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Franny's Cats Blog

By Franny Syufy, About.com Guide to Cats since 1997

Costs of Cat Care

Monday July 21, 2008
Being a responsible owner of a cat carries with it certain financial obligations. If you are not in a position, or are not willing to meet these costs, it may be better not to take in a cat at all, in your current situation. I know it is difficult to resist that cute kitten in the "free to a good home" box, or that friendly stray on the street who begs to come home with you, but if you can't afford to give it the bare necessities, you are probably doing the cat or kitten no favor. Fortunately, you have options, if your love for cats far outweighs your means to properly care for them. We'll discuss those options a bit later.

On the other hand, if your budget is tight, but you are willing to make certain sacrifices for the sake of having the pleasures of a cat in your life, then you may be able to accomplish that dream.

Cats have certain basic needs which often divide the difference between a stray on the street and a cat in a home with a responsible caregiver (the irresponsible ones often dump their cats back into the streets or at the nearest "shelter"). These needs include: Learn more

Pictured here is Andrew, a street cat who was chased and cornered by a large dog shortly after this photo was taken
Photo Credit: © Galens Granny

Comments

July 21, 2008 at 2:04 pm
(1) Mandy says:

I wish that more people would stop their selves from getting more animals when they can’t afford to properly care for them. A lot of them reason by saying it’s better for the cat than to be on the street, but that is assuming NO ONE else will want the cat.

I don’t know how anyone feeding super-premium food can only pay $12 a month. Is that a typo? For my two cats, I pay anywhere from $150-300 a month, depending on what type of food I’m getting. Newman’s Own Organic is the most expensive and Wellness is the cheapest. My cats eat canned only, 4-5 times a day (half a normal-sized can each) and they would not settle for less. They aren’t overweight at all. They let me know when they are hungry and I feed them. They eat on their own schedule, which is about once every four hours.

July 21, 2008 at 2:48 pm
(2) gina says:

propper care is important and that can be expensive too. So i would wish too that people only take those animals where they really can take care off. Even though if there is an emergency coming up to have the money for the vet.

July 23, 2008 at 12:11 pm
(3) Chixtria Nguyen says:

I’ve solved the high cost of food and the potentially unsafe food threat by making our own food at home. It saves money and we know exactly what is in the food. Any food we humanoids don’t consume gets mixed and blended into the cat food too so there is nothing wasted.

I noticed Mandy feed her cats when they feel like they need to eat. I tried that with our three cats, but they got too fat. Since then, I only feed them one time, first thing in the morning. If they refuse to eat, they’ll get nothing until the following AM. The longest this has gone on was three days with my youngest cat Rudykins. Since then, Rudykins is first in line when I get up to get her home grown goodness.

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