Are you ready for a dog?
Owning a dog can be a very rewarding experience, but is a huge
responsibility and you need to be committed to looking after it. It
can cost up to £10,000 throughout its life. Consider the costs that
include:
- Food bills
- Bedding
- Toys
- Collar and lead
- Vet bills
- Microchipping fees
- Neutering fees
- Costs for training classes
- Boarding kennel fees if you are going away
- Insurance cover
- You should also consider that you might need to replace items
in the home that your dog may chew or damage.
Owning a pet is also very time consuming. The average life span
of a dog is 13 years, so before you take on the responsibility of
owning a dog ask yourself some simple questions:
- Will you still want a dog in five years' time?
- Is your situation likely to change?
- Do you have time to exercise the dog?
- Will you be able to devote time to training the dog?
- How often will the dog be left on its own each day?
- What will you do with the dog if you go away?
- You need to consider all of these questions and think about
whether you are able to properly care for a dog.
- Will you show commitment and be a responsible dog owner?
- Are you willing to always remove your dog's faeces and deposit
of it in a suitable way?
- Do you have the time and money to go to training classes with
your dog?
- You should also consider whether or not the whole family would
be able to live with a dog.
- Allergies can be a big problem. If one member of the family has
eczema or asthma it would be better to choose a dog that doesn't
shed hair. Also bear in mind the fact that some dogs need
professional grooming, which can be quite expensive.