There is nothing like the delight of coming home from work and having your slippers brought to you by your trusty kanine... Ha, never the case in my household, but the role that my delightful doggies do fulfill is one of unconditional adoration and love. Even in my worst times, they are there with a silly look on their face and more often than not, part of my garden in their mouths. People enjoy pets for many reasons, but they can also add an expensive element to our lives. About two years ago I went on a weekend trip down the coast with two of my dogs, the accommodation was free, food was supplied and all in all it was a cheap weekend getaway which enjoyed thoroughly...until the week following. The south coast of Australia is renowned for paralysis ticks, as my dear little doggies found out all too well. After the trip to the vet, two over night stays and the treatment to save my two paralysed angels, I was nearly paralysed myself by the bill... Those two tiny tiny ticks cost me a whopping $3,000! From this experience I have learned prevention is better than cure and in the event the prevention doesn't work - there is now pet insurance. Well worth the consideration for any pet owner!
Pet food on a budget
My doggies are only little, but they sure do know how to eat. Pet food can be nearly as expensive as the food we put in our own mouths so I did some research and found a simple recipe you can follow at home to make food to feed two small dogs for 4 weeks.
* 1 kg pet mince (about $2 from the local butcher)
* 500gms rice (or breakfast cereal or oats)
* 500gm bag homebrand vegies (make sure there is no onion - not good for dogs)
* 2 eggs
* I like to throw in last night's gravy for flavour
* Dash of garlic, salt and parsley
* Flour to thicken
Stir this all up in a big pot and put in plastic containers to freeze. I usually keep a week's worth in the fridge and put the rest in the freezer.
I use old margarine containers - but cheap varieties are available from discount stores.
