Many people keep pets and evidence shows that pets contribute to good will and mental health improvement. However, the recession has caused some pet owners to think twice about keeping animals, although for the majority looking after their pets remains a priority.
Animal shelters across the U.S. remain overwhelmed as many people elect to surrender pets. With this in mind, the Forbes Advisor team set out to uncover the primary reasons that pet owners are giving away their dogs and cats. This was through a representative survey.
In the survey of 2,000 current and former pet owners, it was found that 3 percent of pet owners gave their dog or cat away in the past year, with 12 percent citing inflation as the primary reason that they gave up their pet.
Other top reasons for giving away pets included choosing to move to an apartment that is not pet friendly due to the rising cost of rent (mentioned by 10 percent of people), not being able to afford a pet’s medical bills (7 percent), and that the pet deposit required by landlords is too expensive (5 percent).
The core finding is that inflation is impacting pet spending for 2,000 dog and cat owners, with survey seeking to uncover the ways that inflation has impacted pet spending and savings for emergency pet expenses. The survey also reveals why some pet owners have given their dogs and cats away in the past year.
As an example of the costs faced by owners, a vet bill of $999 or less would cause 42 percent of pet owners to go into debt, while a vet bill of $499 or less would cause 28 percent of pet owners to go into debt.
Nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of pet owners said inflation has made it more difficult to pay a surprise vet bill, but 30 percent said they are less likely to pay for pet insurance amid inflation.
The responses by many people is to try and find alternatives to getting rid of their pets. For instances, to cope with rising prices, 44 percent of pet owners have used a credit card to pay for their pet’s vet bill in the past year while 18 percent dipped into their savings and 5 percent took out a loan.
While inflation has made it more difficult for most pet owners to maintain the savings needed to cover a surprise vet bill, 63 percent said they are spending the same amount or more on their pet per month.
In terms of those seeking to make savings, some 38 percent of pet owners said that they’ve cut back on the amount of money they spend on their pet each month due to inflation. Of these, dog owners (49 percent) were most likely to say that they have cut back on their monthly pet spending compared to only 20 percent of cat owners.
