If I had the time to post all the times we rushed the cats off to the vet for emergencies...that turned out to be dandruff once, an overweight cat another time and a prize time that the vet still teases us about...when we first got our younger cat he nursed off our older cat (both neutered males) and our older cat got sore nipples. So I am in the same league as your friend.
I once met a very horny female cat who was singing for a lover at an emergency vets. Her poor owner who'd only had dogs before thought she was dying of something horrible and was in pain. She was so relieved when they explained it was only unrequited love. It made a very horrid evening a bit lighter. We all laughed and the poor woman looked relieved and embarrassed . Poored little cat had to go home alone.
Oh. Wow. While I have never rushed my dog to the vet for a (imaginary) flea, I would hazard a guess that we've all done the vet visit where the vet is kind of chuckling behind our backs for bringing an animal in "just for that??" Hey, better safe than sorry, right?
Our vet once declined payment after she treated Snowie, probably cos we'd been in so often! This time it was for good reason (I thought) - two small puncture wounds on the anus from a nasty Standard Poodle. I guess she realized we'd be back before long for a more lucrative visit, i.e. something imaginary that would require a long list of blood tests.
I've forgotten to add all the bits and pieces that Xena has destroyed! Samsung Galaxy tablet, broken screen Swatch watch, destroyed Two Samsung Smart tv remotes, destroyed Cellphone case, munted Edges of coffee table, chewed off Patch of dry wall, eaten One pair of jandals and one pair of Crocs, eaten The legs of several dining table chairs, substantially nibbled There's a common theme in this thread - even if you remove the frivolous spending, all the dogs have cost us far more than we'd ever anticipated!
I think, along with dog training fees, one should set aside fees for a course in furniture restoration. Thankfully I'd done such a course many years ago. So that when Snowie nibbled my mother's antique table leg while she was babysitting him (she thought he was such a good puppy, lying quietly next to her chair! Meanwhile...), I could restore it myself. Otherwise would've cost a small fortune.
A Dutch website has calculated this for us. Mind you, the link is in Dutch..... http://www.licg.nl/80s/praktisch/aanschaf/aanschaf/wat-kost-een-huisdier.html
I think my biggest expense was a new car. I brought a Toyota Auris brand new when Harley was 12 weeks old. We thought the boot had plenty of space. She hated the boot and I convinced the OH that the boot was too small and I needed a bigger car. When Harley was about 15 months old I traded in the Auris for a brand new Rav 4 Forward on less than 2 years and Harley still hates the boot and is now on the back seat or passenger seat in the front . I am now trying to talk him into getting me a slightly smaller new car...........maybe a Toyota C-HR.......
