7 Ways to Save Money as a Pet Parent During This Inflationary Time

It’s no secret that inflation and the cost of living have recently risen to worrying heights. With experts predicting that this economic squeeze will be here to stay for several months, we are all looking for ways to make savings. Pet owners are no exception to this, so we’re here to outline the most efficient ways to save money without compromising the normal happy lives of our furry friends.

1. Prioritise Preventative Health

Keeping your companion in great health is key to avoiding future, potentially costly, issues. Many vets now offer health plans that include essential health preventions, such as vaccines and worming treatment, whilst making savings and spreading costs. Additionally, it’s important to invest time in maintaining your pet’s general health. In the U.K. alone there is a large subset of obese animals, by keeping your pets lean and fit they will be at less risk of long-term issues such as arthritis, heart disease, and diabetes. Another extremely common issue that we can help to prevent at home is dental disease, by regularly brushing our pets teeth, using specific pet toothpastes and toothbrushes, we can delay the progression of dental problems that often need to be treated by a vet.

2. Take Out Pet Insurance

Unfortunately, most health issues and vet trips are unexpected. Coupling this with the high standard of healthcare vets are now able to give to pets, chronic conditions or unexpected surgeries can be costly. Taking out pet insurance not only makes affording the best treatments available for your pets an option, it also gives you peace of mind should your pet ever need veterinary treatment. A top tip is to use comparison sites to find the best insurance option for you and your pet but remember lifetime policies are often best as yearly policies will often not cover for any diagnosed conditions the next year.

3. Save on Treats

During these trying times you may be able to save on your monthly treat spend. A great way to do this is to take out a portion of your pet’s normal food and use this as your training treats, this also helps with weight management! If your pet enjoys some variability then you can try cheaper, healthier snacks and treats like chopped carrot.

4. Re-use

The rise of modern-day second-hand markets has also been beneficial for pets. There are plenty of online marketplaces where you can pick up good quality second hand pet supplies such as cat towers, beds, and toys. This can save on your spending and is better for the environment!

5. Save on Food

A good quality pet food is essential but that doesn’t mean there aren’t savings to be made. Often pet food companies, like OMNI, have subscription services that result in discounts on overall price and may include free shipping. Even if this is not the case, it’s often more cost efficient to buy the larger sizes of your chosen food, some quick maths and forward planning can certainly come in handy.

6. Groom at Home

While, depending on breed, your fluffy friend may have professional grooming requirements, you may be able to do some of the intermittent work yourself. With input from a vet or experienced groomer and good behavioural training, you may be able to do some grooming at home such as nail clipping and shampooing.

7. Efficient Walking

Taking time to establish the best local dog walks can be an excellent way to reduce having to drive to places further away. A great place to start for this is online walking forums and websites and via local dog walking groups. You might be surprised at all the local places you’ve never been! An added benefit of talking to other local dog owners is that you may be able to find a group that can walk your dog as a favour on the days you’re unable.

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FAQs

But aren’t dog’s carnivores?

Dogs are in fact nutritional omnivores as demonstrated by a robust scientific study published in the reputable journal Nature (1,2) in which it was shown that they have 30 copies of the AMY2B gene responsible for digesting plant-based foods.

They have also evolved relatively long intestines (21) (almost as long as humans) and relatively flat surfaces on their molars (31, 22) which they use for digesting and chewing a whole range of foods.

The common misconception that dogs are carnivores probably arises from the fact that they are classified in the order Carnivora but so are plenty of other species like bears, skunks, racoons who are omnivores and even the giant panda who thrives on a plant-based diet (20).

Is plant protein digestible to dogs?

Absolutely yes, studies which have looked at how much protein dogs can absorb from plant-based and fungi-based foods like soya and yeast demonstrated over 75% digestibility which is on par with meat-based foods (23, 24, 34, 35 & 25).

Both these protein sources also contain all 10 essential amino acids (36, 37) that dogs need to thrive.

Isn't there too much fibre in plant-based food?

The average amount of fibre in a commercial dog food diet is between 2-4%. omni’s plant-powered recipe has a fibre content of 3% which is on par with meat- based diets.

In our survey with over 200 dog owners, 100% reported that their dog’s stool consistency was either ‘normal’ or ‘perfect’ and there were no reports of any digestive upsets (data on file).

Can I mix omni with other meat-based diets?

We are proud that our recipes are nutritionally complete and so include everything your dog needs to thrive. This means omni can be fed as a sole ration. We also fully support a 'flexitarian approach' like meat free lunches or using omni as a mixer.

Every little helps to bring some of the health and environmental benefits of plant-power to meal times. Mixing omni with meat/fish will help to add variety into your dog’s diet whilst adding in healthy ingredients with a relatively low carbon footprint.

Can plant-based food provide the essential fatty acids dogs need?

All the essential fats and oils that dogs need, including omegas 3 and 6 are found in a variety of both meat and plant-based foods (31, 28).

omni’s recipe is rich in plant-based sources of these nutrients so your dog will get all the essentials they need.

I hear a lot about feeding raw meat, isn’t that better?

Feeding raw meat to dogs has become a very popular trend in recent years, but most vets will warn against this practise. This is because the cooking process is vital to help kill off dangerous bacteria like E coli, Salmonella and Campylobacter (9) that have necessitated several food recalls from the market and caused serious illness and even death in both dogs and their owners (40, 41, & 42).

There are also several worms and parasites that are only killed off when raw meat is cooked. Dogs are dogs, not wolves and thanks to their domestication over thousands of years, thankfully don’t need to hunt to get their grub nor do they need to eat raw meat, it's just not worth the risk.

References

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