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Apache is functioning normally

May 28, 2023 by Brett Tams

Save more, spend smarter, and make your money go further

For some consumers, treating Spot and Fluffy as members of the family extends to their diet. After all, if everyone else is getting homemade meals with organic ingredients, why shouldn’t they? It might be healthier than commercial foods — and cheaper, too.

Consumers have become more interested in preparing their own pet foods in recent years, due to both pet food recall scares and a human-diet emphasis on knowing what’s in the foods we eat, says Dr. Jules Benson, the vice president of veterinary services for pet insurance carrier Petplan. There are some economic interests, too, depending on what you currently feed your pet. A balanced, home-cooked diet for a 30-pound dog would cost $3.52 per day; $5.58 if you go organic. That’s two to four times the price of commercial dry dog foods of similar qualities, he says, but up to half the cost of commercial wet foods.

But making the switch isn’t as simple as dishing up a portion of the Sunday-dinner roast for your pet. “There is science behind what your pet needs,” says Dr. Benson. “These diets should be developed for your pet individually.” Home-prepared pet meals aren’t a good solution, or a safe one, for every family.

That means before you give homemade food a try as a significant part of your pet’s diet — and this step is vital — TALK TO YOUR VETERINARIAN. Don’t just go in and ask, “Is this a good idea?” either. Research some of the options, present what you’d like to do, and get their take on what works and doesn’t for your pet’s general health and any medical conditions. You might also seek a consultation with a veterinary nutritionist. (The American Academy of Veterinary Nutrition and the American College of Veterinary Nutrition both recommend PetDiets.com and Balanceit.com as resources.)

Try these other tips to delve into cooking for your pet:

Cook for yourself

“Every Day with Rachel Ray” magazine runs a regular feature of recipes that both you and your dog can enjoy. Personal chef Lindsay Nixon uses lentils as the protein base for her dogs, and mixes in leftover vegetables, potatoes and brown rice from her own meals as well as a pet vitamin supplement. (The combo, she says, has cut her pet food bill from $25 per month for dry kibble to just $10.)

Keep it healthy

Not all foods people eat are good for dogs and cats, Dr. Benson warns. “Don’t feed them hot dogs, or anything we would consider junk food,” he says. “Just because dogs will eat it doesn’t mean it’s good for them.” Low-fat, lean cuts trump fatty bits, which are more likely to cause gastrointestinal problems. But good-for-us foods aren’t always good for them, either. Foods like grapes and onions should never be given to your pet, he says. (Check the ASPCA’s people food list of things that may be toxic, or cause some digestive issues.)

Use a homemade food as a topper

There’s no need to make all your pet’s food to see some savings or health benefits. You could scale back the amount of commercially prepared food you serve, and either top it with a homemade mix, or blend one in. Jenna Dreher, the chief executive of pet-care company Pet It Forward, tops her Great Dane Casper’s food with a soft mix of simmered sweet potatoes, carrots and apples, seasoned with a dash of cinnamon.

Outsource preparation

If you want to try these kinds of diets but don’t have the time to spend in the kitchen or are worried about getting the right balance of necessary foods, check out premade raw pet food like Primal Pet Foods, Nature’s Variety, and The Honest Kitchen. It’s not a money-saver, however: ThatMutt.com blogger Lindsay Stordahl’s looked at the options for Ace, her 67-pound black lab mix, and found that premade food came out to be $83 to $115 more expensive per month than versions she could make at home. “So far I haven’t done that because of the time commitment,” Stordahl says. “I can barely find time to shop for my own food.”

Seek out supplements

It’s not enough to give your dog or cat some chicken and rice every night, Dr. Benson says. You’ll need extra vitamins, which might be achieved through mixing in different vegetables and grains, a powdered pet-food supplement or other add-ins (like, oddly, human Tums) recommended by your vet. These add just a few cents to the bill, but many — like taurine powder for homemade cat foods — are essential, he says.

Make treats

They’re a good entry point into homemade foods. Dreher makes these yogurt, apple and oatmeal treats for Casper: Mix two and 1/3 cups oatmeal, one cup French vanilla yogurt and two-thirds of a cup of apple sauce together in 1 bowl.  Another of Casper’s favorite treats mixes two and 1/3 cups oatmeal, two mashed ripe bananas, one cup peanut butter and a half-cup chopped peanuts. For either recipe, spoon batter onto cooking sheet, keeping each drop the size of a bottle cap — an optimal treat size. Cook at 375 for 12-15 minutes.

Frugal Foodie is a journalist based in New York City who spends her days writing about personal finance and obsessing about what she’ll have for dinner. Chat with her on Twitter through @MintFoodie.

