What are the REAL costs for bringing a new kitten into your home? Most adoption centers have some sort of fee, often covering spay/neutering costs - but is that it? What about the so-called "free" kittens?What can you expect to spend on your new addition?
Suzanne Gardner, an author at Petside.com suggests carefully considering all costs before deciding to adopt.
"The initial cost of adopting a kitten can range from $0 to well over $100. After the kitten has been adopted, pet owners will need to pay for health care costs, which include required vaccinations and tests, deworming, and spaying or neutering procedures. Additional initial cost items include supplies such as the litter box, grooming supplies, cat carrier, toys and scratching posts, food bowls, and microchipping. These costs, including necessary monthly items such as flea and tick control, cat litter and food, add up to an average ranging from $900 to $1,500 for the first year."
That is some real cash, folks! So, when your neighbor tells you that he has a box of kittens and you are welcome to one or more for free (as has happened to us more than once) just make sure you are prepared to fork over the cash.
Don't forget - cats have emergencies just like people!! Accidents or a sudden illness can mean an unscheduled trip to the vet. And these costs can add up quickly - sometimes up to thousands of dollars.
We encourage you to adopt - but we also want to remind you that you are taking responsibility for another life...and you owe it to your new kitten to provide the best care possible. If your kitten could talk - we are sure he or she would say thanks. Since they can't talk, we'll say thanks for them :)
Today's featured cat is Rahelio (yes...we know that we used an H in his name) aka Julio. This fine looking boy wandered in to our backyard from the woods behind our house - feral, armed and dangerous...and spreading his seed throughout the region - we first fixed the little bugger and then decided to bring him into the fold after a several-month absence and an infected wound on his head nearly killed him. After a couple of years of socialization work, Julio is a happy (lazy) house cat - alpha all the way and nothing but trouble. He even has his very own "bad boy" chair when he needs a time out.
Until next time (meow)
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