avoid overfeeding (follow directions from the bag or ask your vet) you shouldn't be over spending on food. Shop around, different stores can have different prices or sales. My large dog probably goes through a large bag at least once a month but she is a puppy (technically doesn't look like it though) so she gets fed more/ Our medium sized dog (cocker spaniel) takes around a month to work through a medium bag if that helps.
Crate: Dog crates can be upwards from $50 (again wal-mart) but its not a necessary thing right away so you can take your time trying to find used ones for cheaper. My dogs don't have crates, instead they each have an old comforter (the spaniel destroyed his last bed when he got mad at us so no more expensiive bedding in our house) and they both like to lay in their corner or wherever the blanket is at that moment. A dog should have something soft (and their's, not your mom's favorite rug) to lie on available most of the time, especially if you don't want them on the couch.
Vet bills: I don't know where you live but I can give you the prices from my clinic, however keep in mind that this one is rural are government subsidized so a city price can be several times as much depending on where you go.
Because its a stray, vaccinations should be started from scratch as you don not know for sure if the dog has ever been vaccinated. The dog will need it's first distemper shot (approx $38) and in a month it will need a booster for this, same price as before. This is necessary or the first shot will be useless, this shot protects against several life threatening illnesses. The next shot is the rabies shot(approx$26) which for obvious reasons is necessary to be given to your dog. Both of these vaccinations will need to be boosted again in a year and then you can move to having them done every other year. At my clinic an examination is included with each vaccination so most people eventually switch to a program wherethey altenate shots every year, that way they don't pay as much in a single shot and their dog gets the health check each year.
In addition to shots you can deworm the dog, which I recommend just in case it has eaten something like a bird or a muskrat. Deworming can cost $10-15 I think, it really depends on the size of your dog. You can also do a topical flea treatment that also deworms so you basically hit two birds with one stone. (similar in pricing as dewormer)
These are just the basic components to keeping up with your dogs health care, I really recommend taking the dog to the vet and asking for "the works" basically. You want to start out right with your dog and getting him healthy with go a long way to making him/her a great pet. While there they can help you with any questions you may have. They can also check to see if the dog has been spayed/neutered, if it hasn't then please please please do, I know its an added cost but it makes for a much nicer pet and reduces their risk of developing cancer (mammary/prostate). I know the initial cost of everything seems like quite a lot but after the first visit its not as bad.
Toys: Most dogs like to be busy so toys can be fun. Its really up to you to find out what your dog likes to play with and go from there but I'll tell you what my dogs like: Lucy(large dog) loves to chew, I got her a kong, which I totally recommend as an awesome toy. Kongs come in different shapes and types of toys but they are virtually indestructible ($5-15) on average it depends what you are getting. Rawhides can be expensive when you think about it, som type sell for like $7 for two but you can get a bag of them for around 10.
Charlie(medium) loves balls, especially the rubber ones with bells inside, they cost about four dollars at superstore. Both dogs love milkbones (they get one at bedtime) again its a choice to spend the money and different stores have different prices, in my experience petvalu sells them at a decent price. the dogs also love empty milk jugs, which cost the price of...milk, they love runing around with them and pushing them across the snow same goes for 2L pop bottles (wouldn't let them chew them though)
Clothes: I would say not necessary unless its a short haired dog like a doberman or a chihuahua and is in contact with cold weather, then its nice to get them a winter coat if they`re spending an extanded amount of time outside. Don`t know the price though...
Extras: licensing, some areas ask for your dog to be licensed. (price will vary too for depending on area I`m sure)Also you will need a collar, and leash for sure. My clinic sells collars and leashes 10-15 dollars each, rogz is a great brand with fun styles and sturdy designs!
Hope this helps!
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