Have you ever thought about how much it costs you to keep a pet? The reality is that having a pet can be a very costly endeavor, although any pet owner will tell you that their beloved furry friends are well worth the cost. Still, if you break down the costs and really consider how much money you are spending in order to keep your pet happy and healthy, you just may be a little shocked.

Paying for Your Dog

The costs of owning a dog can be impacted by a number of different factors. For example, a larger dog is going to need to eat more food and some larger dogs are more prone to hip problems and other medical issues. Similarly, certain breeds are more likely to become ill than other breeds. In addition, if you get your pet pooch while he or she is still a puppy, you will spend more during that first year of life than you will during each subsequent year because they need to get so many different vaccinations. After that, your pet will only need to get booster shoots and rabies shots, which will save a significant amount of money.

Of course, the lifespan of the dog will also impact how much you spend during the lifetime of the pet. Since small to medium-sized dogs tend to live longer than larger dogs, you will likely pay more during the lifetime of one of these dogs. Per year, on the other hand, a larger dog is likely to be more costly.

The estimated life span of small to medium-sized dogs weighing less than 55 pounds is about 14 years. During the first year of your pet's life, you can expect to pay anywhere from $740 to $1,325 to take care of your pet. After that, it will cost about $500 to $875 per year to care for your pet, which makes the total cost $7,240 to $12,700.

Larger dogs typically live around 8 years and you can expect to pay anywhere from $1,020 to $1,825 during its first year of life. Thereafter, it will cost about $690 to $875 to care for the dog, for a total cost of $5,850 to $7,950.

Paying for Cats

The biggest factor in determining the cost of a cat is whether the cat is an indoor or outdoor cat. This is primarily because indoor cats tend to live much longer than outdoor cats.

Outdoor cats have an average life span of only about 5 years. During the first year of life, an outdoor kitten will cost anywhere from $785 to $1,010 to care for. Thereafter, it costs about $415 to $580 to care for an outdoor cat, with the total expense over the cat's lifetime being $2,445 to $4,150.

Indoor cats are substantially more costly because they live an average of 16 years. The first year of ownership costs around $895 to $1,000. Each year after that costs about $515 to $685, with the total cost being $8,620 to $11,275 during the lifetime of the cat.