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Pet Budgets

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Posted in: Pets, Real Estate News Tagged: About, All, apple, ask, at home, balance, before, Benefits, best, black, Blend, Blog, brown, Budgeting, Budgeting 101, Buy, cats, cents, chicken, city, College, Commercial, company, Consumers, cooking, cost, coupons, diet, dogs, Eating, entry, expensive, Family, Finance, Financial Planning, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, food, foodie, frugal, General, gift, good, great, green, grocery, Grocery Shopping, guide, health, healthy, healthy eating, holiday, home, hot, in, Insurance, kitchen, Life, lindsay, list, low, Make, making, Medical, Mint, money, More, myths, needs, new, new york, new york city, or, Other, Personal, personal finance, Pet, pets, Planning, present, president, price, Recipes, Research, rice, right, safe, save, Save Money, saver, Saving, Saving 101, saving money, savings, science, shopping, simple, Sites, tax, tax breaks, time, tips, toxic, Twitter, Ways to Save, will

Apache is functioning normally

May 6, 2023 by Brett Tams

You’ve found the perfect apartment. It’s got everything you want — parking, amenities and spacious closets. Even the apartment grounds are nice… at least they were. There are few things more frustrating than a pet owner who neglects to clean up. Not only is pet waste unsightly, it can also ruin a decent pair of shoes or stink up your car if you don’t notice you’ve stepped in it.

While most apartment communities have rules and regulations on pet waste, sometimes there’s just one neighbor who won’t play ball. So what do you do when you’re reaching your breaking point?

Know Who It Is? Try a Friendly Chat

If you’ve noticed your neighbor being slightly “forgetful” about bringing out the baggies, and other people are left to clean up after dog waste, try a friendly chat. Mention that you’ve noticed the issue and it’s bothering you. Keep calm and keep it friendly. With some apartment communities levying fines for irresponsible pet owners, the problem person might be glad you talked to them directly instead of going to the apartment manager.

Mystery Culprit? Talk to Your Apartment Manager

If you’ve spoken to your neighbors and can’t figure out who the culprit is, it’s time to enlist the aid of your apartment community manager. They’re invested in keeping the property beautiful too, and will probably be happy to help you. Some of the ideas you can suggest include:

  • Baggie dispenser near the site
  • Baggie disposal garbage can nearby
  • Signs reminding residents to clean up after their dog, and of the consequences if they don’t
  • Reminder emails to residents

Print Your Own Signs or Reminders

If you and your neighbors are having difficulties, try printing your own signs that remind to clean up after your dog. You can find plenty of downloadable signs on the web that you can easily print, laminate and then hang near problem areas.

Join Your Neighborhood Group

When there’s an issue in your neighborhood, there’s nothing better than rallying your neighbors. Try joining groups like Nextdoor, or see if your community has a Facebook group where you can discuss community issues. You might be surprised to find that some of your other neighbors are also having issues with the very same thing.

An irresponsible pet owner who won’t clean up after his or her dog can be frustrating. But there are things you can do to help alleviate the problem. Have you ever had to deal with an issue like this? How did you handle it? Let us know below!

Posted in: Home Loans Guide, Pets Tagged: About, aid, Amenities, apartment, Apartment Living, apartment tips, apartment-community, ball, calm, car, Clean, closets, dogs, facebook, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, friendly, ideas, Living, md, More, neighbors, Nextdoor, or, Other, Pet, pets, play, property, reminder, Rent, time, tips, will

This $8 Million (Dog)House Could Be Yours

February 23, 2023 by Brett Tams

They had us at “built-in dog kennel.”

Posted in: Pets, Student Finances, Unique Homes Tagged: 2, agent, Arizona, az, Backyard, Blog, Built, car, Colonial, court, dogs, doors, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, fireplace, green, home, hot, house, kids, kitchen, Media, More, pets, photography, pool, room, Sell, suite, under, Unique Homes, Video, youtube, Zillow, Zillow.com

Do You Have to Pay a Pet Deposit for a Support Animal?

February 17, 2023 by Brett Tams

Most apartments require extra pet feeds, but it’s a different story for service animals. Here’s a quick breakdown of how the rules are different for emotional support animals.

The post Do You Have to Pay a Pet Deposit for a Support Animal? appeared first on Apartment Living Tips – Apartment Tips from ApartmentGuide.com.

Posted in: Home Loans Guide, Pets Tagged: actual, aid, apartment, Apartment Living, apartment tips, apartments, ask, before, Benefits, Blog, Compensation, Department of Housing and Urban Development, deposit, Disability, doors, fair housing, Fair Housing Act, Fall, Family, Fees, FHA, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, good, health, Housing, HUD, landlord, landlords, lease, Legal, Live, Living, Make, Medical, News, Other, ownership, Pet, pet deposit, pets, place, policies, property, property managers, Rent, rental, renters, renting with pets, Research, right, security, security deposit, society, story, tips, under, will, work

Sample Letter: Requesting Permission to Have a Pet

February 4, 2023 by Brett Tams

If you’ve already moved in and decided it’s time to expand your family with a pet, you need to get permission first. Here’s a sample letter requesting a pet.

The post Sample Letter: Requesting Permission to Have a Pet appeared first on Apartment Living Tips – Apartment Tips from ApartmentGuide.com.

