Vacationing and A New Dog

I have been out of town on vacation and on a business trip. I didn’t have much time to contribute to the blog. Now I am back and working on getting more articles written.

On Saturday evening, we were befriended by a puppy. Long story short, my husband, who has been adamantly opposed to getting a dog, fell in love with our new addition, Bella. Bella is 7 months old, or so, and is part mastiff (yikes!). She is an unruly and spunky 45 lbs. She will put on 10 lbs in the next month, the vet told us.

I went to one of the local pet stores on Sunday morning and bought food, a collar and some toys. I checked out the prices of dog crates and beds. Since she is part mastiff, she will grow to be a bigger sized dog. When I looked at the crates I saw the biggest were $100. The beds were around $50 for big dogs. $150 on top of the vet fees, and the $45 I already spent on food, collar and toys. I decided to hunt for cheaper options.

I put out a question on the frugal living forum at about.com asking for ideas for a cheaper dog crate and bed. The wonderful frugalities didn’t disappoint me.

Crate: I got information that often rescue places have some that can be borrowed. People also bought used crates from Craig’s list and other classified ad websites. Thirdly, I was told that we do not need to crate the puppy unless she shows tendencies toward chewing and/or is not housebroken. (she is pretty much housebroken!). If I can find a small room for her to be put in with toys, food, and water while we are gone, than that will be enough. Luckily, we have a mud room that will serve the purpose. Savings: $100!

Dog Bed: One woman told me to go to garage sales and buy a comforter or two and fold them up for Bella. These will be soft, washable and comfortable. Another woman told me to get some egg crate style foam and cover it with fleece throws by pinning it. I can cut to whatever size I want. I am going garage saling tomorrow to get some old comforters (king size hopefully!). Projected costs: $5-10, Savings: $40-45.

What really disturbed me is that in my excitement at having a new puppy, I was ready to spend $150 rather than look for cheaper solutions. I slowed down and thought there must be another option. By asking for help from other like-minded people, I saved so much money. The next time you have a situation where you are ready to plunk down large amounts of cash for something that you “need” to buy, step back and think about other solutions. Or join the discussion on the frugal living forum and ask for other ideas. The forums are a great place to learn how to be frugal and how other people do things in a frugal manner.