Pet owners skipping vet visits as economy sinks

Haggling a deal
Ingenuity and smart shopping can help you save money and still give your pets good care. With the economy on the skids, the ancient practice of bartering is back in vogue. If you have a particular skill, consider offering it in trade for pet services.

“I bartered a basic dog training session with the guy who details my van,” says Palika. “His dog got some training, and my van got cleaned.”

Veterinarian Debra Eldredge of Vernon, N.Y., says one clinic she worked at traded vet care for handmade pottery. She suggests offering to mow or garden. If you’re not handy, Eldredge says, many clinics will offer a payment plan for regular clients.

Buying in bulk is another budget saver. Look for dog treats and chews from online dog supply catalogs and store them in the freezer until you need them.

Some cities offer free or low-cost rabies vaccinations. When pet sitter Terry Albert’s dogs and cats need their shots, she takes them to a vaccination clinic at a pet supply superstore instead of the vet’s office. She shaves her wirehaired dachshund’s coat herself, although the Shetland sheepdogs still go to the groomer.

“I got a call from my groomer, who offered a $10 per dog discount if I brought them all on a slow day, so I took her up on it,” says Albert, who lives in Poway, Calif.

But regardless of what other ways you cut back, don't skimp on preventive care such as heartworm medication, Eldredge says.

“With the financial problems many families are facing, it may seem like a great idea to drop heartworm preventive or stop using flea and tick preventives,” she says. “Unfortunately, those problems can be much more expensive to treat than to prevent. Look to cut corners elsewhere, such as fewer or homemade dog toys or purchasing old comforters at garage sales for comfy dog beds. Look for coupons. If a catalog has a low price for heartworm or flea and tick preventives, see if your vet will match it. Most do. Alternatively, try to get into group orders with a discounted bulk price.”

Owners put pets first
Most pet owners say they would decrease spending for themselves before they’d let their pets go without. In Fairview, N.C., clumber spaniel owner Kim Smith McLendon would do whatever was necessary to make sure her dogs were taken care of.

“My husband and I are lucky in that we only owe a mortgage. If worse came to worst, we could put the cell phones on hold, I could do without the Internet, and we’d have to cut out Blockbuster online,” she says.

Labrador breeder Diane Ammerman of Mahwah, N.J., has given up manicures and other luxuries and drives only one vehicle, a big van in which to haul her dogs.

“The dogs are better cared for than I am,” she says. “If a dog gets sick, I’ll rush it to the vet. Me, I get sick, it’s no big deal.”

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