Posted in: Home Loans Guide, Pets Tagged: All, apartment, Apartment Living, apartment tips, Appreciate, before, Behavior, Blog, building, cats, chance, city, Clean, Closet, Clothing, company, Convenience, cost, deposit, dogs, eviction, exercise, existing, Family, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, friendly, green, home, household, Housing, HR, Insurance, landlord, landlords, language, lease, list, Live, Make, More, neighbors, new, new apartment, offer, opportunity, Other, ownership, Pet, pet deposit, pet-friendly, pet-friendly home, pets, place, plan, proof, property, Rent, rental, rental housing, renter, right, safe, sample letter, states, time, tips, will

Making Your Own Dog Food

January 17, 2023 by Brett Tams

I’m hoping this isn’t going to sound too crazy, but I’ve thought about this a couple of times.  Making my own dog food appeals to me because I feel like I could create better and more healthy food for my dogs.   This isn’t really about saving money, because I’m pretty sure making your own dog […]

The post Making Your Own Dog Food appeared first on Making Sense Of Cents.

Posted in: Pets, Saving Energy Tagged: All, commission, cost, couple, disclosure, dogs, expensive, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, food, healthy, healthy food, Make, making, money, More, Pet, pets, Purchase, Recipes, Saving, saving money

How much do you spend on your pet(s)?

January 17, 2023 by Brett Tams

Here’s a great graphic displaying what the average person on Mint spends on their animals. We spend around (this is yearly and for both of our dogs): $500 on food $400 on vet bills (shots, yearly check-up, plus medical bills for my smaller dog) $200 on toys and treats We don’t have pet insurance.  Any […]

The post How much do you spend on your pet(s)? appeared first on Making Sense Of Cents.

Posted in: Pets, Saving Energy Tagged: bills, Budget, commission, cost, disclosure, dogs, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, food, Graphic, great, Insurance, Make, making, Medical, medical bills, Mint, More, Pet, pets, Purchase

Easy Ways to Keep Your Pet Secure

January 16, 2023 by Brett Tams

Lauren from L Bee and the Money Tree wrote recently about how her dog, Murray, decided to take a little jaunt around the neighbourhood at 11pm in the middle of the rain storm, leaving her a nervous wreck until she found him. While this story ends well, it’s one we’ll all familiar with. I’ve been […]

The post Easy Ways to Keep Your Pet Secure appeared first on Making Sense Of Cents.

Posted in: Pets, Saving Energy Tagged: adventure, All, Backyard, cats, Cities, closing, commission, cost, disclosure, dogs, electric, expensive, Family, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, great, house, install, Law, Life, Local, low, Make, making, money, More, office, Offices, opportunity, Pet, pets, plan, property, protect, Purchase, searching, story, summer, update, will

Coronavirus Fraud: Trending Financial Scams to Avoid

January 11, 2023 by Brett Tams

As concern around COVID-19 has grown, scammers have been quick to take advantage of the uncertainty and limited information surrounding the situation. As a result, they’ve been able to generate a number of coronavirus frauds targeting vulnerable populations around the world.  From January through June 22, 2020, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) received 54,292 coronavirus

The post Coronavirus Fraud: Trending Financial Scams to Avoid appeared first on MintLife Blog.

Posted in: Financial Planning, Money Etiquette, Pets Tagged: All, ask, Bank, Behavior, Blog, business, charity, commission, company, con artists, coronavirus, cost, COVID-19, Crisis, decades, deposit, education, Fall, Fees, Financial Goals, Financial Planning, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, fraud, funds, General, goals, good, government, great, guide, health, Health care, How To, internet, irs, job, language, Learn, Life, Local, Make, making, market, Marketing, Mint, mistake, money, Money Etiquette, More, new, offer, offers, online shopping, Operations, organization, Other, pandemic, payments, Personal, personal information, post coronavirus, products, protect, quarantine, Recruiting, scam, scams, Sell, shopping, shutdown, stimulus, target, tips, tools, trust, vacation, will

A How-To Guide to Modern Tipping

January 11, 2023 by Brett Tams

I recently escaped to Lake Tahoe for some much needed rest and relaxation. After hours in the car with two kids, we finally arrived at our hotel, desperate to cool our heels in the pool. And then it happened. The bellman brought our luggage to our room, and my husband and I exchanged horrified looks.

The post A How-To Guide to Modern Tipping appeared first on MintLife Blog.

Posted in: Financial Planning, Money Etiquette, Pets Tagged: advice, All, app, ask, banks, Blog, Budgeting, car, coffee, cost, customer service, etiquette, Financial Planning, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, food, friendly, front, front door, guide, Holidays, Hospitality, hotels, How To, jump, kids, lake, lake tahoe, Life, lyft, Make, Make Money, meal planning, Mint, modern, money, Money Etiquette, More, new, offer, Planning, policies, pool, Relaxation, restaurant, restaurants, Reviews, running, Saving, Saving 101, School, sharing economy, shopping, Style, texas, tipping, tips, traditional, Travel, Travel Tips, Uber, weather, when to tip
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